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. The transformative power of the gospel is that all flesh was done away with at the cross, and now the Christ-man has come forth. True faith is not just a belief; it is a confidence in what he did for you.
You may find it hard to believe that a troubled, failing Christian like yourself could be precious to God. You may think he has to be disgusted with you because of all your problems. You may believe he still loves you, but surely God is disappointed because you have failed him so often.
In Isaiah 43, the prophet’s message of grace was spoken to people who had been robbed, snared in holes, and cast into prison because of their foolishness and unbelief. Despite all their failures, God came to them with a message of hope and love: “Since you were precious in my sight, you have been honored, and I have loved you” (Isaiah 43:4).
I will never forget the pain I endured when one of my teenage children confessed to me, “Dad, I’ve never once felt as if I have pleased you or 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 with my reply, “But you have always been special to me. You have been the apple of my eye. Sure, you’ve done foolish, wrong things at times; but you are 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 live as if his wrath is always breathing down on them. What a horrible way to go through life. Oh, how pained God must be when he sees his children living this way.
As Christians, we can be assured that we are precious in God’s sight. Trust in his love and grace, which can change our lives, no matter how unworthy or disappointed we may feel.