The natural man is in perpetual agreement with his own CONDEMNATION. In this he judges rightly. For he hears the glory of eternity calling from within him, 'come up here,' and he knows he cannot get there from here. His imagination envisions virtue and greatness; his life speaks 'unattainable.' His dreams call, 'wonder!' His heart beats 'woe!' 'Un-true, un-worthy, un-able, un-enough.' Circling and beating on the doors of his own heart, frantically patting his pockets for the key he swears must be there.

The creeping gall of guilt, inadequacy and shame is mixed in the batter of the natural man's constitution. His own unassailably impartial conscience holds him to account. In pride he may subdue and conceal it, but it gnaws, and gnaws, and lies in wait. When he is weak and off his guard the enemy of his soul fans to flame those embers of unworthiness.

More pitiable still are those who've been made new creations in Christ but remain tyrannized by the dictates of their flesh and natural perceptions. Who, by unbelief or fear of presumption have not, or feel they cannot, take hold of the promise of freedom for which Christ spilled his blood.

In this wretched frame of heart both the redeemed and the unrepentant attribute cruelty to the God who spared nothing to rescue them, by casting Him as forever poised to do them in.
So endlessly, earnestly and hopelessly, they strive for God's approval - while the universe of His favor bursts over the borders of their own souls. While our Creator's eyes say nothing to us but welcome, lovingkindness and freedom. While our Father's posture is set for our good and changes not.

O, how do you say EXASPERATION!

How to escape this wretched prison? The answer lies in a simple exchange. A child holding something bad in his hand fully understands when he's told, "Put that thing down."
"Now, pick this thing up."

But the grown-up protests, "Do you know how much it will cost me to put that down?"
To which the Spirit answers, "Do you know how much it costs you to keep it?"

Our ideas of ourselves (self-image and identity), however distorted or inflated by pain, pride, shame, or ignorance are, nevertheless, uniquely ours. It's all we've got. We mostly take challenges to our world view as confrontations. No one has a right to take it from us. It's a right one must give. It's your personal, finite sovereignty.

Gripping a bad thing keeps you tethered to it. What you hold, holds you.

Why It's Hard to Let Go
God has a different perception of us, as this verse explains:
We plead with you on behalf of Christ to be reconciled to God. He made Christ who knew no sin to [judicially] be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we would become the righteousness of God [that is, we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness].
2 Cor 5:20-21 AMP

God is telling us that because of what Jesus did for us, we are brought into perfect family communion with Him - both legally and literally. As we accept His mercy, God counts us free, because we've actually been made righteous.

By every natural perception it does not fit. Indeed, it cannot. For by nature man rightly perceives his estrangement from his Creator, he feels the gulch from his original birth, and searches the landscape of his soul for a remedy, in vain.

So, for us to take hold of an identity declared to us by our Creator on the basis of Another Man taking what we are fully responsible for, violates our pride and sense of self righteousness. It feels like robbery.

That's why it's called a faith exchange.

Put That Thing Down!
Take the emotional intimacy and psychological identification of the guilt, shame and awareness of my own iniquity and cast it out from me permanently.

Pick This Thing Up!
Take up the declaration of full justification, cleansing and newness of life and liberty as glorious sons/daughters of God because of his mercy through Jesus alone.

Say with the apostle Paul:
My old identity has been co-crucified with Messiah and no longer lives; for the nails of his cross crucified me with him. And now the essence of this new life is no longer mine, for the Anointed One lives his life through me—we live in union as one! My new life is empowered by the faith of the Son of God who loves me so much that he gave himself for me, and dispenses his life into mine! Galations 2:20

What have you done?
You've taken your identity formed from perceptions of your own life, and exchanged it with an identity formed by Another's history, substance and experience on the grounds of the Word of Promise.

The exchange has occurred: You put down your ideas about you. You picked up God's ideas about you. It was a costly transaction all around. You are now privileged to stand and walk strong in this liberating vision. But know, you really got a good deal.

We must now insist and persist in the joy that this exchange affords. We can now worship with grateful hearts and a fresh new outlook. We can soar with wings like eagles.

Today, as we hear the Glory of Eternity calling, ‘come up here,’ we take flight! . . . and never look back.