Many might be asking 'What do I need to do to receive the blessings of God –– I have been praying, reading my Bible, going to church, and paying my tithes, yet I don’t seem to be able to get my prayers answered?”
What's wrong? What's wrong with me?
We must not fall into the trap of linking God’s response to our personal performance.
By definition, the word grace means unmerited, unearned, undeserved favor.
The Rev. A. W. Tosser expanded on that saying, "Grace is the good pleasure of God that inclines him to bestow benefits on the undeserving."
We are undeserving, but through grace that is changed.
Grace has nothing to do with us.
Grace existed before we ever came to be.
Grace is God’s part. Faith is defined as being a positive response to what God has already provided by grace.
Faith is our positive response to God’s grace, or faith only appropriates what God has already provided for us. Therefore, faith is our part.
Grace and faith work together, and they must be in balance.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NLT) says, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.”
It says we are saved by grace through faith, not one or the other. Think of it this way — grace is what God does. Faith is what we do.
Salvation is not dependent on grace alone. If it were, everyone would be saved and going to heaven, for God’s grace is the same toward everyone. He has already given the gift of salvation to everyone through Jesus. It is by faith that a person receives what was done 2,000 years ago by Jesus on the cross.
It is now up to us to receive the truth by faith and make it a reality in our life.
Let the church preach preach the truth and message that is conscious of righteousness instead of a conscious of sin. This causes us to link our performance to all the other blessings of God.
God’s grace has provided not only for salvation, but also for every need of our life. That provision is not based on whether we are reading the Bible enough, praying enough, going to church, or even paying our tithes. Before we ever had a financial need, God created the provision. Before we were sick, God, through grace, provided our healing. Before we ever became discouraged, God blessed us with all spiritual blessings because God anticipated every need we could ever have and has met those needs through Jesus before we existed.
That’s grace.
Be blessed.
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