By John Stenen Scripture lets us know that our ‘good works, our tears, our prayers’ will never earn us favor with God or secure our salvation.
Ephesians 2:8 tells us that we are saved by grace through faith and not of works. The very first ‘good work’ we will ever perform will be to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Until you do this, all your previous attempts to win God’s favor are useless. Remember in Acts 16: when God supernaturally released Paul and the other prisoners from the stocks while in jail; the jailer asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
Paul simply answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved…..” Acts 16:30-31.
To believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is to believe that He saves you here and now, for He has said, “Him that comes to Me I will in no wise cast out.” Read John 3:16 again and see that your salvation involves believing in Jesus Christ.
Also, read John 1:12-13. Of course this means that you believe in all He did to secure your salvation on the cross, and that you fully commit your life to obeying and serving Him.
If you think that you can add anything else to the grace of God for your salvation, then you are challenging His grace. You’re saying that what Christ accomplished on the cross was not enough.
What about good works? Once you and I are saved, our life is to be filled with good works. Mt. 5:16 says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
God bless.
