(unmarked journal entry – presumably from luke 6)

there is no doubt in my mind that our faith (Christianity) is unique. that in all the world, there is not another faith that glorifies God alone (and not the man) and that our faith, which is not a runner up to works, is both given to us by God and what brings us to our salvation. there is no amount of work that will bring our redemption. as much as we (seemingly) would like to try to earn it for ourselves, we need to rely on the grace and generosity of God. to bring any other conclusion (that lifts mankind up), is to distrust God, or to trust too much in ourselves, or both.

if abraham’s faith was the determining factor in his being called ‘righteous’ it is the same for you and me. Father, forgive my arrogance and pride and grant me a greater faith in You. Your grace leads me home, not my works. your love brings my redemption, not my deeds. thank-You Lord, for bypassing me, so that You may be truly and fully glorified in all things.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

if i had to keep track of all my deeds for the day of my judgment, and hope against hope that they stacked up high enough, i would be scared out of my mind every single day of my life and accomplish nothing else. we would all be preoccupied with rushing around trying to help each other out and carrying around notepads so we could write down each and every insincere thing we did, just so we could keep a tally of what we had accomplished.

praise God for His great grace and mercy! yes, we are still to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, but it not those works (in and of themselves) that save us. these things we do in response to God’s grace and mercy should then come from a thankful heart and are an outpouring of love and gratitude. i am so thankful that He loves us so much when we are so undeserving. praise God!