Only By Grace!

By Dr. Alice Maria Crawford | May 10, 2018

After we have been a Christian awhile we must guard ourselves against a common enemy, it is a belief sent to us by the enemy of our soul that we were somehow more deserving of God than others. That somehow there was something so exemplary about us that God HAD TO receive us. Paul, in the second chapter of Ephesians dispels this fallacy right off the bat:

Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. 2 You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. 3 All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.

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!). EPHESIANS 2:1-4 (NLT)

All of us come into this life as a sinner. We are born in sin and shaped in iniquity. Even if our parents are the holiest of holy and exude virtues unlimited – we still have to recognize our need for a Savior – for ourselves.

The best kept secret of the world today is that there is a real devil who operates as the prince of the power of the air. While there are many who like to attribute violent storms, tornadoes, volcanoes and the like to "acts of nature"- with the inference that there is no good God, the truth is that satan exists to bring havoc in the world, through both acts and people he works through.  And, as Paul states above, such were we. We all operated in the desires of our sinful nature, some to a greater harm than others.

However, God’s rich mercy sent us a Savior – whose atoning death provided grace for us to be raised from the dead, into life, and even life everlasting. We don’t need to get it twisted – the only thing we did right was to say "yes God, I believe."

Maria