How should Christians respond when feeling like "an enemy" to God? Focus Verse “For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life” (Romans 5:10) Why We Sometimes Feel Like Enemies • Ongoing sin can cloud assurance and stir guilt (Isaiah 59:2) • Spiritual attack seeks to revive old condemnation (Revelation 12:10) • Worldly thinking raises doubts about God’s love (James 4:4) • Unresolved shame misinterprets conviction as rejection (Psalm 38:4) God’s Truth About Our Standing • Reconciled: hostility has been removed by Christ’s cross (Colossians 1:21-22) • Justified: no condemnation remains (Romans 8:1) • Adopted: the Father calls believers His children (Galatians 4:4-7) • Secure: nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39) Steps to Respond 1. Confess specific sins honestly – “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us” (1 John 1:9) 2. Receive the finished work of Christ afresh – “He Himself is the atoning sacrifice” (1 John 2:2) 3. Renounce accusing thoughts with Scripture – “It is God who justifies” (Romans 8:33) 4. Re-align daily life to friendship with God, not the world – “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil” (James 4:7) 5. Rejoice in sonship through worship and gratitude – “We cry, ‘Abba, Father’” (Romans 8:15) 6. Restore fellowship with other believers for encouragement – “Bear one another’s burdens” (Galatians 6:2) Encouraging Promises to Hold On To • Psalm 103:12 — sins removed as far as east is from west • Micah 7:19 — God hurls iniquities into the depths of the sea • Hebrews 7:25 — Christ lives to intercede perpetually • 2 Corinthians 5:17 — in Christ, new creation has come Concluding Reminder Feeling like an enemy is a signal to run toward, not away from, the One who already reconciled you through the blood of His Son. Stand on that unshakeable truth and walk in restored fellowship and joy. |
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