Our True Spiritual Condition
Nobody likes to hear that their spiritual condition is in a state of being lost.
Nobody likes to hear that they are headed towards a judgment of guilty and condemned
to hell. The fact of the matter is that everyone is guilty of sin and destined
to be lost. God knows that fact, and that is why God made a provision to change
the destiny of anyone willing to seek it.
Grace is the thing that God provides to us. It is seen in many ways. The greatest
display of this grace is the sending of His Son to us. That the Son was willing
to be obedient to God and give His life to God and also give His life for all
mankind is the greatest act of love ever experienced by humans.
Ephesians 2:1-3 tells us that apart from God, we (all men) are dead to God.
The reason is because we indulge in the flesh and practice sin. We know that
sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2), so we really are children of wrath
when we are separate from God.
Notice verse 4: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love
with which He loved us," (This thought is expressed through out the NT)
verse 5: "even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together
with Christ (by grace you have been saved)".
All of this is to show the world (all mankind) that God does care about them
and provides for them. All God asks is that people would devote themselves to
God and worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:24)
Verse 7: "in order that in the ages to come he might show the surpassing
riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus".
This grace brings salvation (makes it available to all men) to mankind. As we
study God's word, the Bible, we see that those who accept the terms of God's
grace are the ones who benefit from God's grace. Grace does not work alone,
as many try to teach. It must be accompanied with faith. A faith that is active
and obedient to the commands of God. And our obedience does not merit salvation,
but we cannot be saved without obedience either. So we must come to the conclusion
that when we obey, we are doing the works of God, and not ourselves.
Verse 8: "for by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not
of yourselves, it is the gift of God".
Verse 9: "not as a result of works, that no one should boast."
Remember this whole context is dealing with the subject of God's grace. Verse
10 gives us the reason God showed His grace to us. "For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that
we should walk in them."
We need to evaluate our spiritual condition based upon God's guidelines and
not our own. Many people are very selective as to which parts of the Bible they
will allow to have dominion over them. If we want salvation, we had better accept
all of God's words, and live accordingly.
By Carey Scott
Return to the General Articles page
Home / Bible studies / Bible Survey / Special Studies / General Articles / Non-Bible Articles / Sermons / Sermon Outlines / Links / Questions and Answers / What Saith The Scriptures /Daily Devotional / Correspondence Courses / What is the Church of Christ / Book: Christian Growth / Website Policy / E-mail / About Me /