Something to Be Proud Of

Have you ever worked really hard on something.  I mean you have given it your all and it turned well and then you look back on it and say to yourself that the effort really paid off.  I think everyone has.  There are things that require that much effort or well refined skill that when they are done we are exceptionally proud of our accomplishment.

I suppose that it's only natural for us to take pride in what we do.  A strong work ethic is a national value.  Personally, I have found over the years that hard work can compensate for a lot of other short comings.  We like to think that the people who put the most into something have the most success, Effort = Results = Pride.

But here's the thing, The Kingdom of God doesn't work this way.  Not at all.

We don't earn our salvation through our works, Salvation is there for the asking.  There is nothing to do to earn it, there is nothing for us to be proud of because we did nothing to earn it.  We can never be god enough to earn salvation.  By accepting the redemption that God offers through faith in Jesus Christ, salvation is ours.  That's it.  So there is nothing to be proud of, but everything to be thankful for.