ACCEPTED AS YOU ARE
ACCEPTED AS YOU ARE
Romans 15:7
7 Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.
There is something beautiful about the diversity of God’s family. If you look around in your church, your community, or even your own family, you’ll see a it in the different personalities, backgrounds, cultures, and life stories.
Each of us carry our own set of experiences that shape how we think, speak, and act. Some grew up in loving, safe homes; others learned to survive in harsh and harmful environments. Some were taught patience and gentleness, while others had to fight just to be heard.
Yet in the middle of all this diversity, and sometimes tension, the Word of God calls us to this clear command: “Receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.”
Paul didn’t say, “Receive the people who think like you, vote like you, worship like you, or look like you.” He didn’t say, “Receive them once they fix all the things you don’t like about them.” He said receive one another, that’s it.
Why? Because that is exactly what Jesus did for us.
When Jesus received us, He didn’t wait until we had it all together.
He didn’t require us to first change our habits, perfect our language, or clean up our attitudes. Romans 5:8 says, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” That is the model of acceptance we are called to follow.
Think about what these verses are telling us: Jesus saw beyond our faults. He knew our weaknesses, our sins, our stubborn ways.
And yet He recieved us. He didn’t excuse our sin, but He didn’t reject us because of it either. He accepted us as we were so He could begin the work of transforming us into what we were meant to be.
That’s the grace we are called to extend to one another.
It’s easy to show grace to people who are like you. But what about the person who rubs us the wrong way? The one whose background makes them guarded and abrasive? The one who doesn’t yet know how to communicate without coming across as hurtful?
The one whose spiritual growth is slower than yours?
Paul is saying: Receive them. Welcome them. Embrace them. Not because they have earned it, but because Christ did that for you.
It is important to remember that “receiving” one another doesn’t mean ignoring sin or pretending real differences don’t exist. It means creating an environment where people feel safe enough to be honest about their struggles, their past, and their doubts, knowing they won’t be condemned or rejected because of it.
It means loving them enough to speak truth in love, encouraging them toward Christlike growth.
Jesus didn’t compromise holiness when He received us. He didn’t say, “Sin is fine, stay as you are.” He said, “Come to Me as you are, and I will make you new.” That is our call, too: to love people as they are, trusting God to do the transforming work, not us.
We must also remember that our differences aren’t an accident, they are part of God’s design for His Church.
God made us different so we could learn from each other, sharpen each other, and show the world a picture of unity in diversity. When we receive one another in love, we glorify God by reflecting His grace to the world.
Jesus said in John 13:35, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
The world doesn’t need another place full of division, suspicion, and judgment. It needs an atmosphere where people from every walk of life are welcomed, loved, and transformed by the Grace of God.
May we receive one another, as Christ received us, to the glory of God.
