By the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. (1 Corinthians 15:10)
God’s grace not only saves the unworthy, it strengthens the inadequate . . . including you and me. God’s grace in Paul’s life was not without effect, and it is certainly not without effect in our lives either. We must remember that God never calls the equipped; rather, God equips the called. God glories in calling the inadequate into His service and, by His grace through the work of the Holy Spirit, He makes them adequate — more than adequate!
We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me. (Colossians 1:28-29)
Apart from God’s enabling grace, Paul knew he could do nothing — that is, he would never accomplish anything of eternal value in his own strength. But because Paul relied on the grace of God and responded in the strength of the Almighty, his ministry changed the world.
Paul had to do his part, to be sure. He had to work and minister where God called him to go. But he knew he had to do all of it surrendered to the strength of his Savior, Jesus Christ. The power of Christ was at work in Paul’s life, and that same divine power is available to each one of us.
If ever there was someone who could have relied on his own strength, upbringing, background, and education, it was Paul. Trained by the widely respected rabbi Gamaliel, Paul was a Hebrew of Hebrews and a scholar of scholars. Yet he considered all his credentials and his pedigree to be rubbish after Jesus showed up in his life. Paul surrendered everything he was in service to His Lord and Savior. In surrendering his entire existence to Jesus, Paul not only received God’s unmerited favor, he received God’s enabling power.
How is it with you today? Is the grace that saved you strengthening you for the work God has called you to do?
“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11)
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 