Saved by Grace (and other small things)

Many thanks to our friend Michelle who posted this quote here!

“Every last one of us has a natural propensity toward works righteousness. All of us desire to save ourselves. We love Jesus, and we’re grateful to Jesus for dying on the cross for us… and that was real cool… thank you, Jesus. However, what we really want to do is; we want to find some things that the Bible tells us to do and we want to do it either out of fear or pride. If it’s out of fear, we’re going: “see God, I did this… did you see that? I really hope it’s good enough for you… I really do.” That’s the kind of person where every negative thing in life that happens to you, you’re sure it’s because you weren’t good enough. Let me just put a footnote here… something goes wrong in your life and you immediately start going and looking for what you did wrong to deserve it? Here’s the problem with that kind of thinking: that means that you actually think that you were worthy of the goodness that you received before. Help you if you think that! So if it’s not out of fear then it’s out of pride, and here’s the pride part: pride says: “I went to the bible, I found what I needed to do, and I did it.” So you can come into heaven, walk through the gates and say “I am pleased that Christ died on the cross for me. Here are the works that I have added to make His sacrifice sufficient.” - Voddie Baucom

That is a powerful peice of writing. To think that one could add anything to what has already been done for you... and yet I am guilty of it on a daily basis! If you believe that you are separated from God by your sin, and you have asked for Jesus to pardon you, then IT IS FINISHED! There is nothing for you to do except worship!

2 Corinthians 5:17-18 lays it all out:

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation."

So what is the point of doing "good things"? Good works are done in response to what has been done for you. They are a demonstration of the fabulous gift that you have been given, and that's no small thing!