What makes me acceptable to God? - Acceptance - TouchPoints

Romans 3:27Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith.

Colossians 2:6Now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him.

No one can earn God’s acceptance. Nothing we do could ever compensate for our sins. The only way to be accepted by God is to believe that his Son, Jesus, died for our sins so we can be free to enjoy eternal life with him. When we accept his forgiveness and accept him as Lord of our lives, he completely accepts us into his presence. It’s that simple.

Romans 3:30There is only one God, and he makes people right with himself only by faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles.

Galatians 2:16Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.

Our sin separates us from a holy and perfect God. Faith in Jesus’ sacrifice removes our sin and makes us holy and acceptable in God’s sight, not because we become perfect, but because he has forgiven us. Our continued spiritual growth is not a condition for salvation but a result of it. Because God loves and accepts us, he longs for us to live lives full of love, joy, peace, and all the fruit of his Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). When we accept his Spirit’s work in our hearts, we learn to more fully recognize the love he always had for us—and we grow in expressing that love to others.

Matthew 3:16-17After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”

Romans 5:1-2Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

Ephesians 2:8-9God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

Jesus was blessed by his Father in heaven because of who he was, not because of what he did. The same is true of us. Many assume that performance is the way to become accepted. We are driven to earn respect from others, to impress others, to gain the applause and approval of others. This can easily transfer over to our relationship with God—thinking we have to earn his love and acceptance, too. But we are accepted by grace, not because of performance. God accepts us from the start, before we have accomplished great things.