Ephesians 2:8-9 8For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from you; it is the gift of God, 9not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
These wonderful verses are often quoted as the way a person can be saved. Paul is highlighting God’s grace in these verses. Grace has been Paul’s topic in this chapter. It is one of the key themes of his letters. He knew firsthand the power of transforming grace, as his testimony in 1 Timothy 12-17 states. Each part of these verses is significant for theology and living.
The word for connects this to the previous verses. Our salvation comes as a result of “the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (v. 6). This salvation is not something we deserve or can earn by our efforts. Paul writes in other letters that attempting to be righteous by following God’s law or doing certain ceremonies like circumcision will not get us to heaven. God’s kingdom is one of grace because God is merciful and loving (v. 4).
The way we allow this grace to come to us is through faith. Verse 8 shows what theologians call the divine/human synergism. We have a choice about whether God’s grace will save us. Love must be a choice for it to be truly love. Ever since the garden of Eden, humans have had to make a choice to love God and trust in God’s plan of salvation. There is no other course except faith. Faith is basically saying that we acknowledge, accept, and embrace what Jesus has done on the cross for us. We respond with “yes” to the conviction and promptings of the Holy Spirit. It is more than a confession of the mouth, although that can be the outward action of the inner decision. There is often that leads to this faith and much that continues on with this faith as we walk in obedience and allow the seed of God’s love within us to grow.
Paul emphasizes the divine part in our salvation in v. 8-9 and the human side in v. 10. He makes it clear that salvation is not by our efforts or any resource from ourselves. Behind this thought lies Romans 1-3 where Paul systematically lays out the argument that no one can keep God’s laws and subsequently be declared righteous; rather, everyone has sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. Paul gives a helpful description of grace here as the gift of God. It is freely offered to us.
Verse 9 clarifies and narrows what Paul means by both grace and faith. The phrase not by your doing is another way of referring to works. The word works shares the same root for “energy.” We do not experience this salvation by our own work, energy, effort, or power. The clear reason for this is that there is nothing we can do to overcome the power and penalty of sin. We must trust in what Christ provides for us. Paul is not referring here to the need to obey God’s laws. Obedience is always the requirement that comes from faith to make the faith real.
One of the problems with trying to gain our salvation by our own efforts is that this can lead to boasting and pride. This was near the same problem that drove Adam and Eve to eat of the forbidden fruit. It also lies at the heart of sin. Boasting says that we do not need God and can be our own god. This is so subtle that we may not always see it trying to grow in our lives. The simple answer is to continually die to self-will and self-effort and rely in humility on God’s mercy and love.
For older posts, click here.