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(I corrected several path problems on August 29, August 30, and September 1, including these selections: Which  Version?, Christmas, Images, Body of Christ Discovered, Hymn Midis, KJV Bible, and Spiritual Warfare.  Sorry for any problems; please let know if you find others. - Gary)

Points of Grace

For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. Romans 5:18

About twenty-five years ago I attended a church in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, while I went to school at the University. It was a small church, and everyone who attended there regularly knew everyone else. Many of the people there became close friends of mine, and I spent many hours in their homes. Once I got my Masters degree there in history, and decided not to go on, I left the town and the church. I assumed I would never see any of the people there again, though I continued to stay in touch with letters.

That was a difficult period in my life. I had no job, and no realistic prospects of getting one back in West Virginia. My friends in Chapel Hill, though, did not give up on me. They brought me back there, and paid all the tuition and living expenses for me to attend a computer programming school in Raleigh. Even after finishing that course, though, I still couldn't find a job. They didn't give up on me even then. As it happens, one of my friends had a sister working for the U.S. Department of Labor regional office in Atlanta. When the new Federal Black Lung Office opened here in Pikeville, it was in part on the basis of her recommendation I got the job I've had now for 22 years.

I didn't deserve all the love, concern, and material assistance those people gave me. They gave freely. All of my life, I've been the recipient of the generosity of others. Just recently, some of my closest friends gave me a birthday dinner, because none of my natural family were around to celebrate. That's what grace is all about; a free gift without conditions, not based on any merit we have.

Our salvation is also a free gift, paid for by the blood of Christ. Even the faith to believe in Christ and accept the salvation he offers, is a gift from God. We don't have anything, nor can we do anything, to pay God for eternal life. He is complete in himself; he doesn't need our money, our deeds, our service, or our very lives. He doesn't have any lack we can fill. He wants to bring us to him, yes, but not because he needs us. Even in his wanting, though, he doesn't want our money, deeds, or service; all he wants is us. When we tithe, or when we act in obedience to his will, or when we testify of what's he has done for us, all of these important because they represent a giving up of ourselves to him. As Jesus himself made clear, simply doing good works in his name doesn't mean a thing unless we do them in the Father's will (Matthew 7:21-23). The Apostle Paul made the same point; if we don't do our good deeds in God's love, no matter how spectacular they are, they are nothing but empty gestures (I Corinthians 13:1-3).

If we could earn our salvation by our own works, Christ need not have died for our sins. Many popular books, movies, and television programs perpetuate the myth that we have to be good before we can go to heaven. Most well known cults proclaim the same thing; the Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses who knock on our doors believe they are stacking up points on some divine tally of worthiness. Scripture clearly teaches otherwise, both in the passages above and many more. Romans 3:23 proclaims "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." The only thing capable of bridging the gap between us and God the Father is faith in Jesus Christ.

What does that mean to us in our day to day lives? For one thing, once we're saved we don't have to spend time worrying if we're going to good enough to make it into heaven. The Gospel of John reminds us "These things are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing ye might have life through his name." Jesus our Lord also said, "All that the Father giveth me come to me, and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." (John 6:37).

That doesn't mean we should indulge in presumptuous sin. "What shall we say then? Shall we continue to sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein?" (Romans 6:1-2) Christians do sin, of course, but if we can continue to sin willfully and have no sense that God is dealing with us about it, there is some doubt we were saved at all. Christians who continue to indulge in a besetting sin, or sins, not only are worthless instruments, but bad witnesses. If we are salt that has lost its savor, or light that fails to shine, God can not use us.

None of us can ever, by our own efforts, be "good enough" to be saved. Once we are saved, though, by God's grace, there should be evidence of his grace at work in our lives. If there isn't, we need to look toward the Cross. Our churches are full of those who think they are saved, but never really have invited Christ into their lives. Going forward in a church service isn't enough; repeating a prayer isn't enough, being baptized isn't enough, joining a church isn't enough. There must be a change inside us. When we're saved, God gives us the assurance to know it. All he requires is that we accept what he's already given us, salvation and eternal life in Jesus Christ.

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