week of 10/05/11 4th recorded HighQuest Ephesians 2:4-10

The passage I read was Ephesians 2:4-10

You can find that passage here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians+2%3A4-10&version=NIV

The verse that most stood out to me:

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--

As I reflect:

This passage starts off with a correction of many a believers thought’s that we have in some way earned God’s love for us. Note that every version you read of verse 4 states that it was because of God’s great love… No version found will state, “because of our great deeds we earned God’s love”. Nope. So many songs question what we have done to deserve His love. The answer is simply, “nothing”. Nothing we have done has earned His love for us and we have no right to take some sort of prideful credit for it as if we merited such mercy or compassion. This becomes even more apparent as Paul continues in verse 5 stating the time frame that we were made alive in Christ. He says that is was, “when we were dead in transgressions.” That reminds me of Romans 5:8 which says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Both Romans 5:8 and Ephesians 2:5 make it clear that we were sinners and thus we had no just deserves to God’s love. This is given simply out of His own compassion on us. Otherwise Paul would not have been able to go on saying that it is by grace that we have been saved.

There is a common pair of verses often memorized with an uncommon revelation for many. That pair verses is 8&9. I even remember that I memorized these at a Christian camp as a youth. I remember that my motive for memorizing them was to gain a patch which showed my hard work in memorization. I surely had the wrong intentions and as I look back find it quite ironic that I tried to earn merit by memorizing verses that say it cannot be earned but is a free gift so that no one can boast. I thank God now that that meaning has been made clear in my life.

For the focus of this week (being “faith”), I chose verse 8 as having stood out the most. Verse 8 states, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—

You know, so many people that I have met and conversed with have shared how hard it is to have faith when times get rough or when things aren’t going our way. But I believe that if you have a strong relationship with the living God there is no doubt or struggle in the middle of those storms because you fully trust in Him. However, I feel the truest test of faith is in trusting and accepting the revelation that God loves you enough to die for you even though we are such filthy, wretched men… This is where real faith begins; accepting His unmerited grace and compassion on an undeserving world.

My response to the Lord:

Yahweh, thank you for loving us even though we are so undeserving. We have merited nothing but a fearful expectation of hell fire and yet you have out of your own great love for us shown us mercy. Not only that, but you have been gracious and compassionate and blessed us so abundantly beyond our needs. My knees shake as I approach your throne each time I pray. How does one stand in front of their kinsman Redeemer knowing what they have been saved from and at what price their salvation came? I fall to my knees and I thank you life my life laid down. I am yours.