January 18 | By Grace Alone
Ephesians 2:8-9, “8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God– 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Now that you are saved, you may be tempted to think that because of all the good things you do for God, you are in some way, “saving yourself,” or “earning your place in heaven.” The truth is, you cannot save yourself — never could — never can. The entire Christian walk, from beginning to end, is all about God’s grace.
Imagine going skydiving without a parachute and trying to use the air to stop your fall. Grasping at something that isn’t there would do nothing to stop your rapid descent. Remember Paul wrote, in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.” Lying, lusting, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, pride, greed, bitterness, idolatry, gossiping and jealousies have all caused you to suffer a great fall from God’s glory.
However, your fall is even more terrifying than that from an airplane. Your fall, from God’s glory, will be for eternity in the lake of fire. You will never stop falling; and, all the good works you have done to try to save yourself, will be like dirty grave-clothes wrapped around your body. All of the religious teachings and rituals you did will be like ropes made of sand. You will have nothing to hold on to nor strength to save you. You will have no hope of help from those who have fallen before you, either, because they, too, have nothing to stop their own horrifying descent.
You will cry and scream for the fall to stop and the ground to comfort your feet again, but your tears won’t be heard because no one will be with you. You will be alone, accompanied only by the memories of your sin and rebellion, and they will torment you like undying worms crawling through your flesh.
The last moment you will remember of your feet standing, will be in a place where you don’t belong, for the Maker of Heaven, your only hope, will have cast you to your eternal fall with these parting words, “I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws” (Matthew 7:23 NLT).
What then is grace? It is Jesus’ undeserved gift of salvation.
Grace is your only hope of not falling into the pit you deserve to be cast into. It is by grace alone that sinners are saved. This underserved gift, and unmerited kindness, comes only from Jesus. Receive His grace, live in His grace, and be forever grateful that He saved a “wretch like you.” Recall the words of this famous song by John Newton, “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now am found, was blind, but now I see.”
Reflection
Action
- Ask God to reveal the depths and power of His saving grace to you.
- Spend time, today, thanking Jesus for His sacrifice that gives us forgiveness by grace.
- Never turn away from the grace of God (Galatians 5:4).