No Strain To Feel

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

I have wondered in the days of my dim past, why could I not feel the strain of salvation in me. The explanation is in the grace of God, a gift. It should be no wonder because without the strain of making, earning, or performing this thing there is no strain for me to feel.

If there had been a way for us to earn or obtain our salvation through our own effort, then we might have one day in the past have come home sore and weary from the effort. We would know the earning of our salvation in the worldly way of paychecks received for work performed. God would then simply be a sort of salvation paymaster who owes us. But it was never that way. Fallen men could never work in a fallen world and obtain that which only the grace of God provides. If we could work for it, we could boast of it, but it doesn't come to us that way.

If one of us should by the generous spirit given to us by God's Spirit decide to present a gift to a friend, we would not expect that friend to join us in the effort to acquire or make the gift. It wouldn't fit the definition of gift if the friend had to earn it beforehand. The friend should feel no strain in receiving the gift, just as we cannot feel any strain from the gift of salvation. The gift was paid for by God's Son on the cross, and we most certainly cannot attempt to steal His glory by boasting of what effort we put forth at Calvary!

His gift, my salvation; He paid the price; I am glad to receive it. Praise the Lord!

Bucky