Today's encouragement comes from the words of Paul, as they are found in 2 Corinthians 6:1:
"We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain."How is the grace of God received "in vain”—even potentially by us, regener-ated Christians? It is "received in vain" when we forget that our justification before God is all wrapped up in Jesus. The previous verse, (2 Cor. 5:21), had taught us imputed righteousness and substitutionary atonement. But our flesh continually recoils at such marvels, and seeks to regain its perverse "credibil-ity" (even with God)—usually through the old dead covenant of works.
So, when we cease to look to Jesus alone for our redemption, (and we gaze upon ourselves or something else), we receive the grace of God "in vain." Is Christ our righteousness? Then let us look no further.
[Puritan quote of the day: "Christ is never really absent from such as love Him, but He may seem to be so sometimes.” —Thomas Vincent, in, "The True Christian's Love To The Unseen Christ"]
