Written ~ 07-20-2023
Ephesians 2:8-10
“God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.”
Think about how difficult it would be to try and earn salvation. First off, we would have to impress a perfect, all-powerful God. Second, there is no amount of a worldly “good thing” that would qualify as a worthy sum for salvation. So, God took it upon Himself to give us Salvation as a gift.
“God saved you by His GRACE…”
Let’s look to the dictionary for its meaning of Grace….
- Unmerited divine assistance given to humans for their sanctification
- A virtue Coming from God
- A State of sanctification enjoyed through divine assistance
* Reminder of the meaning of sanctification: to be freed from sin – to be purified unmerited- not adequately earned or deserved
So, our All-Powerful God saved us through means of undeserved sanctification – we have been freed and purified by the assistance of God which cannot be earned. This awesome virtue of God is what has provided us with Salvation? And how is it received?
“When you believed”
These verses are straightforward don’t you think? It’s a common “argument” when we try to defend someone’s goodness, when we say, “but they’re a good person they are going to Heaven, God wouldn’t turn him or her away, look at how kind they are, they do nice things for other people, they smile a lot.” We need to be careful not to assume someone is saved by thinking they are “good.”
The way to confirm Salvation is if the good things we do are coming from the LORD (verse 10, “… So, we can do the good things He planned…”) The fruits of our good things will always be Biblically based – our good things are furthering the Kingdom of God.
I also love in verse 2:10 where it says,
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He created us anew in Christ Jesus…”
When we believe – we have accepted Christ as LORD and Savior – God has made us new. He has created something brand new in us and our hearts, minds and souls are being molded into what God has in mind for us.
When we decide to do “life” on our own, even after we have given our hearts to Christ Jesus, we are taking the creation of God’s heart and disregarding His plans for us. For those who believe – God gives the gift of Salvation – we are changed – we are new.
Thank You Father for the gift of my Salvation. I want your creativity to continue to mold me into who You see me see me to be. Thank you, Jesus!
~AMEN~