So, I always worry about my faith...my salvation and being "left behind" seriously cause me so much anxiety. It sounds totally ridonc, but it's been something that I've really been struggling with for about 9 months now. I question the sincerity of my faith; do I really believe in Christ or am I just seeking to be fire-proofed? if I have these doubts and questions, it must mean that I don't really have faith and therefore can't be "saved by grace through faith." And since I have these thoughts/questions/doubts it makes me sometimes fear eternity. Do you see where being Type A, perfectionist, etc can really get you into trouble?
So now that you have some background information on my current struggles and temptations, I wanted to share something that was semi-encouraging to me. This morning at my grandparent's church (shout out to Village Meadows Baptist!) the sermon was called Being a Courageous Parent. Ironic since I'm going to be a parent in a very short amount of time... Anyways, there was a piece of scripture that stuck out to me some. The pastor spoke about Moses and his parents and their courage. In the message he shared this passage, Hebrews 11: 24-25. It reads:
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.
This passage was encouraging to me because by faith Moses made certain decisions. I'd like to think that I too have made similar choices, to not do what this world enjoys, because I have faith. I pray that the way I have lived my life is because I sincerely want to please and honor God, and not just simply because I was raised a certain way or had no desire to become a drunkard or all of the many other reasons I tell myself.
So, hopefully this little tid-bit of my randomness has encouraged or challenged you. And I humbly ask for your prayers while I continue to seek and find confidence in my relationship with the Lord and the promises He offers.
oh, and I apologize for lying...there aren't any pictures in this post either...sorry!
Hi Christina,
ReplyDeleteI just found your blog (thanks, Facebook) and I really want to encourage you. I think you're looking at things from the wrong perspective.
Look again at the "by grace through faith" passage: Ephesians 2:8-9. "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
You are afraid that your faith is not good enough. And you're trying to judge your faith by weighing doubts that you have against good things that you've done. Which in essence makes your faith all about you and your works. But this is the opposite of what God tells us. He says we were completely DEAD in our sin (see v. 1) and totally unable to save ourselves. That's where the GRACE comes in. Verses 4-5 say, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved."
This means that God loves and saves us completely despite our unworthiness. No doubts or fears or weaknesses in your faith will make God stop loving you. Just like no decisions you make in your faith will help secure your salvation. We all go through times when our faith is weak. But God's grace is absolute. You don't have to be afraid that your faith isn't good enough. Nothing we do or think or say could ever be good enough for a perfect God. That's why Jesus died, to give us his perfection.
Also check out Romans 3:20-24. We cannot be justified by what we do, we all fall short, grace is a gift. The only faith you need is to not reject Jesus. As long as you trust in Him as your Savior, no questions, no doubts, no moments of insincerity can ever shake the certainty of your salvation.
Check out Luke 17:5-6. Even the apostles needed reassuring about their faith.
Well, I hope I've said things that make sense. This article might sum things up better than I have:
http://www.biblegateway.com/blog/2012/08/three-bible-heroes-who-doubted/
I will definitely be praying for you. And I'm loving reading your blog. It's great to hear what you're up to these days and I love the honesty.
Love, your Phi Lamb Sister,
Nikki (Mueller) Laskowsky
Nikki!
DeleteI am soo very thankful for you right now! I had prayed that anyone who had a message from Him would comment on my blog post, and You my dear friend are the chosen deliverer of that message! Thank you so much for the verses to check out, the encouragement and the perspective!!! I will always look back on this comment when I need that Biblical perspective! THANK YOU!!!!