For by Grace
By D A V I D COOK
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.
Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV
So many good things in this life come from human effort, hard work and the payoff from that effort and work. It could be physical effort, intellectual work, creative effort or networking work and various related rewards. But what about grace, divine grace that comes out of the blue? When perhaps you don't get what's due; instead you are embraced by an avalanche of grace. Perhaps you've never experienced it. Or perhaps you have, over and over again; like waves rolling in from the deep blue sea of God's love.
The apostle Paul wrote to believers in Yeshua the Messiah who lived in the ancient city of Ephesus. The city of Ephesus is near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey.
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:1-10 ESV
Paul wanted believers in Messiah Yeshua to understand their past spiritual condition, dead in our trespasses and sins and the amazing grace of God. Because of the immeasurable riches of God's grace, when a person puts his (or her) faith in Yeshua the Messiah; a spiritual new birth transpires and eternal life begins! After a person has been born again transformation begins to take place in our thoughts and actions!! We begin to understand our new identity in Messiah! God has raised us up with Yeshua and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Messiah! So that in the coming ages God might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Messiah Yeshua.
For by Grace
You have been Saved
through Faith
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