No One Can Boast

Meditation

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.

(Ephesians 2:8-9)

We are saved, not because of anything we do but because God is full of grace. He saved me, a wicked, filthy sinner, when I was at one of the lowest points in my life. He took mercy on me when I needed him most and made me new. The old sinner was buried in the waters of baptism, and the new creation rose up, cleansed, from that symbolic grave. He didn’t have to do that. I didn’t deserve it, there is no way I ever will. He is so full of love, he pulled me out of the sinful life I was living in. All I had to do was listen to the message of the gospel, spoken to my heart by the Holy Spirit, and have faith in Jesus as Lord. He did all the work needed at the cross for my salvation.

Why did God do that? He could have destroyed this world with a simple thought, instead he sent his Son. Jesus could have come as the King of Israel and conquered the world, instead he came as a servant to all mankind. He could have called down ten thousand angels, instead, Jesus willingly went to the cross. That could have been all there was, instead on the third day, he rose from the dead. God did all of that for you and me. Why? Because he is the essence of love. He loves us even when we are still hopeless unsaved sinners. He doesn’t hate the sinner; he only hates the sin. He doesn’t hate us, he hates what we do. He wants to forgive everyone. Forgiveness is the gift he offers us, but we have to accept.

All God requires from us for salvation is our faith in his Son, Jesus Christ. We shouldn’t feel any pride in our redemption, because we do nothing to be worthy of it. There is nothing we can do that would make Jesus have to save us from the judgment of hell. We owe a huge debt to our Father in heaven. In God’s economy, sin is a debt that has to be paid. Our sins have to be reconciled before we can come into God’s presence.  Jesus was sent by the Father’s grace to pay the debt for our sins. Christ went to the cross as a sacrificial offering to save us. Jesus, therefore, has done all the work necessary for us to be saved. There is nothing any of us can brag about. All we must do is put our trust in him and believe it.

Prayer Time

Heavenly Father, you have created the universe and everything in it. Your power and might know no limit. You are holding all things together with only a thought. Even though your scorn is what we deserve, your grace for us is a constant throughout all time. Our faith in you is centered on your love for us. Please, Lord, have mercy on us when we fall back into sinful behavior. You know our thoughts, forgive our shortcomings and restore us to a right relationship with you. From the wellspring of your grace, comes the plan for our salvation. Christ came to set us free from the sin debt we owe. He paid a heavy price for our salvation and there is nothing we can do to earn it. We can never be good enough to stand before you without being cleansed by the blood of Jesus. We ask you to give us a zeal for sharing the gospel and soften the hearts of those who hear it. It’s in the precious name of Jesus, we pray. Amen!