For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God not as a result of works, that no one should boast. Ephesians 2:8,9 (New American Standard Bible)
A minister was holding a tent revival at the turn of the 20th century. As he was preaching one night a drunk entered the tent and weaved his way to the pulpit. “Hey preacher, remember me?” he sneered. “You saved me five years ago.” The minister looked down at the drunk and said, “Yes sir, I have no doubt. You look like the kind of job I’d do.”
Permanent spiritual change only comes through the power of God. The most popular notion is “If I live a good life then God will accept me into heaven.” That kind of thinking is like a sieve for the logic of it soon flows away. When people say that to me I ask, “OK, imagine this; if you knew you would be standing before God's glory and holiness in the next five minutes what would you feel?” The standard response is the person’s eyes get large and they say “I’d be terrified because I know all the bad things I’ve done.” So how bad is bad? Kicking the dog? Losing your temper? Cheating your employer or the IRS? Murder? While some of these things bring more grief they all are all hurtful. And how good is good? Is anything we do powerful enough to hear God say “Wow, what a perfect job you did cleaning up your soul. There is nothing else I need to do for you. Come and live in my presence.” In our hearts we know what it would be like to stand before a Holy and Pure God in our own merit.
We can be positive that anyone who trusts in Christ can come into His presence with total confidence. They will be there not because of any works they’ve done but because of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. When we see Him face to face He might say “I remember you my righteous one. You’re exactly the kind of job I’d do. Welcome home.”
Ken
www.devotionstoday.blogspot.com
A minister was holding a tent revival at the turn of the 20th century. As he was preaching one night a drunk entered the tent and weaved his way to the pulpit. “Hey preacher, remember me?” he sneered. “You saved me five years ago.” The minister looked down at the drunk and said, “Yes sir, I have no doubt. You look like the kind of job I’d do.”Permanent spiritual change only comes through the power of God. The most popular notion is “If I live a good life then God will accept me into heaven.” That kind of thinking is like a sieve for the logic of it soon flows away. When people say that to me I ask, “OK, imagine this; if you knew you would be standing before God's glory and holiness in the next five minutes what would you feel?” The standard response is the person’s eyes get large and they say “I’d be terrified because I know all the bad things I’ve done.” So how bad is bad? Kicking the dog? Losing your temper? Cheating your employer or the IRS? Murder? While some of these things bring more grief they all are all hurtful. And how good is good? Is anything we do powerful enough to hear God say “Wow, what a perfect job you did cleaning up your soul. There is nothing else I need to do for you. Come and live in my presence.” In our hearts we know what it would be like to stand before a Holy and Pure God in our own merit.
We can be positive that anyone who trusts in Christ can come into His presence with total confidence. They will be there not because of any works they’ve done but because of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. When we see Him face to face He might say “I remember you my righteous one. You’re exactly the kind of job I’d do. Welcome home.”
Ken
www.devotionstoday.blogspot.com
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