Richard Lovelace writes, “[People] who are no longer sure that God loves and accepts them in Jesus, apart from their present spiritual achievements, are subconsciously radically insecure persons.” (p.54)
Do you agree with this assessment? Why or why not?
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"The Prodigal God" on pages 63-65 talks about how, as long as you are trying to earn your salvation by controlling God through goodness, you will never be sure that you are good enough for him. You simply aren't sure that God loves and delights in you.
ReplyDeleteWhat are signs of this lack of assurance?
Every time something goes wrong in your life or a prayer goes unanswered, you wonder if it is because you aren't living right in this or that area.
You need other's approval to bolster your sense of value. Criticism doesn't just hurt your feelings, it is devastates you. This is because your sense of God's love is abstract and has little real power in your life.
You also feel a sense of irresolvable guilt. When you know you have done something wrong, your conscience torments you for a long time, even after you repent. Since you can't be sure you have repented deeply enough, you beat yourself up over what you did.
Lastly, a dry prayer life is another sign. Even if elder brothers are diligent in prayer, there is no wonder, awe, intimacy or delight in their conversations with God. Instead, their prayers are goal oriented
and are made up mostly of reciting needs and petitions, rather than spontaneous, joyful praise. In fact, many elder brothers, despite their religiosity, do not have much of a private prayer life, unless things are not going well for them.