Grace vs. Works


“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”Ephesians 2:8-10

Sometimes we try to live out our lives based on what we think we can and cannot do. We look at our work as very important. We think if we work hard, maybe we deserve something good --- or even something better than what we have. That’s how many people think about life. Many people try to earn their way to heaven, because they want to boast, or brag, about what they have done. But God says it doesn’t work that way. Salvation is a gift to us, so that none of us can brag about earning it.

God wants us to be able to say, “Look what God did for me! Look what God did through me!” He doesn’t want us to work for His blessings. He wants to bless us so that we are able to do His work. We don’t have to work hard to earn His love. He loves us because of who we are in Christ Jesus, and because of who Christ Jesus is in us.

* The love of a parent –an analogy for grace

Think of the love that your mom or dad have for you. This love is not based on how good you are. It is based on the fact that you are a son or daughter. When God chose us, His special love was not given based on our works for Him. He loves us for who we are: His son or daughter.

* God supplies what we need

Saved by Grace means that God saved us when we didn’t deserve it. We have all sinned. None of us deserves our salvation, no matter how hard we try to work for it. There is no way we can earn our salvation. Sometimes after we have come to Jesus and accepted His salvation, we try to do the work God has for us to do by our own effort. But God doesn’t want us to do that, either. He wants to work through us. His power will be revealed through us, and people will glorify Him. We are saved by God’s grace. We also live by that grace. Philippians 2:13 says, “for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” –-- He gives us the strength and power to do what He asks of us. We don’t have to worry about being good enough, or work really hard on our own. When we allow God to work through us, the job will get done right!

* Grace in action

When Mrs. Clark came home from the hospital, she was told to stay in bed for a few weeks. In order to cook and clean for her family, she had to ask for help from friends at church. People helped because of grace at work in them --- Mrs. Clark couldn’t do anything for them in return, but they helped her anyway. This is grace in action. God doesn’t tell us to “earn our keep” and He doesn’t leave us when we don’t seem to be useful. He loves us for who we are.


Ephesians 2:8-10 tells us that God has good works that He has prepared for us to do for Him. He saved us by grace so that we could do that work. And He gives us the strength, power, and everything else we need to do those works that He has prepared for us to do.