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Introduction:
When you look in the mirror what do you see? Some of you
see gray hairs or freckles or wrinkles. Some of you see someone
you think is too ugly, too fat, too thin, too something. Some of
you see someone who is not smart enough, not quick enough, not
good looking enough, not something enough. Some of you see a mask
trying to cover up the struggle on the inside. Some of you see
someone who is trying desperately hard to be everything God wants
them to be but keeps falling short. Some of you see someone who is
desperately trying to prove to everyone how you are good enough,
even though you know you can’t possibly be. Some of you see
every sin you’ve ever committed and fear that everyone else can
see them too. Some of you don’t know who you’re seeing. I’d
like to share with you what God sees when He looks at you. I
John 3:1 says, “See what kind of love the Father has
given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we
are” (ESV). Whatever else you see when you look in the mirror, I
want to make sure you see that you are a beloved child of God.
Don’t take that for granted and don’t forget it. Discussion: I.
You are a beloved child of God. A.
John
1:12-13
says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name,
he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of
blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of
God” (ESV). Have you received Jesus? Have you believed in Him
and turned to Him? You are a beloved child of God. B.
Don’t forget what God has done for you. John
3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his
only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have
eternal life” (ESV). God so loved the world with you in it, that
He did this. God’s love was made manifest to you, I
John 4:9-10 says, by sending His Son into the world so
that you might live through Him. He became a propitiation for your
sins by His sacrifice. That is how much God loves you. C.
Romans
5:6-10
drives the point home for you. God sent His son for you while you
were weak. He didn’t do it because you were strong enough. He
sent His son for you while you were a sinner. He didn’t do it
because you had done enough good things or you were righteous
enough. God showed His love to you by sending Jesus to die for
you. D.
Why? Why does God love you? I
John 4:8 explains it is because God is love. Stop and bask
in that for a minute. God loves you because God is love. He
doesn’t love you because of your looks, your brains, your
health, your wealth, your wisdom, your righteousness, your
anything. God loves you because He is love, not because you are
anything. Understand what that means for you today. Nothing you do
today will make God love you any more than He already does. And
nothing you do today will make God love you any less than He
already does. E.
You are a beloved child of God. When He looks at you, He
doesn’t see all that other stuff that you see. He simply sees
someone He loves and wants to be close to Him. When you look in
the mirror, I hope you can start to see a beloved child of God.
Can you say that? Can you say, “I’m a beloved child of God”?
Why not try it right now? II.
Because you are a beloved child of God… A.
…trust God and follow His way; it works. 1.
Matthew
7:7-11 tells
us about God’s love. We are His beloved children and He knows
how to give us good gifts. He wants to give us good gifts. But
more than that, He has given us good gifts. James
1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is
from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (ESV). 2.
One of His good gifts is His word. All scripture has been
God-breathed that we might be competent, equipped for every good
work (II
Timothy 3:16-17). Paul commended the Ephesians to the word
of God’s grace because it is able to build us up and give us an
inheritance among the saints (Acts
20:32). 3.
Matthew
7:13-14
says we need to enter by God’s narrow way instead of the broad
way? Why? Do we do that to prove how awesome we are? Do we do that
to earn salvation? No. We do that because God’s way works. God
has given us the gift of His word. Let’s drop the competitions
to prove our will from God’s word and instead simply discover
His will and follow it. Why? Because His way works. His pattern
will get us to heaven. That is His grace. B.
…seek His blessings and see His blessings. 1.
Go back to Matthew
7:7-11. God wants to give us His good gifts. He loves us
and wants to bless us. But notice who He gives the good gifts. It
doesn’t say to those who want it. It doesn’t say to those who
need it. It says to those who ask. How many of God’s good gifts
go unopened because we simply don’t ask? James
4:2 says so often we don’t receive simply because we
don’t ask. God wants to bless us. 2.
Matthew
6:33
says if we seek first God’s kingdom, He will provide all the
other things we need. God loves you and wants to take care of you.
Instead of thinking you need to take care of yourself and then get
close to God, get close to God and let Him take care of you. Let
Him bless you. 3.
But not only should you seek the blessings of God’s care
for you, make sure you see the blessings God has given. All too
often we see what God hasn’t done for us yet. We see things we
want and have even asked for that He hasn’t given. Spend some
time counting your blessings, material and spiritual. Ephesians
1:3 says God has blessed us with all the spiritual
blessings in the heavenly places. We need to see those blessings. 4.
Regarding physical blessings, remember that it is through
God we live, move and have our being (Acts
17:28). Don’t take for granted the daily blessing of
breathing, eating, clothing, shelter. Last week as I was told to
shut down my a/c because of sewage that had flowed into and told
we had to leave our home. My initial reaction was to be upset and
to complain. But then I remembered that many people who suffered
flooding a few weeks ago would gladly trade places with me.
