The Grace of God

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:8-10 ESV

Grace, an unmerited favor, an undeserved love, and an apt description of God’s interaction with mankind. This is astounding when we properly understand even a little bit about who is dealing graciously with us.

In our day, many of us operate spiritually out of a sense of entitlement or selfishness. We automatically see situations in the mentality of “what’s in it for me?”. In thinking this way, we presume upon God’s grace, and easily forget our true sinfulness and guilt (Romans 2:4). This presumption assumes that God in fact owes us something. We begin thinking God owes us salvation because of our excellent church attendance and giving record. Or we believe God owes us an economically stable life because we aren’t “bad” like everyone else, we don’t swear, watch R-rated movies, etc. This is a grievously sinful mentality, and it is all too easy for us to presume upon God’s grace.

The reality of our situation is this: we, “His workmanship”, created in Christ Jesus for good works”, owe God everything, while He owes us nothing! We are saved by grace “through faith” in Jesus; don’t forget, even our confession of faith is due to the Holy Spirit’s work in our hearts (1 Corinthians 12:3)! Meditate on this passage today, and pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal any pride concerning your salvation and inherent goodness that ought not be.

Do you perceive your salvation as God’s grace and work, or as something you’ve gained on your own?