Saved through Faith in Jesus
ICS Daily Devotions
Ephesians 2:8 (NKJV) For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
Although we are all sinners destined for hell, God showed His love for us by sending His only begotten Son, Jesus, to die for us on the cross of Calvary. Nonetheless, God gave mankind a choice to either spend eternity with Him or be apart from Him. The lake of fire was meant for the devil and his cohorts and never for mankind unless they wilfully chose to reject Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life. God has given us the ability to respond and be saved by accepting His grace, which is extended to every one of us. God’s heart is for none to perish but for all to come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
There was a period of innocence when Adam and Eve were basking in the glory of God without the knowledge of good and evil, but both of them fell into sin when Satan tempted them to eat the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, which God had instructed them not to eat. Consequently, God had to educate mankind about sin, and as a result, the law was given during the Old Testament to teach them about His holiness. This law came through Moses, and it was a schoolmaster, showing mankind their inability to stand right before God based on their own strength. The law of the Old Testament condemns and gives no solution for standing right before God. Its purpose is to drive men to seek after the grace of God.
The gospel conveys to us that God’s grace is extended to all sinners. Grace is God’s unmerited favour, which means that there is nothing we have done or spoken that will make God love us more or love us less—God loves us unconditionally. God’s love for mankind moved Him to create a redemption plan to save those who call upon Him after hearing the gospel. For the believers, faith arose in their hearts when they heard the gospel; they responded to His love and were saved. By faith in the gospel, they believed. Faith is anchored in His Word.
Romans 10:17(NKJV) So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Grace came through Jesus Christ because He was the Lamb who took away the sins of the world. Jesus is the Son of God, blameless and sinless, but He was made sin for us when the sin of mankind was placed upon Him. God judged Him for our sins. He was made sin and took upon Himself all the curses of the law. We are redeemed from our sins because of the blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus has paid the price for us. We are now made righteous when we call upon the name of Jesus.
Sermon Series： Growing Our Faith In God