Further, it dawned on me that instead of complaining and thinking
God is picking on me because I have to go without air conditioning
for a few days I should give thanks that I’ve had it my whole
life and have it back again now. Instead of complaining that I had
to leave my house for a few days, I should be thankful that I’ve
had brethren who willingly opened their homes to my family and me.
That is God’s blessing in my life. How many blessings has God
given you this week? 5.
God loves you. You are His beloved child. Seek His
blessings and see His blessings. C.
…don’t get bogged down in fear. 1.
Romans
8:14-15
says we are the adopted children of God, therefore we don’t have
to fall back into fear. No matter what happens to us or around us
in this life, we can rest in the comfort that God hasn’t lost
us. God loves us. Instead of cowering in our little corner of the
world in silent panic, we can cry out to God, “Abba! Father!”
He will be there for us. 2.
Paul continued in Romans
8:31-39 explaining why we had nothing to fear. Nothing can
force us out of God’s hand. No sickness, financial turmoil,
persecution, struggle, nothing. Satan can’t take us out of
God’s hand. We don’t have to fear that. As long as we are
holding on to God, we don’t ever have to fear that He will let
us go. 3.
Too often we get caught up in trying to figure out what the
things going on around us mean. What is God trying to say to us?
Does this turmoil means God doesn’t love us? No. No matter what
happens, we don’t have to fear. We are beloved children of God.
We can rest in His love, allowing Him to be our strong and mighty
tower (Psalm
18:1-3). D.
…when you mess up, run to God not away from Him. 1.
Look again at Romans
5:6-8. God sent Jesus to die for you while you were a
sinner. He didn’t do it while you were doing your best to be
righteous on your own. He knew your sins and sent Jesus to die for
you. In fact, God knew every sin you would ever commit in your
entire life. Psalm
139:1-6 makes it clear; God knew everything you would ever
do. Not one single thing caused Him to step back and say, “Oh
my, guess I can’t save that one.” God looked at every sin you
committed and said, “I’m going to send my only Son to save you
from that.” 2.
Sadly, when we mess up big, we have a tendency to turn from
God. We want to run from Him. Like Adam and Eve in the garden, we
are ashamed and try to hide (Genesis
3:8). We may hide by cutting ourselves off from God and
His people. We may hide our sin by trying to cover it up with a
lot of seeming righteousness. We may think that if we hide it from
the folks in the church, we’ve hidden it from God. We try to
hide it until we’ve done enough to make up for it. Why do we do
these things? Because we are sure God is going to bring down His
wrath on us if we let Him know what we’ve done. But that is not
how it works with God. God’s wrath comes upon us when we try to
hide our sins, not when we bring them to Him (cf. Proverbs
28:13). 3.
What would have happened to Peter if when he began to sink
in the water he tried to hide from Jesus (Matthew
14:25-33)? But he didn’t try to hide, he turned back to
Jesus and Jesus saved him. What would have happened to the woman
with the issue of blood that made her unclean had hidden from
Jesus (Luke
8:43-48)? But she didn’t hide; she came to Him and
touched Him. What would have happened to the sinful woman in Luke
7:36-50 if she had hidden from Jesus? But she didn’t;
she came to Him, washed His feet with her tears and dried them
with her hair. What would have happened to the prodigal of Luke
15:11-32 if he had decided his folly meant he should hide
from the father? But he didn’t; he came to his father seeking
mercy. 4.
What will happen to us if we try to hide from God? We must
not. We are God’s beloved children. Our sins don’t make Him
hate us. Our sins don’t cause Him to dislike us. Our sins do not
cause God to love us any less. He already knew we would commit
that sin when He sent His only begotten Son to die for us. You are
God’s beloved child. When you sin, don’t run from your loving
Father. Run to Him. Run to His arms, accept His forgiveness and
direction. Even if, like the prodigal, the Father’s other
children don’t accept you properly, don’t let them deter you
from running back to God. He loves you. Conclusion:
What do you see in the mirror? Learn to see what God sees.
When God sees you, He sees one of His beloved children. He sees
someone He loved so much, He sent Jesus to die for you. Please,
don’t run from Him. Turn to Him; trust Him; seek His blessings;
take comfort in Him; hang on to Him. I
John 3:1 says, “See what kind of love the Father has
given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we
are” (ESV). Wow! How could we want anything else more than that?
Thank you, God, for Your love. How could we love anything else
more than God? Let’s love each other and love God. Next time you look in the mirror, say out loud, “I am a beloved child of God. Today, I’m going to live like it.”
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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