Tag Archives: Ephesians 2:8-10

Humble Lichen

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Lowly lichen brightens the bark on a Ponderosa Pine

God opposes the proud , but gives grace to the humble. 1 Peter 5:5

Humility is an overlooked essential ingredient in grace.

Without humility, you do not know your desperate need for God’s forgiveness. You remain in denial. – “I’ve done pretty well with my life.”

Without humility, the shame of your life keeps you from grace because you don’t deserve it. – “How could God forgive the unforgivable?”

Without humility, you will not accept God’s grace because you won’t submit to the authority of Jesus in your life. – “I want to be in control.”

Without humility, you’ll want to somehow earn God’s grace. – “I’ve never taken anything I didn’t earn.”

God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:8-19 NLT

You can’t generate humility. Even here you have to ask for God’s help.

The Wonder of Grace

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The Grace of Winter White

The Wonderful Grace of Jesus

For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:17

The best and the greatest of this world cannot replace it.
The worst and most painful cannot spoil it.
The wonderful grace of Jesus.

There is no imagined splendor that can outshine it.
There is no ugliness that can diminish it.
The beautiful grace of Jesus.

There is no stronghold it cannot topple.
There is no past it cannot overcome.
The redeeming grace of Jesus.

There is no intelligence that can understand it.
The smallest child can receive it.
The all-encompassing grace of Jesus.

There is no life in living without it.
There is no death in life with it.
The joyous grace of Jesus.

There is no day that can be lived without it.
There is no day that will outlive it.
the enduring grace of Jesus.

A bruised reed he will not break,
And a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. (Isaiah 42:3)
The loving grace of Jesus.

The grace of Jesus gives redemption and purpose for my yesterdays.
The grace of Jesus gives me help and direction for today.
The grace of Jesus gives me hope for tomorrow.

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 NLT

Grace takes the all the things we suffer—the self inflicted, as well as what has been inflicted upon us, and redeems it for His glory through His grace.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10

I do not thank God for my past mistakes and failures; I thank Him for His grace that frees me from them, and works to redeem the harm I have caused.

O the wonder of God’s grace.

Mission Impossible

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“I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.”

The thing we all have in common is we’ve messed up our life in one way or another.

The good news is that God has plans for us, and this can be true even for the worst offender.

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT

But how can we do these good things when we keep messing up?

These verses out of Ephesians lay out how to do the good God has in mind for us:
– Trust that God has saved you by His grace alone, and not of your own doing.
– Trust that you are knew in Christ.
– Seek to do what is right and good.
– Don’t give up trusting God and relying on Him. For God is faithful to carry out what He has planned for us.

Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” Matthew 19:26

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6

I hope you choose to take on this mission.

Stand on the Heights

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Reaching above the clouds

God does not give us tasks we can do by our own strength or ability. He gives us good works to do that require us to rely upon Him.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10

We are not just called to do the ordinary with integrity, but also to do the extraordinary work of the Kingdom of Jesus. Not by our strength which is insufficient, but by the power and direction of the Holy Spirit.

It is God who arms me with strength
and makes my way perfect.
He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he enables me to stand on the heights. Psalm 18:32-33

A Lot of Work

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Hard work, but easy to photograph. Gallatin Valley, Montana

The hard work of grace.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10

Grace is easy because all I need do is trust God.
It is hard because in all my ways I have to trust Him.

Grace is easy because none of it depends on my effort.
It is hard because I can’t do anything to earn it.

Grace is easy because it’s given even though I don’t deserve it.
It is hard because it is humbling––I don’t deserve it.

Grace is easy because I know God is in control.
It is hard because I am not in control.

Grace is easy because Jesus takes all the punishment for my sins.
It is hard because I am forgiven not excused.

Grace is easy because His mercy is new every morning.
It is hard because His mercy leads to change.

Grace is easy because it is sufficient for all my sins.
It is hard because some of them I want to keep.