Saved By Grace

Text

"It is by grace you have been saved." —Ephesians 2:5

Bible Reading

EPHESIANS 2:1-7

Devotional

We must know if we are saved, and we must also know how we are saved.

When the question "How were you saved?" is asked, we must not give such unimportant answers as, "By meeting that person," or "By undergoing that surgery," or "By listening to that preacher." These details may be important for our personal files and friends, but such answers should not be the topics for speeches, books, or songs.

When the question "How were you saved?" is asked, we should all be able to answer: "By grace!" That's an important answer. And a worthy topic for a speech or a book or an eternal song.

"By grace" means that we did not save ourselves. God saved us through Jesus Christ. With Christ I died, and with Christ I arose. That's how I was saved, and that's how you were saved—or you are not saved at all.

"Grace" is God's unmerited favor. We did not get what we deserved. In fact, we got exactly the opposite of what we deserved.

"By grace" means that salvation is free—not cheap, of course, but a gift nevertheless. God's way of salvation makes a joke of all human efforts and all do-it-yourself religions. We are saved by grace, through faith in Christ—or we are lost.

If you have to explain to someone what you mean by the grace of God, you find yourself talking about Jesus. You can't help it. Why? Because God's "great love for us" (v. 4) has been completely revealed in the saving work of Jesus Christ.

We were saved because Christ represented us in his death and in his resurrection. Grace wiped out our sins on Good Friday, and God's grace "made us alive with Christ" on the first day of the week.

REFLECTIONS

What does it mean for your daily living that you are "saved by grace"?

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Well as you know, I usually sum up what was said in my own way - a response. But I cannot make this make any more sense or make it any more meaningful. Its so easy to get wrapped up in the specific moments and happenings when Christ saved me and try to make the correlation of what was going on at that moment to what God was doing in my heart. In certain cases, its okay to give the gory explanation of what was going on, what was used, who was used - but in the grand scheme of things, they really have no importance to the true story!

It wasn't because I did drugs and slept around that God saved me or that I REALIZED I needed a savior. God saved me and showed me my desperate wickedness because He is sovereign and chose to show me these things. Its so important to give credit where its due and its not due to anything any of us did - its all because God in His sovereign power, showed us our wickedness in light of His holiness and brought us to Himself to cover us in Jesus blood and save us.

To me - Saved by Grace means SO much! Its by grace that I've been reconciled to God, been given a heart of flesh, been regenerated and given a hope that will never fade. I understand how desperately awful I am and was before God wiped my slate clean. I am forever thankful to the Lord for His love and grace that covers my sins. I am not free to go around sinning, but I know that as an imperfect person, God shows me grace each day and its enough to fulfill life and sustain me until I go to be with Him in Glory. Grace&Peace.