"Only by Grace"

At Bellwood Church, we are starting a series on the book of Ephesians. It is a letter written by the Apostle Paul. One of the themes I see throughout the book is grace. And why not? Paul received a ton of grace in his life.

Paul (formerly known as Saul) was raised in the Jewish religion. From an early age, he was taught the Law and how to live it properly and by doing so, he believed he would receive salvation. He had little tolerance for people who couldn't measure up to its standards. But some new radicals calling themselves "Followers of The Way" seemed to be preaching against this Law. They claimed that salvation was not tied to the Law, but instead tied to Jesus, the Son of God. This was too much for Paul. He decided to take the matter into his own hands by persecuting these new believers. He beat them, dragged them out of their homes, arrested and imprisoned them. He even was an accessory to the murder of Stephen by holding the coats of those who stoned him to death. Paul felt it was his lot in life to "cleanse" his religion and preserve the Law.

But God had other plans for Paul. While Paul was in the act of carrying out his threats, he actually had an encounter of grace. On his way to Damascus, he met Jesus - the One he had been persecuting. Jesus told him that God was now going to use him to spread this message to other believers. Why would God choose someone like Paul? I mean, look how bad this guy was. God must have seen something in Paul that He wanted to use - maybe his passion and zeal - but only use it for good.

The reason God chose him was so Paul would be a prime example of His grace. It kind of says - No matter who you are or what you've done, you are never too far from God's grace. What I love about Paul is that he allowed God to use him. He didn't take grace for granted. After Paul collided with the risen Christ, he turned his life around. He gave 110% to his new life's mission and purpose...all because of the grace that had been given to him.

Have you experienced that grace? Are you living for God out of the grace that has been granted to you? Do we allow others to live out of that same grace? Do we see the potential that others have for a change in their life because of God's grace?

Stay tuned...