According to Jesus, Satan is a liar. In fact, he calls him the “father of lies” (John 8:44).

Here is a doozie he loves to tell God’s people. “You are not enough!”

“Do you see yourself in the mirror? How in the world can you think that a backsliding sinner like you could ever be acceptable to God? I’ve seen what you’ve done. I know what’s in the Bible. And I know all that stuff about love and truth and holiness that you keep failing at. Do you really think you’ll be welcomed into God’s arms one day? You’re an idiot. You’re not enough.”

Does any of that sound familiar?

If so, remember those triumphant and eternal words of Christ. Satan is the liar! By God’s powerful, free grace, he has saved us in Christ. Our standing with God is not based on how good we are (or even on how good we aren’t), but on Christ. 

Dane Ortlund writes: “It is the most counterintuitive aspect of Christianity, that we are declared right with God not once we begin to get our act together but once we collapse into honest acknowledgement that we never will.”*

In one of his books, John Bunyan suggests the following dialogue between Jesus and someone who is not very confident about their standing before God. It’s all based on Jesus’ words in John 6:37. Here it is in the older English translation. “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”

Let’s listen in to the dialogue.

But I am a great sinner, say you.
“I will in no wise cast you out,” says Christ.
But I am an old sinner, say you.
“I will in no wise cast you out,” says Christ.
But I am a hard-hearted sinner, say you.
“I will in no wise cast you out,” says Christ.
But I am a backsliding sinner, say you.
“I will in no wise cast you out,” says Christ…
But I have sinned against mercy, say you.
“I will in no wise cast you out,” says Christ.
But I have no good thing to bring with me, say you.
“I will in no wise cast you out,” says Christ.**

Have you believed the lie that you are “not enough”? The arms of God’s embrace are not fickle; they are a fortress. “I will in no wise cast you out.”

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Notes and extra content:

—“Am I a genuine follower of Jesus?” Sermon. February 4, 2024. Click here.

–*Dane Ortlund, Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers (Wheaton: Crossway, 2020), 78.

–**John Bunyan, Come and Welcome to Christ. As quoted in Ibid, 62.

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.