“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.” (Phil.1:6)
Hallelujah, Abba! Our salvation is a “good work” we needed more than we realized, and could not have generated, resourced, and completed. We never could have performed our way out of our sin, earned our way into your love, and made ourselves like Jesus. From beginning to end, our salvation is 100% by grace.
We contributed nothing but our spiritually dead selves, and you gave everything to us in your eternally beloved Son. Indeed, to say our salvation is by grace is simply shorthand for saying it is all by the Lord Jesus Christ—for your grace isn’t a something but a Someone. Hallelujah!
O the peace, joy, and freedom that comes with really believing the Gospel is Jesus + Nothing. We didn’t show promise when you saved us; you made promises and you kept them. We aren’t currently saved to the extent we are like Jesus but in Jesus—a Biblical truth to which we easily give theological lip-service, but for which we should be giving you 24/7 whole-being praise.
By giving us a perfect and unbreakable union with Christ—Abba, you now consider Jesus’ righteousness to be ours, and our sin to be 100% taken and redeemed by him. The challenge that comes with resting in the “100%-grace-ness” of our salvation isn’t that we won’t take obedience, repentance, and holiness seriously; it’s that we cannot possibly give you all the love, worship, and adoration that you deserve for it.
Abba, free us from under-believing the Gospel, under-resting in your love, under-trusting you are 100% sovereign over all things, and under-giving you a life of Spirit-fueled gratitude and joyful servant love. So Very Amen.
