Acceptance

Romans 15:7 (NLT)
7 Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory.

The apostle points out Christ accepted believers into His family. The Greek word for accepted (received in the King James) means to take in addition to as ones companion, into ones home with kindness, and to give access to one’s heart. Before Christ we could have been counted strangers or enemies of God. As His accepted children we are no longer strangers and we have been given the privileges of a family member. We therefore should accept others and glorify God through our actions.

What do we do when we don’t like a characteristic of someone close to us? There are several choices we can make. We can reject that characteristic and hold a grudge against the person. We can try to get the person to change the characteristic. We can accept the person for who they are.

Holding a grudge against someone does not help us and sure hurts us especially when God says we should love one another. We can try to change the other person, but the problem with that option is if the person does not want to change they won’t. However if we accept the person for who they are then it gives them the freedom to also accept you for who you are. As acceptance of each other grows there will be things we can let go of and things the other will let go of. We can also learn to hold each other accountable without fear of rejection. God accepts us with all our flaws and sin. And while God wants us to follow and obey Him, He allows us to do so by our own free will. Learn to accept others and share the grace of God.