Without the living God living inside of us Christianity devolves into a lifeless system of appearances & academics. He who has the best memory or he who puts on the best outward appearance is viewed as the best Christian. Instead of having brothers & sisters as companions, we view others as commanders or competitors. Those who we think we can outshine are our competitors. Those who we don't feel like we can measure up to because they frequently look good standing on a stage we consider as commanders.
Romans 14:17 may be one of the most important scriptures you'll ever read. It says, "The kingdom of God is guiltlessness, peace, & joy in the Holy Spirit." If you lack these things you have either never met God or you don't know that the fullness of God is in you & with you. For years as a Christian I had an ultimate sense of peace & joy but now that I know of Jesus's unending love for me & presence with me my peace is never shaken & my heart abounds with joy at any given moment I turn my thoughts to Him. I am also guiltless, free from the burdens & feelings of guilt & shame. Instead I am accepting His love through me. A love that never has to focus on my failures to drive me to rejoice in righteousness & repair relationships.
Self-examination according to the flesh is self-execution. You have to let go of measuring your life based on your perceived failures & successes. It is Jesus's success on the cross & coming out of the tomb that brings us peace & joy & freedom from guilt. And its not just those facts on paper that does this. It isn't an, "Oh this happened 2,000 years ago so now I should feel good." It is when you learn from Him & relate to Him in the reality caused by this good news that you see & feel His love poured out into your heart by the Holy Spirit.
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