The thought: “From childhood, we are taught that acceptance must be earned through grades and behavior. And even a parent’s love can feel conditional based on whether we do good or bad. At work, we strive to gain approval, promotion, and success. We often carry that same mindset into our relationship with God, thinking we must do more, serve more, pray more, read more in order to be loved and forgiven.”

Source of the thought: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2QQXr2IofM

After hearing that thought it made me think.

There is much truth behind that, even in my own life; before I found Jesus truly, that thought constantly ran through my head. It was part of what kept me away from Jesus for so long.

One simple thought:

“I could never do enough to make God love me”.

This thought kept me in a state of spiritual hopelessness and also in the ever-growing distance from God that results from it.

The thought that we can’t even begin to work towards earning God’s love… The thought that his love is something that we can earn at all is straight from the devil.

Why do I say this? I say it because if you look deep into that thought and realize how small humanity is compared to the everlasting, ever existing, all knowing and all powerful God, you realize that there is nothing you can do that could be so exceptional that it could make him love you if he in fact hated you and wanted nothing to do with you.

If you think he hates you and wants nothing to do with you and you also accept who he is… you will fall into despair if you think what you do could have any effect on his love and acceptance of you. You will fall into despair because you will realize that anything you try will fall sorrowfully short every time.

This will also breed hatred and resentment in your heart towards him and drive you even further away.

In the video that I have provided you see a famous pastor, Pastor John MacArthur, talking with Ben Shapiro, a famous Jewish conservative political commentator.

What are they talking about? The differences between Judaism and Christianity.

Both of these theologically learned men agree that the two faiths are not so different from each other.

However, they also agree that the one difference that matters at all is what the two faiths think and do about Jesus Jesus Christ.

As a man of Jewish faith, Ben does not believe in the divinity of Jesus.

As a man of Christian faith, John MacArthur does.

The Jewish faith is based on you working towards salvation.

The Christian faith says you can’t do anything to work towards your salvation. It is a free gift given to you by Jesus Christ. It is a gift that he paid for with his own blood by dying on the cross and resurrecting from the dead three days after that.

There are many points in this video that point to Jesus being the only way to heaven, which aligns with his famous words in the book of John, specifically chapter 14, verse 6. “I am the way the truth and the life no one comes to the father except through me.”

To put it in a different set of words… no one has salvation, except through him; no one reaches heaven except through him. He is saying that no matter what work you do on earth, if you do not accept the gift of salvation given to you by Jesus, you will not reach heaven.

So the thought that says “I could never do enough to make God love me” is true… but that’s because he already loves you more than you could ever imagine.

He loves you enough, he loves us all enough that he sent Jesus to die for us.

He sent Jesus to be the last sacrifice. The last spotless Lamb that would be sacrificed for the sin of man.

What you can do means nothing when all that can be done has already been done by the one perfect one.

The only thing you can and should do is accept the free gift of salvation that has been presented to you by Jesus Christ.

The gift is free because Jesus paid the fee!

Take hold of Jesus.

Take hold of your gift.

Take hold of your salvation.