Are you Good Enough? (Lunchtime for 10/14/09)

Are you good enough for God to listen to you? Will your prayers make a difference? This seems like an absurd question, but nonetheless, one people subconsciously ask & answer all the time. Our own shortcomings and sin, which fundamentally separates us from God, has an annoying consequence of constantly raising the question: Am I good enough? Our failures and struggle with sin elicit the voice of the accuser (Satan) along with our own guilt telling us that we are not good enough to serve God and should give up. Thus, serving God and praying for the lost can feel like a waste of time when we often feel lost ourselves. But isn’t that the point of having a savior? On our own we are lost. It is only in Christ that we are found. The beauty about praying for the lost and sharing Christ is that we are all called to be on the same journey: sinners saved by grace and in constant dependency and need of Jesus. We must remember that our purpose is to seek out God’s kingdom and His righteousness, not a realization of our own kingdom with our own personal righteousness within that kingdom. This side of heaven we will never be perfect for we still maintain a physical body that is cursed with sin. According to scripture (Romans 7), we have a battle raging within our very self, a battle between our spirit and our flesh. This truth is not an excuse to sin, rather an essential reminder that we will always need a savior. And just as important, it is a reminder that we are “Good enough” not based on our failures or lack of failures but based on our savior—Jesus Christ. We must continue to learn to place our value in Christ and His completed work on the cross and not our own personal qualifications, including our lack of qualifications. It is because Christ was and is “Good Enough” that we are able to approach the throne room of God with confidence.  As Hebrews 4:14-16 declares, “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.   Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”  With that promise from the God almighty who does not lie, let us Pray!  Pray feverishly and with boldness knowing that our Heavenly Father looks upon you as more than Good Enough thanks to our Lord Jesus.  For there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus our Lord.  God bless,

Pastor Joe