Scripture for Today:  Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works so that no one can boast.”

What a sobering experience it was to tour the Dachau concentration camp. This gate, like the one at Auschwitz, screams the absurdity that “Work Sets You Free.” The horrifying truth was that the only freedom for those prisoners was found in death. The saying comes from the title of a novel by a German author. In that story, thieves and gamblers discovered their redemption through labor.

Today’s verse teaches a truth that for some is counter-intuitive. Very clearly it states that salvation does not come through our work or efforts. We want to think that somehow, something we did contributed to being saved. But no matter how hard one works to earn Heaven, man will always fall short of the perfect standard of God’s holiness. We cannot free ourselves from the damning chains of sin without God taking the initiative. His grace or unmerited favor, is what frees us. Salvation itself is free and a gift from God. Because this is true, none of us can boast about having anything to do with it!

My gratitude towards God grows by leaps and bounds when I grasp this truth. It is all grace and it is amazing! There is tremendous freedom in my spirit to be assured that my salvation depends on Him and not my efforts. Without this truth, I would always be in a state of fear and worry about my eternal destination. Putting my faith and trust in what HE did on that cross rather than in what I can do makes me free indeed!

Thank you Lord, that Your gift of grace saves me and makes me truly free!

(Look familiar? This is a post from 2018 to honor this day)