At the close of a gospel service a young girl, anxious about her soul, was being spoken to by a woman who with the best of intentions tried to help her. After a few sentences she laid her hand on the girl’s arm and asked gently, “Do you feel any better?”
“No, I don’t,” sobbed the girl.
“Then get down on your knees with me.” Both of them having done this, the woman added, “Now I want you to say this after me. Are you ready?”
“Our Father, which art in heaven.”
“Our Father, which art in heaven,” murmured the girl as best she could between her sobs. And so they went through to the end of the disciples’ prayer.
Rising from her knees at the end, the woman cheerfully said, “Now you feel better, don’t you?”
The poor girl felt no better; she wept on.
Plainly the woman was trying to “put the cart before the horse.” The truth is that the girl needed to get “all right” with God before she could hope to feel truly better.
The important thing is not what you feel, but what you are. Feelings are often deceptive; facts are stubborn things. The only right course is to go straight to the root of the matter and get really right with God.
Perhaps you do desire to be truly right with God, but you find that in spite of doing your best and repenting and asking to be forgiven, you do not feel any better. You must remember that nowhere are we told to repent and do our best, nor even to repent and ask to be forgiven. The words of the Lord Jesus were, “Repent . . . and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:1515And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. (Mark 1:15)).
The great theme of the gospel is Jesus—the risen Lord and Christ—but the gospel also tells of His work, the great work of atonement: “Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures.” “Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Romans 4:2525Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. (Romans 4:25)).
It presents the infinite value of that work to the sinner so that “through His name whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins” (Acts 10:4343To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. (Acts 10:43)).
Even then you will not say, “Now I feel better,” meaning, “I feel more good and holy and better pleased with myself.” No. You will say, “I feel better because I rejoice in the knowledge that the blood of Jesus has cleansed me from all sin and that I am cleared forever in the sight of God.”