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. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Nothing To Brag About

There is a little rooster in all men. The temptation to overvalue self-worth is a constant battle of the heart. Men look at themselves as self-sufficient and self-reliant upon their own merits without regard to others. Society touts the character of independence. There is a badge of honor to achieve success and to claim glory for achievements. Awards and commendations are given for great men accomplishing great things, which measures the wisdom of the human gene as superior. Pride creeps into man’s relationship with God, convincing a man’s heart that he is independent without the need of God. If there is anything to be accomplished and any glory to be achieved, man does so by his own power.

Salvation is a subject that few men understand, and fewer still see the need for. The persuasive power of a prideful heart is to believe that all is well on the Titanic. Since the fall in the garden, the human factor has been measured by disaster, decay, and despair. Everything tried by men failed. Human wisdom could not solve the human problem. The laws of men are empty vats of failed philosophies that never solve the issues of the world. Every generation seeks answers, and they come up empty. Jesus Christ came into a world of darkness and became the light of the world. He allowed humanity for the first time to see hope and believe in the impossible. Through His teaching, the wisdom of man was shown as folly. When Jesus died on the cross, human philosophy railed against the futility of a man dying on a tree. The cross became foolishness to the wisdom of the world. And then Sunday came, and the world was never the same.

On the first day of the week, God raised up His Son, Jesus Christ, and gave all men the one thing they desperately needed and desired: hope. Jesus overcame death and ushered in the path of righteousness to the throne of God. He lived a sinless, perfect life and was murdered by His own brethren. The chains of Hades could not hold Him, and God raised Him up to be King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, willing hearts could some to the cleansing blood of Jesus and have their sins washed away. Jew and Gentile alike could find salvation in the death of a man from Nazareth. The portals of heaven burst open by the power of God. And man had nothing to do with it.

Salvation by grace is the perfect gift of God. It is only because of a loving Father that anyone has any hope. There has never been a redeeming quality of man to suggest he could save himself. After the fall of man and the world began to fill with humanity, man left to himself destroyed himself. Only eight souls were saved when God brought judgment upon the whole earth. The grace of God saved Noah and his family. Noah would have perished with the world without the knowledge of the coming flood and what to do to be saved. God’s grace opened up a way of salvation, and eight souls obeyed.

No man could have created Jesus Christ. It is beyond man’s wisdom to create a character larger than himself. The Son of God is so far beyond the philosophies of men that there are no comparisons. Where in all the wisdom of humanity could a dying Savior find a place? There is none. God’s grace abounded toward men as His gift of love for His creation. What God did takes away anything man could brag about. What has any man done that deserves boasting? Nothing! The only way to salvation is grace, and without obedience, there is no hope. Faith without works is dead. When men stand before God in judgment, they will not be beating their breasts in boasting. They will be on their knees, thankful for the grace of God.