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My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways. Proverbs 23:26
D.L. MOODY
I remember hearing a story about a Native American Indian who wanted to come to the Lord. He brought his blanket, but the Lord wouldn’t have it. He brought his gun, his dog, his bow and arrow, but the Lord wouldn’t have them. At last he brought himself, and the Lord took him. The Lord wanted himself.
What the Lord wants is not what you have got, but yourself, and you cannot do a thing to please God until you surrender yourself to Him.
ERWIN LUTZER
Before salvation, we are dead in our sins. Our fallenness permeates our entire being: Our minds are tainted with sin, our souls are stained, and our wills are paralyzed. Good people or not, we are in deep trouble. And even the best we bring to God will not be received.
If God’s rescue program had included our efforts, grace would be diminished and salvation would not be wholly the work of God. Some things can exist together, but the grace that brings salvation and human works, like oil and water, do not mix. Our self-effort will be put on a shelf labeled, “Unsuitable For Use.” God acts alone when He saves us because He neither needs nor accepts our cooperation. He invites us only to believe.
When you come to Christ, you do not come to give, but to receive. You do not come to be helped, but to be rescued. You do not come just to be made better, though thankfully, that does happen, but you come to be made alive! Salvation is not based on our promise but on His promise. It is His work, not ours, that gives us the gift of grace. We bring nothing but ourselves and our need.
PRAYER
Father, you have saved me apart from anything I could ever do or offer. Thank you for making me see my need for you and for saving me by grace through faith alone.REFLECTION QUESTIONS
What do we bring to God to contribute to our salvation?
How does knowing that God acts alone in salvation give you assurance?