Bible Verse of The Day – 8-30-23

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV) 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Salvation through Christ is a free gift of God, given to anyone who will accept it.

It is not something we can earn or work for. It is not something we can receive as a reward for good behavior.

As a believer, though, our actions speak loudly with regard to proving our faith.

James 2:18 (NKJV) 18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

Some may say that works have nothing at all to do with salvation. And in a sense, they are right.

As shown in Ephesians 2:8-9, salvation is the gift of God, not a product of works.

But we need to understand that this applies to the application of one’s initial salvation experience.

We are offered salvation freely. We only need to see our need for salvation and then reach out and take it.

That may be a bit of an oversimplification in a sense, since recognizing ourselves as sinful and in need of forgiveness is also part of the equation. But acceptance is at the core of how it all begins.

It is after we are saved that we must begin allowing God to mold us and shape us, changing us from the inside, out.

And as He does that, we will see our heart begin to change. Sometimes the changes will be little. Other times, the changes that we see will be very major.

We may go through phases of not even recognizing ourselves as God applies His hand on our lives.

But as the Spirit of God works on us, and we change within, we will begin to walk out things in our lives that show our faith outwardly. These are the works James referred to in the verse above.

These are outward manifestations of our inward faith; physical signs of our spiritual rebirth and transformation in Christ.

Let’s talk more about this salvation transformation tomorrow.

Pastor Curt & Pastor Ellie

Seven Seas Ministries
49 N Lamplighters Walk
Hampstead, NC 28443

401-439-3780

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