Grace, faith and works – in that order …

"I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received" (Ephesians 4:1). How are we to live a life worthy of our high calling? Let's go back from Ephesians 4:1, back to Ephesians 2:8-10. There, we learn about grace, faith and works - in that order. We begin with grace. We …

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The Lord’s compassion never fails …

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:32). When we're hurting, we need more kindness, more compassion, more forgiveness. Where do these things come from? Do they come from within ourselves? Again and again, we fail to be kind, compassionate and forgiving. If we …

Never so far away …

We are never so far away that God's love cannot reach us. In Luke 15, we read about the prodigal son - and the loving Father. What does Jesus tell us about the prodigal son? He tells us about his sin - and he tells us about his salvation. All the time, the son was …

They devoted themselves …

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers" (Acts 2:42). "They devoted themselves ... " This is what they did. This is what we are called to do. Let's think about something else - not about what they did, not about what we are called to do. Let's …

Where does our life of faith begin? …

Where does our life of faith begin? Does it begin with our decision? or Does it begin with God's grace? "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved" (Ephesians 2:4-5). We were dead. The …

Sing to the Lord … and listen to His voice …

"Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!" (Psalm 95:1) - what a great call to worship! "Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts" (Psalm 95:7-8) - a much-needed word of warning! We're called to worship, but, sometimes, our hearts are far from …

Christ is always greater than our thoughts about Him.

"Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ" (Ephesians 3:8). Paul was deeply conscious of his own inadequacy. He was profoundly grateful for the great privilege of being called to preach "the boundless riches of Christ." …