"You Are Not Too Bad"

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief." 1 Timothy 1:15

In sharing the good news of Jesus' love, salvation and forgiveness of sin, there is one attitude/belief that I encounter from people more often then others. It is the belief that they are "too bad" for God to forgive them. They hear what you are saying and they want to believe it but they can't get past something they have done. Their own heart condemns them and will not allow them to believe it. To them the message is just "too good to be true".

I remember going through this same thing. When I was a young girl, I was in a store one day and saw something that caught my attention. I didn't even know what it was, it was very tiny and didn't cost a quarter but I stuck it in my pocket. I knew I had done wrong. A few years later, the Lord began to deal with my heart to come to salvation. I went to the altar to pray and receive Jesus into my life but I could not get past the fact that I had stolen that item years before. I wanted God's forgiveness. I wanted to be saved. I wanted to give my life to Him, but that "wasn't" possible- I thought- because of what I had done. Thankfully, my cousin came to the altar, who was a Christian and older than I was, to pray with me. I could not get past the guilt of what I had done. I just knew I could never be forgiven. I shared what I had done years before with her. I remember saying these exact words to her, "But I stole something, I can't be forgiven." Again, thankfully, she knew the truth of God's word. I don't even remember what she told me, but before I got up from the altar I was convinced that God's love for me was greater than anything, or any sin that I had committed, and that Jesus died for my sins so I could be forgiven. I left the altar a brand new person- forgiven of my sins.... ALL of them.

Our own hearts will condemn us and tell us we are too bad for God's forgiveness. The devil will condemn us and tell us that we are too bad for God to forgive. But neither is true. The truth is that we are all "too bad" to be forgiven- even at our very "best". We are all sinners- no matter what we have done. Whatever you have done- you may have stolen something, you may have committed adultery, you may be a drug addict, you may be addicted to something else, you may have murdered someone. What you think is too big or too bad for God to forgive is not. The love of God covers a multitude of sins. The shed blood of Jesus at the cross can wash away every sin regardless of what it is.

Don't believe the lie that your sin is too big or you are too bad for God to forgive. Believe His word, which is- He loves you, He wants to forgive your sins, nothing you have done is too big or horrible for His forgiveness, and He is waiting for you to come to Him and receive His love and forgiveness.

Have a great day. You are not too bad for God to love, and your sin is not too big for Him to forgive.

For further reading:
John 3:16,17
Romans 5:8
1 John 3:20
Romans 3:23

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell
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