“Our faith in Jesus transfers God’s righteousness to us and he now declares us flawless in his eyes. [So that we] can now enjoy true and lasting peace with God…” Romans 5:1 TPT
I can’t speak for all you gentlemen out there, but I can definitely speak for the majority of the ladies! We are comparison junkies — all trying to prove our worth by feeling like we have it more together than another. It is second nature for us to size up, tear down, and criticize each other. We compare outfits, hair, blogs, and how well our houses are kept and our kiddos behave. Why do we do this? Because our hearts contain a question we long to have answered. Am I good enough?
I admit it. I struggle to feel adequate, good enough, and worthy at times and during moments of self-reflection, I’ve discovered the root. All judgment flows out of the insecurities, hurts, and fears our hearts hold. There is a quote that portrays this so clearly; “Every time you judge someone, you reveal a part of yourself that needs healing.”
I am most quick to judge other women in the places I’ve been hurt, feel I failed the worst or struggled with my own identity! This is where the beauty of Romans 5:1 comes to our rescue. There are two words that drew me right in reading the verse above: flawless & peace.
When we are declared flawless in God’s eyes it means that we are: without blemish or defect. We are seen as perfect, without fault, mistake or shortcoming. Get this, it means that when God looks at us he declares us “extremely good”. When is the last time you felt in your heart that you were extremely good? In God’s eyes, you are the absolute definition of perfection and everything he ever hoped for.
Would we ever need to judge another woman again if we truly allow this truth to enter into our hearts?
In the eyes of God, nothing that has happened to you or that you have done can in any way diminish your value. For you were declared flawless the moment you received Jesus as your Lord and savior.
The second word in the verse above that drew my eyes to it was peace. The word peace in this passage speaks to the beautiful way that God longs to connect with us. It is the Greek word for Eirene, and it means “to join” as in the dove-tail joint (The Passion Translation’s commentary). As I studied further, I found that a dove-tail joint is a woodworking-joint that connect the corners of a drawer. For it to fit perfectly together, it requires the handiwork of a master-craftsman. The dove-tail joint resembles the interlocking of fingers and is know in the industry as the strongest of all woodworking joints. And possibly most beautiful of all, once the interlock is in place it resists being pulled apart!
This metaphor captures the true nature of God towards us. God intentionally crafted a plan that would forever render powerless the possibility of our connection with him being thwarted. He gave his son so that he could declare us flawless and create a true, beautiful, peace-filled connection with us. What an amazing thought! Once we place our faith in him, he locks onto us and never pulls away. His heart interlocks with ours and forms the strongest and most reliable connection we will ever encounter. This connection allows his presence to become our guide and transform us from the inside out!
Are we not all longing for acceptance and to know that no matter how much we’ve flubbed it up we are loved and valued? Our mistakes always seem to have the spotlight in our minds. But not with God. Instead, somehow when he looks at us all he sees is the good inside of us. It is just like a loving parent who looks past their child’s ugly behavior because they know who they really are. This is how God sees us. He knows who we are, he sees us for the beautiful flawless light that he designed us to be and as we grasp this truth his peace will flood our souls.
So take a moment to self-reflect. At what times are you most likely to see your judge-o-meter engage and flip into high gear? This meter is your indicator that something in your heart is in need of your Creator’s validation and grace.
This verse is a hard one to accept for many of us because it confronts and calls out the beliefs we hold in our hearts that tell us we don”t measure up. Our instinct is to think, well sure, that’s true for Mary Beth down the street with her perfectly kept house, handsome husband, and well-behaved kids, but not for me!
How do we let this truth into our hearts and believe that when God looks at me and when God looks at you, all he sees is the flawless reflection of his son?
We have to realize it isn’t about us. It’s about the ultimate sacrifice Jesus paid for us to have a clean slate and perfect, unhindered connection with God. So let today be the day that you open your heart and your ears to hear God declare you flawless in his eyes. He can’t wait to set you free from the doubt that is rising up in you about your worth. Say it out loud with me now, “I am flawless in God’s eyes. I am fully accepted and filled with the peace that my connection with him is secure, certain, and locked in for life!”
Lord, we believe and declare that our mistakes, glaring imperfections, or scarring moments can never diminish our value in your eyes. May we take the time right now to settle into your cozy embrace, interlock our lives with yours and feel the security that when you look at us all you see is the good, perfect, and flawless light that you have placed within us!
Jesus thank you for your sacrifice. We declare that it settles once and for all the question in our hearts: “Yes my dear, you are most certainly enough – enough that I gave my life so that my Father could declare you beautifully flawless in his eyes!”
Be Bold ~ Be a Light!