Reigning in Life Through Grace
Grace breaks through where striving fails—rest in what Christ has already done.
Based on March 20, Days of Heaven by A.B. Simpson
Many believers find themselves in an exhausting cycle of striving for righteousness, especially when they face temptation or feel distant from God. The battle intensifies when they attempt to regain their footing through self-effort, trying to obey the law as a means of restoring their sense of closeness to God. The harder they try, the more condemnation weighs on them, and discouragement sets in like an unshakable burden.
This struggle is not new. It is the natural outcome of attempting to achieve by self-effort what only Christ can accomplish in and through us. The law was never meant to be the means of righteousness but rather a tutor to lead us to grace. Romans 5:17 declares that those who receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through Jesus Christ—not through effort, not through struggle, but through resting in what He has already provided.
The answer to this battle is not found in trying harder or in feelings of regret but in remembering the truth: You are already righteous in Christ. Sin has no dominion over you because you are no longer under law but under grace. The key to victory is not found in condemnation but in receiving—receiving the abundance of grace that enables you to reign in life, not as a slave to sin, but as one alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Personalized Journal Entry—The Holy Spirit’s Voice Through Scripture
You were never meant to live in the shadows of your own striving, weighed down by the weight of your own inability. I have called you into the light of My grace, into a life where righteousness is not achieved but received. You are not under law, struggling for approval. You are under grace, standing in the unshakable righteousness of My Son.
Do not look to your own efforts to measure your standing with Me. It is not your striving that makes you righteous, but My gift of righteousness freely given. You reign not because you have perfected yourself but because you have been united with the One who is perfect. Sin no longer has power over you because you are dead to it and alive to Me.
The voice of condemnation is not Mine. I do not call you to look at your failures but to fix your eyes on the One who overcame them all. Where you have stumbled, I do not place a burden of guilt upon you—I remind you of the truth: You are clothed in Christ. You stand secure in Him.
Rest in what I have done. Walk forward not in the struggle of self-effort, but in the confidence of My grace. For it is not you who must overcome—it is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
(Scripture references woven into this journal entry: Romans 5:17, Romans 6:14, Galatians 2:20, Colossians 3:3, Hebrews 12:2, Colossians 1:27)
Prayer: Confidently Trusting in the Lord
Father, I thank You that I do not stand before You in my own righteousness, but in the perfect righteousness of Christ. You have given me all I need to reign in life—not through my effort, but through the abundance of Your grace. I reject the voice of condemnation, for You have declared me free. I refuse to strive for what You have already provided. I choose instead to rest, knowing that Christ lives His life through me. My life is hidden with Christ in You, and nothing can shake the foundation of grace upon which I stand. Thank You for the victory that is already mine in Jesus. Amen.
Image Intent: A sunrise breaking through the darkness, symbolizing the victory of grace over the struggle of self-effort.