God’s great gift

Our pastor talked yesterday about those whose claim to Christ is a list of their good deeds, or a list of their rituals. They say, “Well, I go to church.” Or they claim baptism, or confirmation, or membership, or the money that they give. Throughout this message he repeated that salvation and Christianity is more than being good and doing good and that entrance into the kingdom of God is never about what we do.

Paul ran into the same claims. People talked about their relationship to God in terms of being Jews, or that their parents were believers. With reluctance, he compared his own experiences.

Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one — I am talking like a madman — with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. (2 Corinthians 11:22–23)

My imagination tries to picture God with a list of criteria, looking down at people and saying, “Oh, she is like this,” and giving a check mark, or “Oops, she is missing out there,” and omitting the mark or drawing a line through that item. The obvious question becomes, “How many check marks do I need to qualify?” Of course, this is silly.

God through His Word says over and over that salvation depends on faith. It is offered by grace (meaning no one deserves it) and is guaranteed by God, not by what we do — or don’t do.

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. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8–10)

No one can claim more check marks on a list than anyone else. Even if they had them, they do not count. Entrance into the family of God, into His kingdom, is by grace through faith. It is free, a gift to be accepted, not a prize to be earned.

Notice that good works are mentioned, but these are for those whom God calls “His workmanship” meaning those already shaped and formed and given new life through grace by faith. These good works are different from the ones made as a claim to belonging, so different that believers in Jesus Christ are often astonished that they even happen.

We are astonished because salvation by grace through faith changes us. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Motivations change. So does our source of strength. Instead of claiming our own goodness, we know that it is no longer us. Instead, our lives are more like a glove on a hand, the hand being our Lord and Savior. 

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

How amazing! The astonishment is that we have become so aware of our sinfulness and shortfall that any goodness that flows out of our lives makes us shake our heads in wonder. The Apostle Paul called himself “the chief of sinners” because he could see his sinful old nature in sharp contrast to the new life that was his in Christ. For him, and for others, this is a great marvel and a wonderful gift from God.

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Father, the longer I am a Christian the more I realize how useless and unable I am apart from You. You bless me with so much grace. Even faith is a gift from You, as is anything else You put in my life that others might call “good deeds.” All aspects of being a Christian depend on Christ, not on me. I’ve no claims. I come empty handed, a mere glove. Your hand does it all, and I bow my head in gratitude.