How are you able to please God?  It's not on your own.  It's all of God and all of grace, all the time.  Salvation is not about making a decision for Christ or somehow being convinced.  You can't be saved by doing your best or trying harder because you will always fall short of the standard and may not be saved if you merely profess to believe in Christ.  Salvation results from the change the Lord makes in our hearts.  Because of this, when we confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we give all of ourselves and our lives to him to be used for the building up of his kingdom and his glory.  

 

Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:1-14, Romans 10:5-10

In Chapter 10 of Romans, Paul continues to press on about salvation and true saving faith and that simply having zeal or sincerity alone for religion or even for God doesn't equate to salvation. The Jews had the things of God all around them but sought their own righteousness by trying to keep the law, adding to it, or lowering that standard, rather than being humbled by it and looking to Christ, who kept it perfectly. As Christians, when we live for God, we don't do it to gain favor or earn salvation but because of the gift we've already been given in Christ.

 

Scripture: Hosea 4:1-9, Romans 10:1-6

In conclusion to the 5 part mini-series on God’s sovereign election in the salvation of his people, we are reminded that all people are sinners who, apart from God’s grace, cannot seek after God due to their nature. This is why we see those we would never expect come to Christ and those we would otherwise expect, ultimately miss and reject God.

 

Scripture: Isaiah 44:9-20, Romans 9:13-33

Scripture: Psalms 1-3