James 2:13

Because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

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Recently, Grace Has Been on My Heart

I’ve heard about God’s grace all my life in church, but I didn’t understand its value or magnitude until recently.

In Week 36, I wrote about the familiar bad and the foreign good—the concept of leaving bad habits that feel safe and growing into foreign territory that feels uncomfortable.

There’s something about growth that requires discomfort. Why? Because you are literally doing something you have never done before. It’s new, and you often don’t feel immediate comfort from something new—especially when it comes to learning.

We see this in school, in subjects we’re not naturally good at. We can learn them, but it takes time for our minds to adjust. Once we do, it becomes the new normal.

One of the things I’ve had to get used to in this healing journey is giving myself grace as I change—especially when I make mistakes.

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Stop Judging Yourself

One morning during prayer, I felt the Holy Spirit say:

“Stop judging yourself. If you’ve done something wrong, I will convict you.”

For me, this was revolutionary.

Wait—so I don’t have to beat myself up? I don’t have to overanalyze everything I do? And if I do mess up, You’ll bring it to my attention and I can just repent?

As Christians, this can be hard to grasp. We are taught about sin, our flesh, and how we need to die to self—all of which are necessary as disciples of Christ.

But what I haven’t seen talked about enough is the ability to not be critical of ourselves.

Being super-critical of self is just another way to hyper-focus on self. I think the Apostle Paul is a great example of not being critical of himself while still living a life that pleased God.

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1 Corinthians 4:3
But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself.

1 Corinthians 15:10
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.

2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

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What These Verses Teach Me

Paul isn’t concerned about others’ thoughts of him—or even his own.

In 1 Corinthians 4:4, he says he’s unaware of anything against himself, but that doesn’t mean he’s declaring himself righteous. It simply means he allows God to be the final judge of who he is.

Some people misconstrue this to mean, “God is my judge, so no one can call me out.” But that’s not what Paul is saying.

When you look at the whole narrative of Paul’s letters, such as 2 Corinthians 13:5, Paul urges believers to examine themselves to see if Christ is in them.

The words judge and examine in these passages come from two different Greek terms:

• Anakrino — “to identify, sift through, or test with a judicial result.” This word implies deep scrutiny or final judgment.
• Peirazo — “to test or challenge,” which can be negative (to tempt) or positive (to refine character, like when God tested Abraham).

Paul understood that only God has the final say about who we are. That’s why he left judgment in God’s hands.

Our part is not to condemn ourselves but to test our hearts—to see if our faith and character are truly rooted in Christ.

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Anakrino Is God’s Business — Peirazo Is Ours

We don’t need to scrutinize ourselves to the point of shame. The Holy Spirit will convict and call out sin when needed.

Our job is to stay aware of our hearts and motives—to make sure our faith is alive and growing in God.

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Grace Makes Us Who We Are

Paul knew that God’s grace was the only reason he could do what he did.

Jesus encountered Paul on his way to persecute the church, asking, “Why do you persecute My people?” Paul never forgot that moment.

And yet, he was not ashamed of his past. He knew God’s grace had transformed him.

To confidently say, “I am what I am by God’s grace,” and not let his past haunt him shows how deeply Paul understood who God is—and how powerful grace truly is.

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The Gift of Getting Back Up

Judging ourselves was never our place.

The beautiful gift of the Holy Spirit is that He teaches and convicts us.

We are graced in our walk with God so that when we fall, we can also get back up.

Proverbs 24:16
For though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again.

To be righteous doesn’t mean you’ll never fall. On the contrary, it means that when you do, you repent and rise again.

Your failure won’t keep you down for long. This is all a grace offered to us by the costly death of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 4:16
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in the time of need.

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.

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Truths to Live By

In light of these truths—

• There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus for those who belong to Him.
• The Holy Spirit convicts, not condemns.
• The weight of judgment no longer hangs on our shoulders.

We can walk in faith, knowing that even when we fall, we are graced to get back up again.

As Christians, we should be the most free people—not living in condemnation from others, from ourselves, or from the devil.

We should be the most loving, knowing God’s grace and favor are upon us.

When we fall, we rise again. There is no more shame. No more need to hate yourself or live in self-pity.

God took all of that on the cross. That shame, pity, and self-hatred are not yours to bear.

If we don’t understand that we’re truly forgiven—and the freedom it brings—how can we love others?

If, when we look at ourselves, we hate what we see or deem ourselves unworthy, when God has already declared us free, how can we love others as we love ourselves?

God has judged us and offered us life free from condemnation and shame—because He took it upon Himself.

If we don’t first understand that God so loved us that He gave His Son to save us, that none may perish, we miss the heart of grace.

It’s with this hope that we live.
It’s in this truth that we learn to love ourselves the way God sees us.

And once we’re rooted in God’s love—despite our mistakes—we’ll find that we can extend that same love to others.

That’s what I hope to give others as I walk in this truth myself.