IF YOU REALLY KNEW ME, YOU WOULDN’T LOVE ME

I’m not sure exactly how this works, but basically, God knew in advance everything bad you would do. He knew every shameful sin you would commit before He ever created you. He knew every vile thought you would have before He chose you.

Nothing you have done will make Him reverse or regret His decision because He knew about it before He made His decision to love you. Your bad choices didn't take Him by surprise. To the contrary, they are the means to showcase His grace.

In Galatians 1:13, Paul tells that in his former life he "persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it." He literally was complicit in the murder of many Christians. It doesn't get much worse than that. Paul calls himself "the chief of sinners." But two verses later in Galatians 1:15-16 Paul says, "It pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles."

First of all, what a great verse on the sanctity of life in a mother's womb. But in addition to that, consider the order of things. God chose Paul before He committed these horrible acts, knowing full well that he would. God knew He was calling Paul in spite of the fact that He knew what Saul (Paul) would do.

Ephesians 1:4-6 says "For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will--to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves."

How could God know everything about us in advance and choose us anyway? How could God choose us to be holy and blameless knowing beforehand every disgusting sin we would commit? The two don't make sense if you leave out the word grace. Your calling, your inheritance, your forgiveness has nothing to do with you. It is all about "the praise of His glorious grace."

Knowing this amazing truth about His amazing grace, I don't have to doubt God's calling on my life or my qualification to proclaim His truth. It isn't about me. It is about Him. You don't need to doubt either.

Your past doesn’t matter. It doesn't matter if you have had abortions or affairs. It doesn’t matter if you have stolen money at work. It doesn't matter who you have lied to or lied about. It doesn't matter if you have been a complete hypocrite up to this point in your life. The second you have done something, it is in the past and is fully forgivable by the grace of God. You do have to repent and turn from that sin for that grace to be activated, but God knew you would do it before He choose you. He choose you so that He could lavish His grace on you and use you to showcase that glorious grace.

God does not love you because you are a great person. God loves you because He is a great God.