Wonderful sermon on Sunday on Eph. 2:8-9. Here Paul speaks of (1) grace, (2) salvation, and (3) faith. He adds, "And that not of yourselves." What does "that" refer to -- grace, salvation, or faith? Well, no Christian would try to take credit for grace or salvation. But some might claim faith in that way. You see, God saved us by his grace. But it's we who believe. We were saved when we trusted in Christ. Yet Paul's point is that even faith is the gift of God. This is brought out beautifully in the Living Bible:
"Because of his kindness you have been saved through trusting in Christ. And even trusting is not of yourselves; it too is a gift from God."
I love that! Phil. 1:29 puts it this way: "God has granted you the gift of believing." Hence my definition of eternal security: "Eternal security is the work of God that guarantees that the gift of salvation, once received by faith, cannot be lost."
Faith is a gift from God!!!