Hello blessed child of God, I hope you’re fine by God’s grace.
The year is ending and just like many in this season, I’m reflecting on my year and on the good things God did for me.
I grew up in a Christian home and I gave my life to Christ Jesus when I was still a little girl. I was familiar with the concept of salvation by grace but I was also a perfectionist.
I some how believed that though I was saved by grace, I had to make sure that my works will make me earn my place. In my mind I knew that we couldn’t earn God’s grace but that’s not how I lived because I hadn’t received the Revelation in my spirit yet. I always thought I had to use my efforts so that I wouldn’t lose my salvation. I didn’t believe that God loves me, as such I thought that I had to perform, to live up to a certain standard for God to love me.
The danger with thinking like this, is that we begin to believe that it’s through our works that we can be saved, or we get to believe that if we ever fail, God won’t love us anymore.
In my journey with Jesus Christ, God has always been faithful, teaching me that He loves me and that there’s nothing I can do to make Him love me more, nothing I can do to make Him love me less. He loves me and He loves you too. That’s how He loves you, irrespective of what you did or didn’t do.
Romans 8:38-39 NIV
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Another thing that God taught me, was the fact that Grace is far greater than performance.
I believe that every time we begin to think that we have to earn our salvation through our performance, God allows us to see our weaknesses and our flaws, so that we clearly realize that what grace can achieve, we can never achieve with our own strength.
That’s what happened to me, and I think it happened to many other believers.
Today, I believe God wants to let you know that He knows you’re not perfect, and He knows that you know that there are some things you don’t deserve, but He wants to give them to you anyways not because of your works but because of His very excellent grace.
1. God I Promise
I remember what Peter said when Jesus told him that He was going to be killed.
Matthew 26:31-35 NIV
Then Jesus told them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “ ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.” Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” “Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” But Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the other disciples said the same.
I feel Peter on this one. I remember reading God’s commandments and looking at how some people messed up in The Bible, and being like:
- “God I promise, I will obey”
- “God, I will never do that”
I also remember the times I messed up, confessed my sins to God,and then said : “God I promise I will never do that again”.
I think Peter and myself we had the same problem. We wanted to perform, our love for God was so great that we wanted to show God that we were different, that He could count on us, and that we could never disappoint Him.
But I think the point that Peter missed, that I missed and that we so often miss, is that:
- God loves us more than we will ever love Him
- Willpower can not achieve what only The Holy Spirit can achieve
- God is The Only One who can keep ALL His promises and never disappoint anyone
Peter ended up denying Jesus, and me too I ended up sinning again and confessing it to God once again. We can’t just decide: “I won’t ever sin again” and succeed. If we could, we wouldn’t need Jesus Christ.
I think that every time we fall short, every time we perform for God and we fail, it should be a reminder to us, that without Him we can do nothing and we need Him more than anyone and more than anything.
Becoming a Christian doesn’t mean that we now have to earn God’s grace, it means that we can enjoy it.
It is not our own efforts, our performance, our works, which will free us from sin. It is God’s grace which frees us, breaks our chains, makes us new.
It’s not by our own effort that we can be bold and confess Jesus in front of people even if we are threatened. It is God’s grace which makes The Holy Spirit fill us and make us speak boldly about Jesus Christ.
There are things I’ve tried to achieve in my academics by myself and I knew perfectly well that with the level of effort that I put in, I didn’t deserve any good result, but God out of grace granted me way more that what I could have ever asked or imagined. I experimented this so much this year in school, and when I look at it now I can’t but say that God’s grace is far greater than performance.
2. When I am Weak I am Strong
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 NIV
… because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
I think we understand this better when we really go through it.
Have you ever tried so hard to solve a situation which really disturbs you?
Paul had a thorn in the flesh and he prayed three times for God to take it away. He doesn’t give us a lot of details but I believe that praying three times for God to take it away wasn’t just about saying “God please take this away from me, God please take this away from me, God please take this away from me”.
