Notes on Hope Devotional

The Gift of Grace

Ephesians 2:8 (NIV)
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God.

Today’s verse is basic Christianity 101. We know it. With familiarity comes a sense of taking it for granted and not fully recognizing the depth of it. Our heads get it and we can recite it, but do we really live it out as a gift from God?

Recently, while out of town, I attended a local church service. The worship was familiar, and the people were warm and friendly. The pastor began his sermon, sharing that he was going to preach on a fundamental truth of the gospel called grace. After he introduced the topic, he walked slowly to the front row and approached a young man. Reaching into his pocket, he gave the young man $20 and said this was a gift for him to keep. The pastor continued walking down the aisle and stopped in my row. As we made eye contact, he reached into his pocket and gave me $20.

Astonished, I sat with a sense of confusion—not what I had imagined. In the next few moments, I experienced an immediate need to give it back, and say, “No, you don’t understand; I don’t deserve this. You picked the wrong girl.” I could no longer focus on the rest of the sermon. I was in such discomfort and disbelief.

I was given a gift and I immediately wanted to return it to the owner. I felt unworthy. I had never met this man before in my life, and he gave me something. I didn’t earn it, or do anything to deserve it. It was a gift, plain and simple. My only response was to accept and receive it. As the pastor continued in the sermon, I began to let it sink in: grace is a gift to be received, not earned by performing or doing, but entirely because the Giver wants to present us with a gift.

Pastor and author Paul Tripp says, “The most precious of things in our lives, our relationship with God, we did not earn. It is the eternal, transformative gift of his grace.”

As simple as it sounds, it might be the hardest thing we do to take and receive this glorious gift of grace. We don’t deserve it. We didn’t earn it. We simply receive it and say, “Thank you.” 

(FYI, I have the $20 tucked in my wallet as a reminder of the gift of grace.)