For it belongeth to man meekly to accuse himself, and it belongeth to the proper Goodness of our Lord God courteously to excuse man....And right thus willeth our Lord that we accuse our self, earnestly and truly seeing and knowing our falling and all the harms that come thereof; seeing and learning that we can never restore it; and therewith that we earnestly and truly see and know His everlasting love that He hath to us, and His plenteous mercy.
Julian of Norwich (ch. 52)
Grace doesn't ignore sin, it simply puts sin in its place as nothing compared to the love and goodness of God. We humans tend to accuse ourselves. We can shame ourselves and hate ourselves for the wrong things we've done. But God always excuses our sin! It is all completely forgiven, forgotten, take away and gone! God isn't seeing the sin that we are seeing. God is only seeing His innocent and perfect child held in the life of Christ. God never wants us to look at any of the wrongs we've ever done in our lives without in the same moment looking at His grace and love that have already overwhelmed and erased those wrongs. It is wonderful how grace lets us know we will never be rejected or punished by God no matter how we fail, for we are not under a law system with judgment and punishment but under a grace system with the free gift of life and righteousness in Christ and the security of knowing that our place in God's family is permanent.
So because grace lets us know that we don't have to measure up or be perfect, we are accepted as we are, we can be real and honest about the times we fail. We can admit we are not perfect, for we don't have to try to wear a "perfect" mask to cover up our flaws. But even in those moments of being able to be honest about our mistakes, God wants us never to think or speak of them without in the same breath thinking and speaking of His grace and love. When we fall on our face, He wants us to look not at the failure (which was already taken away by Christ) but at His love that holds us and accepts us no matter what. He wants to remind us in those moments especially, that nothing has changed in our relationship with God. No sin can undo the grace that is over our life.
It is ok and a relief to admit we sometimes fail. It is ok and a relief to realize we don't have to be perfect to be loved. And it is most important to remember that we are safe in the grace of God and never under the pressures or condemnation of law. No matter what we do or don't do, there is no condemnation for us in Christ. There is only love and acceptance! We are not to be down on ourselves or shame ourselves, because God never does. We can simply feel joy that we don't have to "measure up" or "be sinless" to live this life with God. This life with God is all by grace, never by performance. We are not being judged or scrutinized, condemned or punished. We are only being loved and embraced and delighted in! God delights in us, those who mess up and fail. God sees us as perfect, even when we blow it. God calls us righteous, even if we never change or improve. God is in perfect friendship with us, even at our worst. That is the wonder of grace! It is love that we don't have to earn and that we cannot lose. It is love for those who can be unlovely at times. It's unconditional love, it's what Jesus and the gospel are all about, and it's ours forever!
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Romans 8:1 (NIV)
They’ll get to know me by being kindly forgiven, with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.
Hebrews 8:12 (MSG)
Praise to God because of his wonderful grace. God gave that grace to us freely, in Christ, the One he loves.
Ephesians 1:6 (NCV)
I am sure of this. Nothing can stop God from loving us.
Romans 8:38 (EASY)
A Prayer: Thank You for always accepting me even in my failures..especially in my failures! I feel safe with You because I know I can't ever sin my way out of Your arms!