How do I know Christ loves me?

So we all agree we tend to beat ourselves up when we fail but I also read where many of you do not feel worthy of God, so lets look at the book Craig Gross wrote called The Gutter to see who Jesus was.

Quoting from Craig's book.

Just stroll through the Gospels. Read through Matthew, Mark, Luke...and see what John wrote about how Jesus reacted and responded to those in the gutter. I noticed how Jesus embraced the gutter in stead of condemning it. When Jesus faced someone imprisoned by the gutter, someone whose heart was aware of it depravity, someone who was hurting, dejected, and discouraged, He spoke a message of hope, grace, and mercy. He confronted them with comfort in His redeeming and faithful love.

When Jesus came across the self-proclaimed righteous and judgmental, He confronted them as well, but not with grace and mercy. For this crowd, Jesus came with the power of the law. He called them snakes. A “brood of vipers,” to be exact (Matt 3:7, 12:34, 23:33). He called them dead on the inside, or “whitewashed tombs” (Matt 23:27)

He judged those who judged and loved those who needed love.

There were only two central themes in the messages Jesus taught. To the hardened ones who dwelt In the high towers of religious routine, He gave them the law. To the unchurched, pre-Christian, seekers, He gave eternal hope. I noticed something as I was stung by these Gospel examples, stunned by the simplicity of it all and the way these two themes tie in with God's kingdom; Whatever you sow, you'll reap; what you give is what you get. Said another way, the tool you use on other people will be the same tool applied to your life.”

If we will understand and accept that Jesus came to save the lost, to spend time with the fallen and to show compassion and unending love for the sinner...then can't those of us who have faced and are overcoming addiction know that if we believe that Jesus Chris is the Son of God...YOU ARE EXACTLY WHO JESUS CAME FOR...so stop beating yourself up and rejoice that Jesus came for YOU and those just like YOU...Those like ME!!!

Those of you who know what it is like to be thrown on to the scrape heap of life, tossed aside as not worthy whether by your own doings or someone else know what it is like to reach out and help others. Those of you who sit in groups and offer a place for a man to share his deepest secrets and then show him he is still loved...those of you who have learned to give a man a hand up, dust him off and tell him God loves you and so do I....those are who you men are and it is what makes you all Great men of God .

Keep doing what Jesus started 2000 years ago...find the lost and share your story...then show them the love of Jesus Christ.

God bless you Great men of God!!

Steve G

james wrote on May 31st 08 at 02:42PM

thank you steve for the encouragement! that is the message i needed to hear! thak you xxxchurch you are my earthly strong tower

tim wrote on June 2nd 08 at 12:35PM

Steve- Thank you for your honest and heartfelt message. Also thank you to xxxchurch.com for providing a safe place to post honest words of encouragement. God Bless.

Steve G wrote on June 2nd 08 at 01:22PM

@James...
@Tim...

Thanks for the notes of encouragement from you also!! We serve an awesome God my friends.

Keep coming back.

God Bless you,

Steve G

Dave wrote on June 2nd 08 at 02:26PM

I just found this website and man an I thankful for this article. I need to hang here for a while and get refreshed from massive condemnation. I am in tears as I write this because I was just reminded of how much Jesus loves me - a depraved sinner. What a great God!

Steve G wrote on June 2nd 08 at 10:11PM

@Dave...I always knew scripture said "The truth will set you free". What I did not realize for me...and what your comments speak to...is that for me the truth was in understanding who Jesus was and is. What I never understood is that Jesus came for you, me and everyone else who has faced failure, embraced failure, and sought out God in that darkness...

You are correct my friend...Jesus loves you more than you could ever imagine...and He has already forgiven you...You are a Great man of God.

Steve G

Jerald wrote on June 3rd 08 at 10:14AM

Hey, Steve. My wife has come to your site before and told me to check it out. I felt I could beat this on my own but I cann't. I feel that today God pointed me in this direction to save my marriage and soul. I've tried getting help and accountability partner from my church, but still haven't found one. I know God loves me, but i don't love myself in the condition.

rick wrote on June 5th 08 at 10:10PM

i was logging off an online game and was gonna head to the porn jungle. than all of the sudden a memory popped into my head. it was the memory of you guys comming to my church 2 yrs ago in traverse city mich. wow what a powerfull memory that was to get me away from porn and on to this site. there must be an angel whispering in my ear. my point is i needed help than and never did. i thaught i could cure the addiction myself and save myself the shame and embarrassment. HELP ME PLEASE

unnamed wrote on June 6th 08 at 03:46PM

Great text ! That is exactly THE TRUTH what did you say :) GOD bless you all !

Jeremy wrote on June 7th 08 at 03:54PM

Thanks for the words bro, right now I'm filling like God is a million miles away.I've done something very bad and I"ve hurt some dear people I almost went to Jail and I could have but they loved me enough to let me get some help. I know that the only help I can make it with is Jesus. If anyone wants to email me I need it I need some friends.

thanks

Matt wrote on June 7th 08 at 04:47PM

What an amzing article I needed to read this, the fact that God still wants me even though i'm back in the gutter He found me in.

Jeff wrote on June 8th 08 at 11:39AM

I apologize for that extremely long URL address in my previous comment. I don't know whether this site takes HTML code, but if it does, you can delete my previous comment and replace it with this one:

This website is an excellent thing---keep it up!
It seems to be an excellent place for people to come who are struggling.

For those who want encouragement to overcome temptation, check this out (NOTE: if you are overcome with guilt and beating yourself up, I would not recommend this video for you. This is for those who want to be encouraged to fight the temptation):
The Heart of the True Christian

For those struggling with guilt, this may help:
Dealing With Guilt

I have tried filters, accountability partners, and taping Bible verses to my computer monitor. All of those helped for a time. Being in God's Word is VITAL. One thing that has helped me, probably more than anything, is being out on the street, witnessing to people. Not only does this keep you busy, active and productive (which is key---leisure time, especially when you're alone, can be a trap), but it also keeps you focused on Jesus and on living for Him---and it encourages you to live a holy life for Him.

Garrett Allen Rodgers wrote on June 9th 08 at 01:29AM

I have known about this website for some time now... but, this is my first time here and my first post to read.
I don't know what to say other than thank you.
I thank God for this.
I thank God.

Ill be back. ;)