April 26, 2023 – Are You Trying to Be Accepted by God?
Sermon: 1770 Freedom from the Performance Trap
Pray Over This
“For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”
Ponder This
Perfectionism is a thief. It promises rewards, but it steals joy. Why? Because perfection is an unattainable goal.
If you get the idea that God is going to accept you based on your performance, that is a trap. Think about it. If you believe God is going to accept you based on your performance in your quiet time, Bible study, giving, and witnessing, then you will never know if you’ve done enough. You will never truly feel accepted.
If we could achieve perfection, we wouldn’t need a Savior. If you’re a perfectionist, you’ll end up angry with God because things don’t work out just right. Everything in life is not neat; something is going to happen that’s going to make you a little angry with God. Or maybe you’re going to be afraid of God.
We get the idea that God is up in Heaven judging us. He’s sort of a hard-nosed teacher or parent saying, “David gets a C-. Bob did terrible. Scotty did all right, but he sure could do better.” This is our idea of God, and we’ll never be able to live up to the demands He has on us that we have made for ourselves. We began in the Spirit when we were saved, but now we’re trying to prove to God just how good we can be.
- What comes to mind when you think about who God is?
- In what areas do you put high standards on yourself?
Practice This
Identify the areas in which you wrestle with perfectionism and repent.
For more from Love Worth Finding and Pastor Adrian Rogers, please visit www.lwf.org.
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