WE ARE SAVED BY THE GRACE OF GOD

Proclamation:

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith; and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.”  Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by the Apostle Paul under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Paul wanted them to know that they used to live in sin, following the thoughts and desires of the flesh, (Ephesians 2:1-3) but now they were saved because of God’s great love. (Ephesians 2:4-5)  It was by the grace of God that they were saved.  It was God’s gift to them, it was not something that they earned or deserved. (Ephesians 2:8-9)  They were created to do good works, but the good works did not earn them salvation. (Ephesians 2:10)  For the remainder of the chapter Paul states that both Jews and Gentiles were reconciled through the blood of Christ.

Application:

We all were lost in sin in the past.  Now we are saved by the grace of God.  In the future we will reside in heavenly places. (Ephesians 2:4-7)  The Lord God has given us this gift, it is now up to us to show our appreciation by performing the good works which we were created to do. (Ephesians 2:10)  We are to do good works so that men may see them and give glory to God. (Matthew 5:16)  The Lord God will reward us for our good works (Matthew 16:27) but they have nothing to do with our salvation.