Gifted into goodness

I mean that you have been saved by grace because you believed. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. You are not saved by the things you have done, so there is nothing to boast about. God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us new people so that we would spend our lives doing the good things he had already planned for us to do. (Ephesians 2:8-10)

Sometimes I think we honestly believe we can 'work our way' into God's good graces, but if that were possible, there would have been no need for Christ to come to this earth, sacrificing his life on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, and then battling death, hell, and the grave to redeem us from ourselves. A gift is given - then it must be received - period. There are no strings attached, nothing the one receiving the gift must do in order to receive it. If that were the case, it would be 'earnings' and not a 'gift'!

When I was working, I earned a paycheck. I put in my 40-50 hours a week, performing certain tasks, then received a fair wage for a fair day's efforts. Every now and again, my employer would add a little 'bonus' to the paycheck. That was an unexpected blessing - a 'gift' of sorts. It still 'cost' me something, though. I had to show up, put forth the effort, excel at what I was doing, and then pay taxes on that bonus! Was it really a 'gift'? Not really - it was a 'little extra' unexpectedly blessing me in my paycheck.

There are times we approach our 'salvation' much like that bonus. We think 'showing up', putting forth some form of effort, and then working hard to 'do right' is all we need to 'earn' our salvation. While God may want us to 'show up' in this relationship, 'putting forth the effort' to allow this relationship to develop, he does all the 'work' of preparing the 'gift of salvation' we so desperately need and don't deserve! Yes, we need to take time in his Word. We definitely need to spend time talking with him and learning what his voice sounds like. We even need to do the things he directs us to do - that is called obedience.

Do these things help us get into heaven, or earn us some form of 'brownie points' with God? Nope! They are the natural outcome of wanting a relationship with someone! We invest in the relationship because we have a desire to know this God of grace better. Maybe if we approached prayer as communication, time in the Word as willingly listening for his direction, and service in whatever form he asks of us as the outflow of gratefulness we have for being welcomed into this relationship so willingly, we might just find ourselves 'working toward goodness' a little less and see how much 'goodness' he has already gifted into our lives. Just sayin!