Acceptance

"Accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory."

Romans 15:7 

 

We have difficulty with acceptance...or is it just me?  We hear a LOT about acceptance, but do we truly understand acceptance?  You see, when Christ accepted us, He didn't necessarily agree with our motives, thoughts, acts, or decisions.  In fact, the reason Christ died for us is so we will be forgiven of all those.  

 

When we accept someone, that doesn't mean we will agree with them.  It means, like Christ, we are to welcome them AS THEY ARE.  We are to live in such a way that they will see Christ through us.  

 

Think about this...did Jesus wander about the countryside beating people over the head and telling them how WRONG they were and how they had to change NOW or else?  Not from what I've read.  I've said it before and I'm saying it again: Jesus met people where they were, accepted them AS they were, talked with them in ways THEY could understand, and loved them so much they were changed!  That's true ACCEPTANCE!