Listen to this devotion
Faith is … Believing in God's Grace
In the Word
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8–9).
Of the Word
One of the biggest obstacles we deal with as the Holy Spirit calls us to faith is our prideful attitude, our inflated opinion of ourselves. We are tempted to imagine we can manage quite well on our own.
God’s greatest work with us is to constantly teach us that without Him we can do nothing. We are deluded into thinking that because we go to church regularly or give of our tithes regularly, we are self-sufficient and therefore able to manage without the Lord.
Have you ever said, “I do the best I can”? Do we actually think that what we are able to do is good enough to stand before God?
What are you actually able to do by yourself? Convert yourself? Break with sin? Believe? Repent? Pray? Live a God-pleasing life? We fail at all of these without the Holy Spirit and His power working in us through Word and Sacrament. We can do none of these on our own power or strength. When we have come to the place where we see this truth clearly, as it really is, then we can recognize our need for God’s grace.
Walking with my Lord
Dear Lord, I confess I can do nothing without You. Help me each day to recognize my need for You and to believe in Your love for me. In Christ’s name. Amen.
Mustard Seed: Living in Faith. Author: Rev. Darold Reiner. 11/30 ©2007 Lutheran Women’s Missionary League, 801 Seminary Place Ste. L010, St. Louis, MO 63105. www.lwml.org
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations were taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. All rights reserved worldwide.
