For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. (ESV)

I remember going to church for a period of time when I really wanted to give my life to Christ. He had been drawing me in for quite some time, but I wasn’t quite sure what following him was really about. I understood some things from a knowledge perspective, but I didn’t KNOW Jesus. What I did know (or at least I thought) was if I could just get good enough, if I could just clean my act up enough, if I could only put the really bad things in my life behind me, then I could be good enough to start a relationship with Jesus. He could handle the little things, but I wasn’t yet good enough to be all in. Yes, the church welcomed all, but surely there is a higher bar to take that first step of committing your life to Jesus. Right?!? …WRONG!! The reality is that none of us are good, not even one (except Jesus).

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Once I had finally had enough of the losing battle to become good enough, I decided to take a leap of faith. I decided to trust that Jesus was enough, even though I never could be. And in that, one of the most freeing things that he taught me is that I wasn’t made to do this alone. In Christ I am made whole. He began to heal things in me, winning battles that I had struggled with for as long as I could remember. He began to show me a better way, his way. And he continues to gently but firmly root out things in my life, restoring me day by day. Instead of constantly feeling the shame of each mistake I made, I get to run into the arms of my Savior who always fixes me, always makes things better. Thanks to his unimaginable love, sin no longer has dominion over me, for I am under grace.  

Sin is when we fall short of the perfect standard that God has. We have all already missed the mark. But thankfully, we don’t worship the law. We worship God. And likewise, it’s not the law by which we can be saved but by the restorative work of Jesus Christ.

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Are you mired by the sin in your life? Does it have control over you? Maybe you’re exhausted from trying to be good enough (a futile effort). In Matthew 11:28, Jesus says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Jesus isn’t saying come to me once you are good enough. He is saying, you who are trying to work so hard to be good enough, you who are burdened with this weight, come to me. I have a better way; I am the way.

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Are you ready to set it all aside and receive God’s abundant grace? There is nothing you can do to earn it or be good enough. It’s simply something that none of us deserve. Likewise, there is nothing that you can do to be too far gone in his eyes. All you have to do is receive his invitation and respond. Is your allegiance to the law or the Creator who gives you grace?

Lord, I am so grateful that you have rescued me. Thank you for freeing me from the bondage of sin so that I can focus on you. Please remind me each day that I am a child of God, created in your image, imperfect but made whole by Jesus. Help me to walk in this newness of life wherever you guide me. Amen!