Are You Fully Persuaded?

"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things  to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Romans 8:38-39

If you have spent any amount of time in church you have probably heard or read Romans 8:38-39. There the Apostle Paul shares his conviction that there is nothing that can separate us from God's love. Are you like the writer of the letter to the church in Rome convinced that God will always love you? Let me ask that another way. Are there times when you doubt God's love for you? Are there other promises from the Bible which you doubt from time to time? If so you are not fully persuaded.

The Bible is filled with promises and statements about how God relates to you. Each is true but you are missing out if you don't believe them. And by believe I mean something more than just acknowledging what is written. Paul says he is persuaded, meaning something or someone has presented evidence that convinced him this was true. If he had any doubts they have been answered. If there was an aspect he did not know, he was able to find the true answer. For Paul this was a firmly held truth, a conviction. This is what he believed and he felt it important to share this conviction with believers in Rome.

There have been times when I was too ashamed to admit my doubts about scripture. By not being honest with myself and others I missed opportunities to be persuaded. We must not be afraid to admit when we struggle with something said in scripture. We must not be afraid to say, "I do not always believe." In fact, being honest about our doubts can become a major step in our spiritual growth, especially if we are willing to ask ourselves, "Why?"

We must be willing to ask ourselves, "Why am I not fully persuaded?" Even better, we must be willing to ask God to search our hearts and to reveal the answer. Don't worry, God forgives our unbelief as demonstrated in Mark 9:14-27. I believe God's goal is to help you in your unbelief. He ultimately wants you fully persuaded. This will only happen if we have the courage to be honest.

Are you fully persuaded that nothing can separate you from God's love? If not ask God to examine your heart and to reveal your reason why. Let God persuade you. Then be willing to move forward in dealing with your next area of doubt. This is spiritual growth, the process of becoming fully persuaded of the truth.