I Don't Deserve This!!!

Do you sometimes find your self looking at the cross and all that went on there and thinking “I don't deserve that?”

I sometimes find myself feeling incredibly guilty for what went on there. I don't deserve the fact that Christ went through all that turmoil and pain for me. I am wretched and evil and, as Paul describes it in 1 Timothy, the worst of sinners.

Aren't we all incredibly undeserving? But the funny thing is that there is nothing we can do to be more deserving and nothing we can do to be less deserving. We all needed Christ to die for us, the best of us and the worst of us! There can be no smug smiles reading this and no-one reading this that is beyond saving. None of us deserve what went on at the cross. None of us deserve the wonderful grace that is lavished upon us. I guess that is something we just have to accept. If we could earn God's love, grace, mercy and favour; if we could in some way earn our salvation then perhaps it would be worth working our fingers to the bone to get it. However, we can't! We just have to accept the work of the cross and live in that light.

But if we are so undeserving why did Jesus go through with it and why did God let Him? Why did Jesus endure the cross for me who is so undeserving? Why did Jesus endure the cross for you who are also so undeserving? Hebrews twelve tells us that For the joy set before him (Jesus) he endured the cross, scorning its shame... Jesus endured the cross, the went through with it for the JOY set before him. So what was this joy that was set before him? I believe that this joy was us. Me and you. For those Christians that you love and even those you find really difficult. When Christ was hanging on that cross he thought of me. When he was being mocked and jeered at he thought of you. You were the joy set before Him. When Jesus was being whipped it was the thought of saving us that kept him going.

When my children are good and do things that I ask they earn my favour and I show that by buying them little treats. However, I like it even better when I can buy them something for no reason whatsoever. Not because they have done well or earned a treat but because I want to see their smile. They are the joy set before me. Christ's joy was made complete in dying for the unworthy. In Romans we read that While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. While we were unworthy, undeserving and even unrepentant Christ died for us.

So we may be undeserving but we are not to beat ourselves up about it. We are the joy that was set before Christ!! How awesome is that? We may be undeserving but we can hold our heads high. We may be undeserving but what better incentive then to live a life for Christ can there be that Christ died for us when we didn't even know Him, didn't ask Him to; didn't deserve it, don't deserve it, will never deserve it, can never deserve it!!!