confession of the do

And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:6

The most amazing thing about saving grace is that it is a free gift—not as a result of anything we do, so none of us can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). It is in Christ alone, through faith alone. We can’t earn it. We don’t deserve it. In every other religion (and even within the denomination I grew up in), you have to do, working your way to the finish line…hoping you did enough for your eternal reward. When I came to understand and accept what Jesus accomplished on the cross, conquering sin and death for me, the knowledge of “do” versus “done” brought overwhelming freedom. I no longer had to constantly strive to do better, do more, do enough. It is finished (John 19:30).

For me, that acceptance of amazing grace was 25 years ago. Since that time, I totally get the do-versus-done truth—and try to share it often. I know I can’t earn my salvation—and I don’t try. But my efforts to try and earn value in the eyes of the Lord (and others)…well, that’s been a different story. 

In response to His grace, a believer wants to do for the Lord (serve)—that’s the natural (or rather, supernatural) outpouring of salvation. We do out of love God and love for others (the top two commandments) and bring God glory. But when we take action because we think the Lord will “love us more”, that’s where we go so wrong! Nothing can make God love us any more—or less—than He does! And no “bad” action can separate us from His love (Romans 8:31-19). What’s more, it’s also easy for us Christians to get caught up in serving the Lord to show (or prove) ourselves worthy of His grace and love. 

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that our service/action is primarily motivated by “being seen”. In fact, we could very well have jumped into serving because the Holy Spirit within us lit a flame of passion that aligned with the gift(s) we’ve been given. But then, thanks to that tricky, deceptive enemy of ours, we start thinking, “Oh, people will know what a ‘good Christian’ I am by how involved I am in church activities!” Or we hope, “With all this ‘doing’, God is certainly seeing greater value in me than before.” But then, Satan, who’d been waiting for those misguided thoughts, pounces and accuses, “Oh, how prideful you are! Look at you trying to look good to others—you don’t really care about God!” It’s a vicious cycle that leads only to dark places.

Does the Lord want us to do for Him and others? Yes, of course! But our value to Him (and to the Body of Christ) is not in the doing. Our activity is meant to be an outpouring of who we are! The Lord has given each of us a unique personality, gifted us with spiritual gifts, and placed us in a particular time/place for His sovereign purposes. We don’t have to be obsessed with, “Lord, what do You want me to DO for You?” We just need to abide in who we ARE in Him. The better question is: Lord, who have You made me to BE? Then, we simply walk in that. The result? Unspeakable joy (and even greater freedom) that rises to complement that amazing grace.

Lord, as a child of God, I am created to be who You say I am. May I not get trapped by the “doing”…but rather, let my service to You and others be a beautiful expression of my “being” in You.

encouraged by grace series