Saved for Royalty

The world doesn’t rank anyone in prison very high in its value system. But my status before God is not based on the world’s evaluation of me. The only thing that ultimately matters to God is whether I am “lost” or “saved.”
Jesus said, “What profit is it to man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul?” (Matthew 16:26)
What I believe is far more important than what I achieve. What I believe changes my whole outlook on life. I used to think this life was all I had; but when I realized it was just an introduction to eternity, everything I believed changed. The idea that I could spend an endless existence with the Son of God who loves me goes beyond anything I’d ever imagined.
Now I view my circumstances with an eternal perspective. Prison is not where I want to be, but it is where I have come to know Jesus Christ, the hope that anchors my soul. He gives my life meaning and purpose, not in the things I achieve, but in the things I have received. God’s “amazing grace, how sweet the sound,” saved a wretch like me.
That change in direction altered my whole life, transforming me and putting me on the road to true freedom. It’s a narrow road, but it takes me to God. Not because I am good or because I have earned or deserve it. As the apostle Paul says, “there is no righteous, no, not one; there is none who understand; there is none who seeks after God.” (Romans 3:10-12)
That does not mean, however, that we are not valuable to God. He created us in His image and He loves us. But no one is righteous (no one can earn right standing with God) “for we have all sinned.” (Romans 3:23) But God, through His Son Jesus, has redeemed us and offers to forgive us if we return to Him in faith.
Jesus’ parable about the prodigal son teaches me that my status with God is unconditional. The wayward son expected his father’s love to be diminished. But the parable is all about a Father who doesn’t give people what they deserve. He doesn’t focus on past failures, faults or sins. He doesn’t see me as I see myself. He sees me “in Christ,” that’s my position. Through Christ’s death, I have become a son of God and Jesus is my Lord and Savior.
No matter how far I may wander from the Lord’s perfect will for my life, I am always welcomed back. God’s love cannot be lost, regardless of sin or poor decisions (though we may have to live with the consequences). Our Father’s arms are always wide open.
The parable teaches me something else about God’s love. God knows what is best for me. That’s why He has established principles and rules to guide me. He won’t force me to obey Him. He will let me go to the “far country” if that’s what I want to do. But it always grieves Him when I choose my way instead of His.
Faith, however, takes time to develop and sometimes it takes sorrow and regret. But a commitment to obey God will always bring unimaginable rewards.
To become a Christian is easy; to be one often seems difficult. But to know Christ is the greatest privilege you can ever have. It will give you a desire to do whatever is necessary to experience the most satisfying and rewarding life in the entire world.
I went into this life changing experience uncertain that I could live the Christian life and conquer all the bad habits and tendencies of my character. Conscious of my weaknesses and repeated failures, I realized that I was my own worst enemy. I wanted to fulfill God’s will for my life, but I was full of selfish desires and often wondered why God saved me. Some people even wondered if I was really saved.
Studying God’s Word became vital to my growth and understanding. Before I was saved, the Bible was irrelevant and lifeless. Now, I see that it is alive. It was the knowledge and instruction that guided me. It gives me many examples from which to garner wisdom and strength. For example, Romans 8, a stalwart chapter, gives me confidence and assurance that I am truly saved. The apostle Paul, who wrote it, is a potent example.
This great chapter begins with the statement, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1) This assures me that God has forgiven and accepted me with all my faults, character defects; and even though the wretch I used to be still has potential.
The chapter ends with an amazing truth. Nothing can ever separate me from the love of God. These reassuring responses are actually Paul’s answer to his own spiritual struggles in chapter 7 and earlier chapters. “I do not understand what I do, for what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do… I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out, for what I do, is not the good I want to do; no the evil I do not want to do, this I keep on doing.” (Romans 5:5-18-19)
Paul was not only describing his own struggles with sin; he was describing mine and any Christian struggling against sinful desires.
God’s Holy Spirit helps me every day. The Spirit is there when all I can pray is, “Lord, please help me.” God understands and His Spirit makes sure my prayers are acceptable and effective. (Romans 8:26-27)
Nothing will ever prevent God’s will from being carried out to fulfillment, not even my own failures. For nothing is greater than the sacrifice of God’s son. If God is for me, who can be against me?
Nothing in the entire world can defeat us. It was true in the first century; it is true now. “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)
The world will never rank a child of God very high on its social scale, whether you are in prison or not. But Christ’s sacrifice on the cross made all of us who believe in Him members of His royal family. (Revelation 1:6, 1 Peter 2:9)
It places a great responsibility on us to bear a resemblance to the King of Kings. For we are saved for royalty and therefore we should make sure our conduct shows it.
Help me, Lord, to be all that You want me to be. Help me to be “more than a conqueror” through You who love me and accept me as an heir to Your magnificent inheritance.