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12.23.2004    |    My grace is sufficient for thee
A recent daily Bible Verse (available freshly baked for your in-box every day; just go here) reminds us of the truth that we should not put our faith in mortal man. Especially not ourselves.

We can not be the authors of our salvation; it is a pure gift. From Ephesians 2:8-9:
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.
As a Calvinist, this is hardly a surprise to me -- it makes sense, one of the bases of my faith. That is, my faith is a gift, which I, a depraved sinner, can not possibly have earned by my deeds.

On the other hand, and sure and there's always another one whether you need it or not, it is not useful to fuss and feud about faith versus works. They go together. If ye be saved, then ye shall have faith, as the old-time preacher might say. If ye have faith, then works shall surely follow.

Who is to know which really came first? I say faith preceeds works; ye say the opposite. We both open ourselves up to the same salvation through Christ Jesus. As the Lord tells Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9, "My grace is sufficient for thee."

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About this site and the author

Welcome. My name is John Luke Rich, (very) struggling Christian. The focus here is Christianity in its many varieties, its fussing and feuding, how it impacts our lives and our society, with detours to consider it with other faiths (or lack thereof).

Call this blog my way of evangelizing on the internet.

Putting it differently, we're only here on this earth a short time. It's the rest of eternity that we should be most concerned about. Call it the care and feeding of our souls.

I was born Jewish, and born again in Christ Jesus over thirty years ago. First as a Roman Catholic; now a Calvinist by persuasion and a Baptist by denomination. But I'm hardly a poster boy for doctrinal rigidity.

I believe that Scripture is the rock on which all Christian churches must stand -- or sink if they are not so grounded. I believe that we are saved by faith, but hardly in a vacuum. That faith is a gift from God, through no agency on our part -- although we sometimes turn a deaf ear and choose to ignore God's knocking on the door.

To be Christian is to evangelize. Those who think it not their part to evangelize perhaps haven't truly understood what our Lord told us in Matthew 28. We must preach the Gospel as best we are able. Using words if necessary.

Though my faith waxes and wanes, it never seems to go away. Sometimes I wish it would, to give me some peace of mind. But then, Jesus never said that walking with Him was going to be easy...

Final note: I also blog as Jack Rich on cultural, political and other things over at Wrong Side of the Tracks

Thanks for stopping by.