Not of Ourselves
By Laura Lindsey
It’s Good Friday and a day to dwell on God’s Perfect Gift for us. If you are alive…then God has graciously given you breath, life, and an opportunity to know Him. Every single day is a merciful gift to us to keep moving forward and fulfilling the Great Commission.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved, through faith. And this is not of your own doing; it is a gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” According to my ESV Study Bible, “grace refers to God’s favor upon those who have transgressed his law and sinned against him. His grace not only offers salvation but secures it.” Those who have transgressed are…ALL of us. No one has escaped sin in this life. We can’t, it’s in our DNA. But there’s a life saving gift that God has extended to his people. We can’t earn it, try for it, pray hard enough for it, do enough good works for it, or go to church enough for it. God sent his Son to die for us as this gift.
John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” Jesus took our place on the Cross to carry the punishment that was ours. And he took it for every single person past, present, and future. The weight of our sin was so heavy that He was separated from God before it was finished. His mother Mary witnessed his crucifixion and could do nothing about it. That was the plan. He humbled himself, didn’t fight back, and willingly and lovingly endured a gruesome death in our place.
But God. He had a perfect plan to defeat Satan and death so that he could bring redemption. Jesus rose from the dead 3 days later and defeated all odds. No one else could have completed that work. Jesus was a sinless man, fully God, fully man who was fully surrendered to his Father.
This gift He has given us is freely given. Jesus finds us in our brokenness and calls us home. He finds us in the highs and lows and invites us to His table. Wherever you are, whoever you have been, there is a God who loves you and wants to adopt you into his family. Galatians 4:4-5 says, “ But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Once you have decided to surrender your life to Christ, and follow Him, you are adopted into his family forever. He promises to take care of us. He is our Father and Provider. We don’t have to look to the world for answers or for our needs to be fulfilled. Everything we need is found in Him. There is no greater gift than following Jesus each and every day.
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