Jonathan Munson, Executive Director, RFTH
“For it is by grace you have been saved…not by works so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8,9
Writing a resumé is an intimidating task.
Trying to encapsulate your skills and work experience on a sheet of paper is both an art and a science.
Once you’ve meticulously crafted your resumé, you can post it on several websites. LinkedIn is a popular professional networking site with over 1 billion users from over 200 countries. Spend a few minutes perusing LinkedIn, and you’ll encounter an abundance of highly accomplished individuals.
Sadly, millions live as if they can build a spiritual resumé impressive enough to qualify them for heaven.
Here are some items we often try to include on our spiritual LinkedIn page:
- Being a good citizen
- Possessing moral character
- Treating others with kindness and respect
- Giving to charities
- Loving our spouse and children
- Knowing information about Jesus/Bible
Even though the Bible encourages all these behaviors, don’t be deceived: none of them can earn you a place in heaven.
No matter how remarkable our so-called ‘spiritual resumé’ might be, our best will always fall short. Paul clarifies this by saying our salvation is “not by works.”
In our performance-driven society, this sounds startling – maybe even a little offensive. In time, however, we must come to admit our need for a Savior and embrace salvation as something we receive instead of achieve. The only thing we can do is place our trust in what Jesus has done on our behalf.
We are saved by grace (unmerited favor) through faith in Jesus alone (Ephesians 2:8). To reject this message is to deny the very heart of the Gospel.
For those of us who are already Christians, we must resist the subtle urge to consider the Gospel as elementary, as the “kindergarten” of Christianity. Reading a text like Ephesians 2 (please read it) should incite our hearts to joyful worship, for we were once “dead,” but now we’re “alive” (Ephesians 2:5).
We never graduate from the need for God’s grace, nor should we ever take His grace for granted. The same grace that saved us in the past sustains us in the present.
Honestly, when was the last time you thanked God for the “grace on which you stand?” (Romans 5:2)
Martin Luther, the famous German Reformer, taught that the gospel must be continually pounded into our heads in hopes of it making its way into our hearts. Oh, how true!
No matter how you categorize yourself on the spiritual spectrum—whether a committed Christian or someone investigating the claims of the Bible—I invite you to crumple up your spiritual resumé and receive the amazing, liberating, and life-changing grace found in Jesus Christ.
DIG DEEPER
Read “Why is Being a Good Person Not Enough to Get You into Heaven?” at GotQuestions.org
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