By Grace

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Scripture: Ephesians 2:4-10 (NLT)

4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) 6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. 7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.

8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you cannot take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Devotion:

            Many Christians have memorized at least part of these important verses from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. I have chosen to use a lesser-known translation to help us think anew about these crucial verses. The truths recorded here are essential to understanding who we are as Christians and how much God loves us.

            We who have been called to be the Lord’s people have been loved with a love we do not deserve. That is why it is called grace. Something that we could never earn were we granted to live to be 10,000 years old. God saves us even though we are sinners who are in total rebellion against God. In this world we have no hope for in life but only death as payment for our sins.

            Not only are we saved from eternal death, but we have the honor of being in heaven with God and all the angels. God in fact is so proud that we have accepted his offer of life that he points to us as an example of his tender love and mercy. When we are found by Jesus and saved, we have truly won life’s lottery. There is no more fear of death or decay for us. Even though our poor, frail bodies may become infirm and weakened by age, by faith we have the hope of a heavenly body that will never fail us or die.

            However, we have received all this as a gift of God. We may not boast about it. We cannot point to our salvation and say what wonderful people we are. God has done all the work in this situation. We are merely the recipients of God’s great and wonderful gifts of salvation. We would all do well to meditate on that fact long and hard until we are able to see our own spiritual poverty and unworthiness of God’s grace to us.

            God has claimed us for his own treasured possession. Once we are his we no longer need to fear what humanity and the trials of this life will hold for us. We are secure in God’s hands and safe for all eternity. We have become free to act as God’s agents of faith, hope, and love in the world. Let us take a moment now to thank God for the salvation accomplished by him in our lives.

Prayer:

            Holy God, we open our lips to give you thanks for your wonderful works in us through the life, death, and resurrection of your son. Grant that we may live out the promise you have given to each of us. Lord, we are not worthy of the grace you have bestowed on us but let us seek to live out each day in a manner that honors you and brings glory to your name. Let us give thanks to you for all that you have done and all that you have promised to do for us. Let us be a grateful people who worship you and thank you in all circumstances. Amen

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