Good morning, ... just wish to send you this food for thoughts :)

if it’s not faith… it could be pride

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?

    And who shall stand in his holy place?

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

    who does not lift up his soul to what is false

    and does not swear deceitfully.

5 He will receive blessing from the Lord

    and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,

    who seek the face of the God of Jacob.

Psalm 24:3-6 (ESV)

Who has the right to come and draw near to the Lord in the psalm?

Those who have clean hands and a pure heart… these are characteristics of acceptable worship… which is a product of the righteousness of God in one’s life… The righteousness not of one’s own “goodness” or “doing” but because of the gift of God that one had accepted – the gift of salvation through faith in Christ.

“Trust” –> credited as righteousness?

3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” 4 Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. 5 However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.

Romans 4:3-5 (NIV)

From these verses, we can see clearly that righteousness is not something that WE CAN DO or TOIL for. It is putting our TRUST onto our GOD who offers forgiveness and if we truly TRUST a.k.a. BELIEVE, it shall be credited as our righteousness, we are forgiven, cleansed, justified by FAITH, and in GOD’s grace alone. Hence, we have the familiar verses in Ephesians, as follows:

8 God’s grace has saved you because of your faith in Christ. Your salvation doesn’t come from anything you do. It is God’s gift. 9 It is not based on anything you have done. No one can brag about earning it.

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIRV)

God’s grace… faith in Christ… God’s gift… nothing you do can earn you your salvation… it’s a GIFT! What do we normally do when we are given gifts? We ought to receive it, right? And, if by any chance, anyone brags of earning one’s salvation – then IT IS NOT the gift that GOD had offered… and if it is something that one has earned out of something he did, clearly it is not acceptable.

Why? It is NOT acceptable because it is no longer God’s grace at work… it actually is PRIDE. Rejecting a gift is PRIDE. One simple explanation about this pride is what Hebrews 11:6 says,

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

Hebrews 11:6 (NLT)

Receive the gift of salvation through faith, nothing fancy but the reward is grand – justified by faith, credited as righteousness!

Yours in Christ,

Ate G

Our main goal is CHRISTlikeness.

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