Philippians 3:3 – 6 “For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh – though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.”
Wow. Paul certainly had a long list of impressive qualifications. He was from a good family. He had the very best education. He was of high moral character. If he were alive today, he would probably be running for public office!
But Paul was not bragging about his background. Rather, he was reminding the Philippians that even the very best of breeding, of background, of education, of actions could never be enough to earn salvation. Jesus Christ alone is the way, the truth and the life, and no one can get to heaven, no one can have a right relationship with God, except through Him.
God offers salvation as a gift to anyone who is willing to accept it. Period. No strings attached. We don’t have to be good enough, or attractive enough, or smart enough. We just have to reach out and take the gift. Then, when we are truly transformed into children of God, when we truly understand the sacrifice that was made so that we could have this gift, we will be so overwhelmed with God’s grace that we will want to live the rest of our lives in gratitude to Him.
Many of us, myself included, spend much of our time beating ourselves up because we aren’t good enough. But listen! God is . . . God! There isn’t much that impresses Him, anyway. (His resume will always be more impressive than ours!) God doesn’t seek perfection. He only wants our hearts – imperfect as they may be. He wants us to sincerely love Him. And He, as the Master Artist, will take a sincere heart and turn it into something very, very impressive: a mirror of Himself.
Dear Father, I love You. That is really all I have to offer You, but it is sincere. Take my life and do with it as You will.
Amen
A Beautiful Truth!