For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:8-10

Nobody can be more saved than anyone else, or earn their own salvation. Paul says this means that no one can boast on their own behalf. This also means that the kind of boasting we can do is the kind we can feel good about; we can brag on God. We didn’t have to earn His gift, so when we talk about how kind and gracious he is to give it to us, it is only to His glory and not ours!

More to the point, God made us for the purpose of being saved. Nobody is unable to be saved because God made us with the express intent of picking us up when we stumble, and to fulfill good works that he set out for us to do. Look for those opportunities but don’t measure yourself against others. A hammer and an extension cord are both great tools for the jobs they were made for, but you can’t plug in a generator with a hammer and you can’t drive a nail with a wire.

Ethan Kirl

Originally Published August 13, 2021