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Week 2 / Alive By Grace

Made New

Read: Ephesians 2:1-5

SOAP: Ephesians 2:4-5

"But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us, even though we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you are saved!—" (NET)

Into the Text

But God. These are two of my favorite words in all of Scripture. It signals God’s sovereignty, His love, His grace, and His power. Never have these two words been more important than when it comes to our sinful state before a holy God.

Oftentimes, we like to think of ourselves as pretty good. We do nice things. We say kind words. We may give our resources to help the less fortunate. All in all, we believe that our good outweighs the bad. Our lives may look better than those of other people, but when held up in the light of God's holiness, our sinfulness cannot be hidden.

Paul writes the truth of our state before God. He states that we were dead in our offenses and sin. Sin is anything we think, say, or do that is not pleasing or honoring to God. Our sin completely separates us from our holy, or perfectly other-than, God. Not only were we dead in our sins, but we chose to do so. We indulged in our desires and were deserving of wrath. There was nothing we could do in our broken, depraved state.

But God, who is rich in mercy. Mercy is not getting what you deserve. God displayed His love, grace, and forgiveness by offering us a new life.

It isn’t that God gave us a hall pass to be forgiven. No, He took our dead state and made us completely new. The old has gone and the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17). This is why the gospel of Jesus Christ is such good news! You have been made alive and new!

Prayer

God, thank you for your rich mercy. I am not deserving of your grace and mercy. My sin is egregious before you, yet you chose to offer me forgiveness through Jesus. May I not take my new life for granted. Amen.