I believe Paul just summarized to us what his prayer journey about this thorn in the flesh was.
Remember that Paul was a disciple of Jesus Christ. He was full of The Holy Spirit. Under the anointing of The Holy Spirit he would cast out demons (Acts 16:18), pray for people to resurrect and it would happen (Acts 20:10-12) and heal the sick (Acts 28:8). The Bible even says that he performed extraordinary miracles. This probably means that miracles were ordinary in the early church but the type of miracles that Paul did were definitely not ordinary, they were extraordinary.
Now imagine Paul with a thorn in the flesh. If I were Paul I would use every single prayer technique I know:
- Going to the courts of Heaven
- Casting out demons
- Commanding for the thorn in the flesh to leave in The Name of Jesus Christ
- Praying in tongues
- Using worship as a weapon
- Fasting
- Asking for prayers of intercession from my brothers and sisters in Christ
- Breaking curses
If Paul said he asked God three times, it probably implied he prayed and put in all he could spiritually for his prayers to be answered but to no avail.
At times you’re in a difficult season and you try everything: breaking curses, speaking in tongues, fasting, casting our demons etc but nothing seems to work, and you’re still in the same situation.
At times it’s not that you’re not doing the right thing. At times it’s that you aren’t yet ready for a move of God.
How will God make me ready?
God makes you ready by making you understand that it’s not by power nor by might, but by His Holy Spirit.
Zechariah 4:6 NIV
So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.
It’s not because you’re “good” at praying, it’s because of His Holy Spirit.
At times it’s just God trying to break you, to break your pride and self-sufficiency, to make you know that you are weak and that without Him you can do nothing.
And once you’re realized your weakness and cried out “God I tried but I can’t do it on my own, I need you, Lord please do it for me”, He moves on your behalf not because of your works but because of His grace.
When you recognize your weakness and your need for The Holy Spirit, then you become strong because you’re now ready for a move of The Holy Spirit. You are weak but He is strong.
Grace is far greater than performance.
Your works can’t achieve what God’s grace can achieve.
Today, God is calling you to embrace His grace not as a license for sin, but as the only means for you to be set free from sin, addictions, laziness, pride, unforgiveness, etc.
God’s grace is exactly what we all need.
His grace will outweigh your efforts so much so that you’ll realize that you can’t do it on your own and you absolutely need His grace.
That’s what He did when He sent His only Son to die on The Cross of Calvary for our sins.
After Adam and Eve sinned human beings tried in their own way and with their own efforts to earn back a relationship with God , they tried to perform in order to be accepted by God, but they always fell short. God in His great mercy outweighed all our efforts and gave the life of His Son for us, though we didn’t deserve such a wonderful sacrifice.
If you’re still trying to “earn your place” in God’s kingdom or to maintain your relationship with Him through your own efforts, today is the day that you can embrace God’s grace which saves, transforms, delivers, grows, leads.
If you’re tired of trying on your own and you want to embrace God’s grace, you can say the following prayer out loud.
Prayer
Father Lord God Almighty, I confess I tried time and again to earn what I already have for free in Christ Jesus: salvation, forgiveness, sanctification, peace, love, joy, success, victory, deliverance, grace. I accept and embrace Your grace for me completely today. I accept that Jesus Christ died for me to be forgiven for ALL my sins (past, present, future) and I accept that He rose again to give me life, and I believe and accept that Your Holy Spirit is The One who will transform me and make me obey Your Commandments. I embrace Your grace for me. Lord Jesus Christ save me, be my Lord and Saviour and do Your Will in me. I thank You for Your Grace Lord, in Jesus Christ’s Name. Amen.
It’s Now Your Turn
This week, tell someone about God’s grace which is freely available for them in Christ Jesus.
Invitation
Click here if you’re looking for a church. I recommend Elevation Church to you. A wonderful Christ-centered Church in which you aren’t limited by your location and in which you can see what God can do through you.
God loves you so much
God bless you
Victoria Eyog
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