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By Grace

Romans 11:6 And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.

Works and grace are two terms that are so difficult to grasp in the Christian walk.  We know that if we are living by grace then works should be seen.  The issue is that we often times try to do the works on our own rather than letting the works be a by-product of the Spirit within us.  We take over our own lives trying to do good and be good rather than letting the grace of God work in us to transform us into the new creation that is good. Instead, we like to list off all of the ways we have shown God's goodness to those around us, or how we've conquered a sinful habit, or how we've been nice to someone who was not.  Unfortunately, these are what become the "works" Paul wrote about.  We completely remove God's grace from our lives and therefore lose sight of what is most important, the Spirit working in us to transform us.  It is a tricky concept and one that takes a lifetime to journey through, but God is in charge of the transformation through His grace and we are the recipients of freedom in Christ as His Spirit works in us to accomplish His will for our lives.

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