Accept His Love
God's love is not based on our performance, but on His grace, and we must learn to accept it and trust in Jesus' work on the cross.
David Wilkerson emphasizes the importance of accepting God's love and grace, regardless of our failures and shortcomings. He explains that our attempts to clean ourselves are futile without trusting in Jesus, whose sacrifice has made us new creations. Wilkerson shares a personal story about a child feeling unworthy of love, paralleling it with how many Christians perceive their relationship with God, believing they have disappointed Him. He reassures that God's love remains constant and that we should embrace it rather than live in fear of His disappointment. Ultimately, the message is one of hope and acceptance, encouraging believers to recognize their worth in God's eyes.
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It does not matter what you do to try to clean yourself up. If you don't trust Jesus to save you through His grace, all your righteousness is as filthy rags in God's sight. Your flesh isn't accepted before God; it can't even be reformed. All flesh was done away with at the cross and now a new Man has come forth--the Christ-man--and true faith is having confidence in what He did for you.
You may say, "I find it hard to believe that a troubled, failing Christian like me could be precious to God. He has to be disgusted with me, because my life is so up-and-down. I have problems I can't seem to get through. Oh, I believe He still loves me but surely He is disappointed in me because I have failed Him so often!"
Please understand: Isaiah's wonderful prophecy of grace (see Isaiah 43:1-5) was spoken to a people who had been robbed, snared in holes and cast into prison--all because of their own foolishness and unbelief. It was at such a point that God said to them, "Now, after all your failures, I come to you with this message of hope--and it is all because you are Mine."
I will never forget the pain I endured when one of my teenage children came to me and confessed, "Dad, I've never once felt as if I have pleased you. I've never felt worthy of your love. I feel like I've let you down my whole life. You must be really disappointed in me."
Those words hurt. I embraced that tearful child, hurting deeply inside myself. I cried as I told this child, "But you have always been special to me. You have been the apple of my eye. When I'm on the road conducting crusades, I think of you and my whole being lights up. Sure, you've done foolish, wrong things at times but you were forgiven. You were truly sorry and I never once thought less of you. You are nothing but a joy to me."
So it is with many Christians in their relationship with the heavenly Father. The devil has convinced them they have disappointed God and will never be able to please Him. Consequently, they don't accept His love and they live as if His wrath is always breathing down on them. What a horrible way to go through life--and how pained God must be when He sees His children living that way.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Futility of Self-Improvement
- A. No amount of self-effort can please God
- B. Our righteousness is seen as filthy rags
- II. The Power of True Faith
- A. Confidence in Jesus' work on the cross
- B. Trusting in His grace, not our own efforts
- III. God's Love for the Troubled Christian
- A. He is not disgusted, but loves us deeply
- B. His love is not based on our performance
- IV. The Devil's Lie
- A. He convinces us we've disappointed God
- B. This lie leads to a lack of acceptance of God's love
Key Quotes
“Your flesh isn't accepted before God; it can't even be reformed.” — David Wilkerson
“All flesh was done away with at the cross and now a new Man has come forth--the Christ-man--and true faith is having confidence in what He did for you.” — David Wilkerson
“You have always been special to me. You have been the apple of my eye.” — David Wilkerson
Application Points
- We must learn to accept God's love and not base our self-worth on our performance.
- True faith is trusting in Jesus' work on the cross, not our own efforts.
- God's love is not based on our performance, but on His grace.