Who Is Worthy?
by Lani W. Finley

The primary weapons, which Satan uses against all Believers, are fear, guilt, deception and lies. They work together to produce one of the most damaging feelings that a Christian can experience. The feeling of being "Unworthy." Most Christians have wrestled with a little hounding voice that whispers,

Just look at all the horrible sins you have committed in your lifetime. Do you really believe God could forgive such a terrible past and accept you as His child? A holy and righteous God could never have fellowship with such a sinner.

How dare you believe that you are worthy of His love and forgiveness. Your sins are too deplorable for Him to forgive. And look at how many times you have failed Him, and not lived up to His standards.

You promise God that you will do better, but you keep on committing that same sin repeatedly. You are a weak and helpless failure. God cannot use you. His promises could never apply to you.

These words of discouragement do not proceed from the Holy Spirit, but rather, from the Hiss of the Serpent. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (2 Tim 1:7). The Greek word translated as fear in this scripture is deilia and in its truest sense, it actually means not to be timid. However, who could be more timid than those who are burdened with the emotion of fear? It is Satan who continually troubles us with these feelings and tries to make us believe we are unworthy. His goal is to convince every Christian that God is angry with them and they are out of the reach of His love and mercy.

The devil knows that if he can convince us of these lies, then he will cripple our Christian Walk with God. We will become so paralyzed with a sense of unworthiness, that we will be unable to accept God's truth about our absolute salvation in Jesus. We will begin to doubt that God's promises belong to us and we will be hesitant to step forward and take hold of the peace and confidence that Christians should posses. We will also begin to question our relationship with God and be reluctant to reach out for the power and gifts that He longs to give us.

The apostle James reveals that, "...the devils also believe, and tremble" (James 2:19). It is Satan and his demons that are afraid of God and tremble before Him. Satan is terrified of God's wrath, because he will never repent of his sins and he wants Christians to share his feelings of guilt, condemnation and hopelessness.

The apostle Paul assures Believers of the love that God has for us and refutes the evil whispers of the enemy.

However, God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him (Rom 5:8-9). Emphasis of scripture is mine throughout.
It is only those who refuse to be cleansed by the blood of Jesus, which have to fear the wrath of God. His children are saved from His judgement and are free to enjoy a deep and personal relationship with their Heavenly Father. "For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Thes 5:9).

The truth is that no person is worthy of the saving grace of God. That is why it is called a gift. The word grace, as it applies to our salvation, simply means an "undeserved pardon." It is not based on our worthiness. God's grace is not about our ability to please Him through personal performance or righteousness. Therefore, why should Christians allow themselves to be tormented over this issue? There is only one person that has lived a sinless life in the flesh, and that person is Jesus Christ. Only the Lamb of God is Worthy!

And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation (Rev 5:9).
Pastors should be careful not to sow a sense of unworthiness in the members of their congregations. They must make sure that every Believer understands his complete redemption in Christ. Sermons regarding sin should never leave worshippers with the feeling that, "God hates sin. I am a sinner. Therefore, God must hate me." While God does not approve of sin, He still loves the person who has accepted His mercy, through Christ. Mature and seasoned Christians will always struggle with the lustful desires of the flesh and battle sinful strongholds. God never expected us to live the Christian life without any failures. That is why we have a Living Savior who constantly intercedes for our weaknesses. We can be comforted by the word of the apostle John.
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: 2And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world (I Jn 2:1-2).
It is Satan's name, which means "slanderer or accuser." In Revelations 12:10, the devil is described as the evil one who relentlessly condemns Christians before God. However, Jesus Christ has never taken a single transgression of a Believer before the throne of God. This is confirmed by the words of the apostle Paul.
Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us (Rom 8:33-34 NAU)
Jesus is our intercessor. His blood forgives all past sins and any future sins that we confess. He does not discuss our faults with the Heavenly Father. He is our advocate who testifies on our behalf and witnesses that we are clean through Him. Only Satan wishes to condemn us. If we listen to the voice of the devil, we will not be able to experience the true joy of Christianity.

God's Word gives us comfort by assuring us of His love.

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom 8:38-39).
The apostle John informs us that Christ came to destroy Satan's works. "... For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil" (I Jn 3:8). God expects His children to continue with Christ's ministry. Satan knows if he can make us weak, through a feeling of condemnation, then we will be unable to wage a successful war against him.

Our Heavenly Father has promised to forgive all of our sins and never remember them. "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more" (Heb 8:12). All Christian should remember these words and apply them to the following remarks of Pastor Erwin Lutzer.

If God is able to forget your past, why can't you? He throws our sins into the depths of the sea and then puts up a sign on the shore which reads, "No fishing". 1
The lyrics of a popular hymn will help us to grasp the personal nature of our salvation in Jesus. "When He was on the cross, I was on His mind." Jesus not only died for the sins of the world, but for you and me. In Christ, there is no condemnation upon us and we are counted worthy to be called the children of God.

God encourages us to live by faith and believe every word He speaks. "... It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" (Matt 4:4). He also desires us to approach Him with complete confidence. "Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need" (Heb 4:16 NAS). We must never allow Satan to rob us of the peace that is ours through Jesus. May we believe the Word of God and not the "hiss of the serpent?" Back to beginning of bookle