None of us are perfect. We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Sometimes we may think that the sins we have committed, the reckless lives we have lived, the poor choices we have made will forever keep us from God or that He doesn't love us or that we can never be forgiven. We may think we have done too much or gone too far for Him to reach us, but none of these thoughts are true. No matter what sin has been committed, God is willing and able to forgive but we have to first confess the sin to Him and allow Him to forgive us and cleanse us. Jesus did not come to this world to condemn any of us, He came that we ALL might be saved. No one is exempt. Salvation is free to any and everyone. If we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we are saved. Period. Now that may seem very simple and easy, and it is...but the more difficult part is moving forward in life. Some people are immediately delivered from some of their sinful behavior upon accepting Christ, others continue to struggle with certain habits and strongholds. I accepted Christ my senior year in high school at the age of 17 and soon after making that choice I was still doing the same things I was doing before being saved. In fact, for many years I continued to live a sinful, reckless life. I had a few stretches where I tried to get on the straight and narrow, but could never quite get it right. As I got older I began to be convicted of the choices that I was making which was a sign of the Holy Spirit at work within me (although I did not recognize it as such). When you choose Jesus, the enemy is going to try his best to deter you and keep you bound. He does not want you to do good or to fulfill the purpose that God has for your life. There are many tricks the devil uses against us and if we are not rooted and grounded in the love of God and surrounded by other believers that can help us see through the schemes, it is easier to fall victim to the devil and fail.
If you have lived a life full of sinful behavior, when you do decide to follow Jesus and change your behavior and thought process there is bound to be someone in your life who will try to remind you of your past or doubt your change. What other people think, though, is irrelevant. You have to stand firm in what you believe not matter what others say. No one knows better than you what's in your heart. I can recall one of my attempts at getting on the straight and narrow and I had a family member who doubted my change in behavior and had some negative things to say to me. I was not strong enough then to withstand the attack and eventually let the negativity from this individual and other circumstances in life wear me down. I let my feelings and my flesh win. I did not know God then like I know Him now and there is nothing or no one that could ever lead me back to the kind of life I used to live. In the bible, we have the perfect example of how God can change and forgive anyone. The Apostle Paul was formerly known as Saul. He persecuted, imprisoned, and even killed Christians before his conversion. He was well known for his evil behavior. But God. Saul was literally stopped in his tracks by God and had no choice but to bow down before Him. He was arguably one of the biggest persecutors of believers of his day and yet turned out to be one of the biggest promoters of Jesus Christ. It is said that he influenced Christianity only second to Jesus. He suffered greatly in the name of Jesus and many doubted his conversion, but the doubters and the suffering only strengthened Paul. Once he accepted Jesus Christ as Lord, Paul never turned back and he authored multiple books in the bible. Surely, if God saved and used Paul He can save and use any of us.
Peace & Blessings!
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