Profiting with Gifts IV

Beloved,

Last time, we discussed the most precious gift God has given us: the gift of His Son. With Him, we receive, by default, the gift of salvation and the gift of eternal life. The gift of salvation is a wonderful one because it is a gift that never stops giving. You are forever saved from the eternal consequences of sin and the limits of this natural life. To God be the glory!

Speaking of these gifts, the love of Christ is a gift all by itself! His love for us is something we should not take for granted. When we make good use of it, the world will see it and be drawn to it. May you never forget or underestimate the power of Christ’s love at work in you and at work for you, in Jesus’ mighty name.

Today, I bring your attention to the great gift of grace. Paul talks about it in his letter to the Ephesians as he explains:

that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. Ephesians 3:6-7

The gift of grace qualifies you for what you would not be qualified for ordinarily. Paul knew this well. Grace is a gift handcrafted by God, Himself. It is the resultant effect of Him marvelously at work in our lives. What God accomplished through His Son, Jesus Christ, is an example of God’s grace. We don’t deserve it by any means, but all we have to do is reach out to accept it, and it’s ours!

It saddens me how we love to do things the hard way and by our own efforts rather than employing the gift of God’s grace that He has made available to us. Some people would rather burn a million sacrifices and do so many elaborate things to achieve a result that could never compare to what the Holy Spirit can make happen for us in just moments with little effort on our part. The devil tricks people into pride and ignorance to keep them from the simple yielding it would take to receive God’s grace. Beloved, if you find yourself in a situation where you are toiling, it is an indicator that you have not discovered and/or put to good use God’s grace in your life. James expresses the concern this way:

Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?
But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:
“God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.”
James 4:5-6

So, if you have convinced yourself that you must do it by yourself, beloved, you are deceiving yourself. It will take the grace of God if you will succeed on your Christian journey. It’s a precious gift we can’t afford to waste.

I commit you to God and to the word of His grace.