Skip to main content

It Is By Grace

             For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ep[hessians 2:8-9)

 

            This might be one of the most offensive passages in the Bible. It is the way Christianity differs from the other religions. Salvation is needed. We sense this if we have any wisdom. We run from the need because we resent that we have a need. Over the past few days, we’ve seen that we may presume we have salvation without faith in Him, and fool ourselves, but not Him. Oh, we may not say it. We may not even feel it all of the time, but when we least expect it, that niggling voice of irritations creeps in. If nothing else, it whispers that we should be better than we are, or that we are better than they are. Other times, it whispers, “work harder!”

            But Paul tells us that this offense is a gift. We can’t earn it. We can’t accomplish it. We don’t deserve it. And it irks at least a little that we can’t and don’t. Why bother to try if we can’t win? Why must we grovel in our need for a handout like a beggar on the street corner?

            When we do receive gifts, how often do we think we deserve them? “It’s our birthday,” says Smeagol. It’s Christmas. It’s Valentine’s Day. We worked hard. We did a favor. We gave them something. We’ve been good _________s.  We’re “worth it.” Except, it’s not; we didn’t, we haven’t, and to the extent we’re worth it, it’s not because of anything we did or didn’t do.

            It is by grace. It is a gift. At some point, we need to accept that. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saved?

  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ ” (Matthew 7:21-23) Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” (Romans 3:4)   What conclusion do you draw when someone who was raised in a Christian family and church, perhaps even playing a significant role in a chur...
Post a Comment
Read more

Meditations of the Heart

  May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm19:14)           As I started writing this post, I noted that the meditations of my heart are all over the mental landscape, from a hub where eight superhighways come together to a lunar or nuclear landscape. Do you see my error? The moment I read the word meditation , I think about thoughts. But what’s described here is the meditations of our hearts ; our wills.           While the meditations of our minds may be all over the place, the meditations of our wills tend to be a little more stable by the time we are adults. We no longer tend to want to pursue the ten separate careers we did in any given day as children. Part of this is humble acceptance of reality. We come to understand that we can’t do it all. I think another part of it is disappointmen...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listen To Him

              The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him . (Deuteronomy 18:15)           Today, we switch from Jesus’ claims of “I am” to prophecies made about Him. My Bible platform is starting in Deuteronomy. I’d start in Genesis, where we would learn that the one who would save us would be a descendant of Eve (Genesis 3:15), of Noah (by default), Abram and Sara(Genesis 12:1-3). Isaac (Genesis 17:19), Jacob (Genesis 25:23), Judah (Genesis 29:8), and David (II Samuel 7:12-16). There were also references to a new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 36:22-32). In addition, there were prophecies about when and where the prophet/Messiah would be born and what would happen to him.           Of course, naysayers will claim that Jesus’ life was retrofitted or reverse enginee...
Post a Comment
Read more