29th September 2026

There are few things more important to our understanding of the Christian faith than knowing what God is like. Yet many Christians carry images of God that have been shaped by their experiences, their failures, or even by the way other people have treated them. They may imagine God as distant, disappointed or waiting for them to get their lives in order before he will accept them.

At the heart of the gospel, however, is the astonishing truth that God’s relationship with humanity begins with his love and grace, not our performance. John tells us, ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life’ (John 3:16). God did not begin loving us because Christ died for us; rather, Christ’s coming reveals just how deeply the Father already loves us. This is important because we can easily turn Christianity into a project of trying to make ourselves acceptable to God. We may believe that if we pray enough, study enough, serve enough, overcome enough weaknesses or become sufficiently good, then God will be pleased with us.

But the gospel tells a very different story. In Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of the Father became one of us. He entered fully into our human condition, lived faithfully in relationship with the Father, died for us, rose again and ascended to the Father. In Christ, humanity has been brought into communion with the Triune God.

Our identity therefore begins not with what we do for God, but with what God has done for us in Christ. The Father calls us his children, not because we have successfully proved ourselves worthy, but because he has graciously brought us into the same relationship the Son enjoys with the Father. Through the Holy Spirit, we are enabled to participate in Christ’s own relationship with the Father, as Paul writes, ‘The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, Abba, Father’ (Romans 8:15).  

Knowing this makes a practical difference to daily life. We do not have to approach God trembling, wondering whether we have done enough. We can come to him as beloved children. When we fail, grace invites us back. When we are weak, his strength sustains us. When we are uncertain, his faithfulness remains secure. God’s grace does not mean that he is indifferent to how we live; rather, grace creates the freedom in which genuine transformation can take place. We are not obedient in order to earn the Father’s love; we obey God because we are already loved by him.

This means our worth is not determined by our achievements, our failures, our usefulness or the opinions of others. Our deepest identity is found in Christ. The Father has opened his arms to humanity in Jesus. The Holy Spirit continually reminds us of this grace and draws us into deeper participation in the life of Christ. Instead of living our life trying to earn God’s approval, may we rest in the love the Father has lavished on us.

Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead 
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA

Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm

Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church

Word of Life contact:  
wordoflife@gracecom.church