JULY 9, 2015
Grace in Our
Hearts
Read:
Ephesians
2:4-10
Let
your speech always be with grace.— Colossians 4:6
A few years ago,
four-star General Peter Chiarelli (the No. 2 general in the US Army at that
time) was mistaken for a waiter by a senior presidential advisor at a formal
Washington dinner. As the general stood behind her in his dress uniform, the
senior advisor asked him to get her a beverage. She then realized her mistake,
and the general graciously eased her embarrassment by cheerfully refilling her
glass and even inviting her to join his family sometime for dinner.
The word gracious
comes from the word grace, and it can mean an act of kindness or courtesy, like
the general’s. But it has an even deeper meaning to followers of Christ. We are
recipients of the incredible free and unmerited favor—grace—that God has
provided through His Son, Jesus (Eph. 2:8).
Because we have
received grace, we are to show it in the way we treat others—for example, in
the way we speak to them: “The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious” (Eccl.
10:12). Grace in our hearts pours out in our words and deeds (Col. 3:16-17).
Learning to extend the
grace in our hearts toward others is a by-product of the life of a
Spirit-filled follower of Christ Jesus—the greatest of grace-givers.
Dear heavenly Father,
help me today to season my words with grace. May all that I say and do be
gracious to others and pleasing to You, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.
God’s grace in the heart brings out good deeds
in the life.
INSIGHT:
Salvation is God’s
gift and can never be earned by our good works. Paul reminds us that through
Christ “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins,
according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7). In today’s passage, Paul
emphasizes this grace by repeating the phrase “by grace you have been saved”
(2:5,8). While we are not saved by our good works, we are saved so that we can
do good works (v. 10). Paul reminds us to be “fruitful in every good work”
(Col. 1:10) and “zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14).
Source: Our Daily Bread 2015
