God Wants to Save You, Not Scold You

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES What On Earth Am I Here For?   God Wants to Save You, Not Scold You By Rick Warren — Sep 17, 2015 “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:17 NIV)   Knowing God is for you will change your whole perspective on life. You’ll stop thinking of God as someone looking down from Heaven, ready to yell “Gotcha!” any time you mess up. God is for your success in life. He created you for a purpose, and he wants you to succeed. It is God, your Creator, who will measure your success in life, and no one else. This is extremely good news! It means you don’t need to be afraid of God, because God is for you. Yet some people are so afraid of God they get nervous just talking about him. Do you know why? They feel guilty, and then they start thinking, “If I get close to God, he’s going to lecture me. He’s going to remind me of all the things I’ve done wrong, and then I’ll feel even worse!” Nothing could be further from the truth of God. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (NIV). In effect, Jesus is saying, “I didn’t come to scold you. I came to save you.” Jesus came to save us, not to scare us. In fact, when God sends a message to people in the Bible, it’s not unusual for the first words to be: “Don’t be afraid.” There are 365 messages from God in the Bible that begin with a phrase like, “Fear not!” In other words, every single day of the year you can read a message from God that says, in effect, “You don’t need to be afraid. I am for you; I am with you; I love you.” How would your life change if you consistently believed God is for you? Ask God to help you in your unbelief. PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over What misconceptions about God make people afraid of him? How does God use discipline for our good? You may understand that God wants you to succeed. How does he help you succeed? Today’s Scripture “David was greatly distressed, for the men spoke of stoning him...But David encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” (1 Samuel 30:6, AMP) SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS Encourage Yourself It’s good to have friends and family around to cheer you up when you’re down, but in order to truly live in victory, that encouragement has to come from the inside. When your mind is telling you it’s not worth it, when your circumstances seem difficult, deep down inside, your spirit has to have the resolve that says, “I refuse to settle where I am.” That’s what David had to do. He was facing a major setback. His family was killed, his city was destroyed, and his own people were now against him, but he still managed to encourage himself in the Lord. How did he do that? He replayed in his mind the victories from the past. He recounted God’s faithfulness. As he rehearsed over and over the goodness of God, strength began to rise in his heart. There are so many places you can see the hand of God at work. Thank Him for saving you today. Thank Him for the miracle of life. Thank Him for His faithfulness. Focus on the fact that God didn’t bring you this far to leave you now. Stir up that inner strength and encouragement. As you do, you’ll rise higher and higher and live the life of victory the Lord prepared for you. A Prayer for Today “Father in heaven, thank You for Your faithfulness today. I choose to focus on You and the good things You have prepared for my future. I thank You for making a way out of no way, and I will bless You always in Jesus name. Amen.”