In the last devotion, we began discussing the foundations of salvation. We saw where Paul said that grace was the foundation on which salvation was built. In this daily devotional, we look at how faith and works accompany salvation.
Nuggets
- We make the choice to believe what God says is true.
- Choosing faith is the first step; the second step is choosing His laws.
- As faith is a gift, it isn’t because of us, either.
- Works can’t fix us.
- Doing good works is not enough for salvation because it doesn’t make us holy.
Devotions in the The Letter of Paul to the Ephesians series
To read devotions in the Foundations of Salvation series, click the appropriate button below.
Just a heads up. This one got too long, so it had to be split and rearranged. The two-part series turned into a three-part series.
We said in the last devotion that grace was the foundation, and salvation was what was built on it. Grace alone doesn’t secure our salvation. We have to choose it through faith. How it is built is through faith. But what is faith?
Let's Put It into Context #1
Here is a running list of nuggets for the series.
What Is Faith?
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11: 1 ESV).
We make the choice to believe what God says is true.
Faith is a gift from God and a work of the Spirit that enhances the conviction that the doctrines revealed in God’s Word are true, even if we do not understand all aspects of them, a belief which impacts our lives and distinguishes us from others.
Glossary
We have to have a knowledge of God and Jesus and believe things are true. Then we have to trust enough to commit ourselves to Him.
That means that, if we don’t understand how God did something, that is okay. We can believe that God created the world by speaking, but we don’t understand what happened next.
We just take it on faith that God did it the way He did it. We believe even if we can’t see Him.
To read devotions in the Seeking God series, click the appropriate button below.
We’ve talked before that faith is a choice. God doesn’t force us to love and obey Him.
God allows us free will. Free will is the ability within us to make decisions, which determine actions that produce character.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
We have to be the one to say, “I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I have set my heart on your laws” (Ps. 119: 30 NIV).
Did you see that? Yes, it is choice — but that is the first step.
The second step is choosing His laws (Ps. 119: 30). Oooo, baby. That is the hard part — submitting to His authority.
We have to give up our but-it-should-really-work-this-way notions. It is challenging when the worldview is polar opposite of what God is telling us.
But go on with verse 8. “… and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2: 8 ESV). Our faith is His doing, too.
Faith, as well as salvation, is a gift. The gift is His calling us to salvation.
Salvation is the gift of life through the deliverance from condemnation and sin to acceptance and holiness and changes us from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive.
- Sin is not believing that Jesus is our Savior to save us from our actions by humans that disobey God and break one of His reasonable, holy, and righteous laws and commandments, goes against a purpose He has for us, or follows Satan’s promptings.
- Holy means to be set apart — because of our devotion to God — to become perfect, and morally pure while possessing all virtues.
- Perfection means we reach a state of maturity because the combination of the spiritual graces form, when all are present, spiritual wholeness or completeness — holy, sanctified, and righteous.
- Spiritual graces are worldly morals that have been submitted to God to further His kingdom instead of enhancing this world.
- Sanctified means to be set free from sin.
- Righteous means we are free from sin because we are following God’s moral laws.
- Pure means not being sinful or having the stain of sin.
- Perfection means we reach a state of maturity because the combination of the spiritual graces form, when all are present, spiritual wholeness or completeness — holy, sanctified, and righteous.
- Virtues are standards of moral excellence.
- Holiness is the transcendent excellence of His nature that includes elements of purity, dedication, and commitment that lead to being set apart.
- Purity means possessing God’s moral character, having eliminated the stain of sin.
- Spiritual death is the spiritual separation from God that occurred as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s original sin.
- The spiritually alive are those who have ABCDed, so they are no longer separated from God.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Glossary
It is Him through the Holy Spirit convicting us to step out in faith. It is Him revealing Himself to us.
And do you know the greatest thing? Salvation happens instantaneously for everyone who takes that genuine step of faith. As soon as we say, “God, we believe; forgive us of our sins,” He forgives us and restores the relationship. We become reunited with God and Jesus.
So, our faith isn’t because of us, either. (Remember, grace is because of His love for us.) Our salvation is totally about God. So why do we think we can earn it?
What Is Works?
“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” (Eph. 2: 8-9 ESV)
We’ve talked about works before. The problem is that we are flawed. We have a flawed foundation.
To read What Is a Definition of Works?, click the button below.
Works can’t fix us. Only God can do that.
The worldview is that, if we join any of the save the children, save the animals, and save the world organizations, that makes a good person — and that is good enough.
It isn’t.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
Think of it this way. We are to be saints.
We have been called to be set apart. If we follow the worldview to be a good person, that does not make us holy.
Remember, we said faith is a gift from God. There is nothing we can do to earn it. Nothing.
Not by doing good things for others. Not even by following all the do’s and the don’ts of the Bible. That really doesn’t matter either for salvation. We don’t gain salvation by keeping a list and checking off what we have or haven’t done.
What Is Boasting?
“… so that no one may boast” (Eph. 2: 9 ESV).
If we did have a checklist, we would probably be patting ourselves on the back for doing a good job with it. God doesn’t want us to boast that we are so important.
When I was going through my spiritual tornado, it seemed like every devotion I wrote ended with, “It isn’t about us; it’s about Him.” God doesn’t want us to boast about ourselves. He wants us to boast about Him.
Why? We said we couldn’t fix ourselves. So, we don’t have the foundation on which to boast.
God can fix us. He has the unfailing love; He has the grace; He developed and executed the plan. All we did was accept. And we think we can boast because we were smart enough to do that? No.
Making the Connections
So, the focus needs to firmly stay on God. He doesn’t need us; He wants to have a relationship with us.
God wants to lavish His gifts on us. We just have to put our own understanding aside and take a step out in faith.
How Do We Apply This?
If you have not admitted that your relationship is not right with God,
have not asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior,
and have not confessed your sins,
please read through the Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
In the next devotion, we will tie all of this together.
Loving Father. We want our faith to change us internally and externally. We want to live the lives You have called us to live. May we always complete the works that You have tasked us to do. May You always get the praise. Amen.
What do you think?
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