Grace is the one key that, in my opinion, is more important than anything else in keeping our walk with God fresh and alive; it will keep you walking with the Lord consistently.
We need to stay away from legalism and understand the grace of God! Grace isn’t given to you as a license to live unto yourself—that’s just what this chapter says you can’t do. Grace is given so that you can love your brother and live a life of freedom.
If you return to the old ruts of religion, they will invariably lead you to legalism. Someone will begin to impose rules upon you: they will tell you you’re going to be lost unless you do such and such.
Romans 14: 17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
18 For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men.
The Kingdom of God is not what you eat and drink, nor is it rules or regulations about your manner of life.
You cannot merit God’s favor by rituals and conformity to certain standards of conduct. Does this mean you are free to do anything? Of course not! It is real righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit that pleases God. When these qualities are in your life, not only does it please God but you are also approved of men.
Self-condemnation is a phony thing that flourishes among Christians. Your life in God begins with a real conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit. But almost immediately, men step into the picture and begin to lay condemnation upon you; or your mind may already be so conditioned from the past that you continually live in a state of self-condemnation instead of feeling assured before God that the blood of Jesus Christ has cleansed you from all sin.
Happy is the man who doesn’t condemn himself in that which he allows. Whatever isn’t of faith is sin. He that doubts is condemned if he partakes. For his eating is not of faith and whatsoever is not of faith is sin (Romans 14:22–23).
When you begin to walk in the Spirit you are open to the Spirit. No one should teach you that you have to reach a certain level in your behavior or conduct before you can receive the Holy Spirit.
Some people in the Bible were filled with the Holy Spirit within a few seconds after believing in Christ. It is a gift of the grace of God. The gifts are “charisma”, which means an endowment of grace.
God saves you by His grace, not because you deserve it; you don’t bring anything in your hand to make you worthy to become a Christian. After you become a Christian you strive to please the Lord, but you don’t go back and revive the old idea of reform in order to present yourself acceptable to God.
You have begun in the Spirit and you’ll not be made perfect in the flesh. According to Galatians 3:3, you’re going to be made perfect in the Spirit. It starts in the Spirit and it ends in the Spirit. He’s the finisher of your faith.
If you stumble, don’t make an unbeliever of yourself. Call out to God. The same God who forgave you in the first place will take you step by step into the perfection He has for your life. Don’t excuse or condone anything that you do, but don’t make an unbeliever of yourself either. Don’t enter into self-condemnation which is destructive to your personal faith until you think of yourself as a third rate citizen in the Kingdom of God.
You are God’s dear child; you are in the family of God through the blood of Jesus Christ. Believe! If you stumble, remember that a righteous man stumbles seven time but the Lord upholdeth him with His hand (Proverbs 24:16).
My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin. And if any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. I John 2:1. We know that If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I John 1:9.
There must be a deep sense of repentance in every believer. You must live in a state of repentance in your heart, but not in a state of self-condemnation. These two are different. If you say, “I’m a child of God, but there is something in my life that should not be there,” repent before God and He will see that you get rid of it. Don’t walk under self-condemnation; it doesn’t lead to anything.
But don’t be a phony. Don’t cover over anything. Don’t try to put a veneer of hypocrisy or religion over your mistake. Don’t excuse yourself but on the other hand, don’t have such self-condemnation that you defeat yourself. Just see that you’ve sinned and repent of it deeply within your heart. Get rid of it and you’ll go on safely in this walk. One thing God honors is deep sincerity and honesty before Him.