Ephesians 2:8-9, “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. (KJV).” Let’s see other translations:
Ephesians 2:8-9, “For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God; Not because of works [not the fulfillment of the Law’s demands], lest any man should boast. [It is not the result of what anyone can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself.] (AMPC).”
From the scripture above, we can define Grace as God’s unmerited and unearned favour. It is God’s gift to us. Just as the Old Covenant is “performance,” the New Covenant is “Free Gift.” (You can read other posts for a better understanding).
Does this mean we do not do anything under the Grace of God, (our new agreement)? Let’s dive into the scriptures for some more understanding.
Hebrews 4:11, “Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. (KJV).” Under the New Covenant, we do not labour to be blessed, but we labour to enter into His rest. What does this mean? Let’s break down the scriptures, Hebrews 4:11, “For we which have believed do enter into rest…” Labouring to enter into His rest simply means that we should believe to enter into His rest. Bring the scriptures together in context for a better understanding; Hebrews 4:9-11, “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.”
In summary, our labour should be to enter into God’s rest and not labour of works to be blessed. Our labour should be targeted towards continuous believing.
Furthermore, Romans 4:16, “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all (KJV).”
Romans 5:12, “By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”
In summary, Grace is God’s part, while faith is our part. So, our labour should be concentrating on faith to enable us to enjoy the Grace that has already been made available after the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
