In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
– Ephesians 1:5-6
With all this talk of holiness and works it can be easy to lose sight of the purpose of both our salvation and our sanctification. Together, salvation and sanctification work in us to make His glorious grace seen for all it is worth.
The great flaming beacon at the center of God’s eternal plan of salvation is His glory. He is the almighty and there is none like Him. He is unique, extraordinary, all-powerful, and seated high above the heavens. If another could claim some credit for all that there is, was, and will be, then God’s glory would not be the end goal.
But, there is no one like Him. He is alone and completely other. His glory is unequaled and because of that, the praise of His glorious grace is the ultimate reason that everything happens – especially those things connected with the eternal plan of redemption.
Imagine someone giving a testimony of God’s salvation and the entire time was spent talking about themselves! It would be obvious to any Christian that this person had never really known the grace of God, because it is impossible to hoard the grace given in salvation. We all cry, “It was Him! Not me!”
The same is true not just for the day of salvation but for every day of sanctification afterward. It was Him – not us!
His Glorious Grace
In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
– Ephesians 1:5-6
With all this talk of holiness and works it can be easy to lose sight of the purpose of both our salvation and our sanctification. Together, salvation and sanctification work in us to make His glorious grace seen for all it is worth.
The great flaming beacon at the center of God’s eternal plan of salvation is His glory. He is the almighty and there is none like Him. He is unique, extraordinary, all-powerful, and seated high above the heavens. If another could claim some credit for all that there is, was, and will be, then God’s glory would not be the end goal.
But, there is no one like Him. He is alone and completely other. His glory is unequaled and because of that, the praise of His glorious grace is the ultimate reason that everything happens – especially those things connected with the eternal plan of redemption.
Imagine someone giving a testimony of God’s salvation and the entire time was spent talking about themselves! It would be obvious to any Christian that this person had never really known the grace of God, because it is impossible to hoard the grace given in salvation. We all cry, “It was Him! Not me!”
The same is true not just for the day of salvation but for every day of sanctification afterward. It was Him – not us!