1 Corinthians 15:10 – But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

The apostle Paul knew the grace of God on a personal level. Grace is the unmerited favor of God and Paul received that favor in an abundant way. He gave grace all the credit for the change in His life. He was a changed man, forgiven, cleansed, and full of love when he used to be full of hate. He knew this was not his own accomplishment, but it was the work of the grace of God in him. He was nothing without the work of the Lord and the constant enabling of the Holy Spirit in his life. The grace that saves us also changes us. Grace changed Paul. You can’t receive the grace of God without being changed by it. The changes don’t come all at once, and the changes are not complete until we pass to the next life, but we are indeed changed. But notice that Paul did not sit back and do nothing, he worked very hard and the Lord blessed his efforts. He did not work hard to earn his salvation, he worked hard because of his salvation.

Challenge:

Has God been good to you? Have you enjoyed God’s unmerited favor in your life? You see, God was so good to Paul, he couldn’t help but work hard for Him. So, too, if you are one who truly embraces and enjoys the grace of God, you will be more eager and willingly serve Him. You just won’t be able to stop yourself. Your challenge this week is to consider how good God has been to you, and how gracious He has been to you, then let His grace flow through you and touch the lives of others. When someone cuts you off in traffic, don’t get mad at them, give them some grace. When someone behaves rudely toward you, don’t lash out at them, show them some grace. Everyone needs more grace. You see, grace is a gift you give to others, not because they deserve it, but because they need it. You and I don’t deserve God’s grace, we need His grace every moment of everyday. God gives you grace, so that you can give grace to others. May your week be exceedingly blessed.