Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 12:23 (NIV))
Which would you rather receive – wages for all of your labors or a gift greater than what you could ever work to achieve?
No matter how simple the answer to that question may seem, there will always be those who refuse to accept a gift so great. They say things like “It is too good to be true,” or “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” They may even say things like “I don’t want anything that I can’t earn for myself.” Part of me wants to respect these people for they want to work for what they have. This is an honest character trait that is admirable, however, there needs to be a balance. It is too easy to allow pride to take the place of honest labor.
Pride !
Once again it raises its ugly head. Pride is able to build lots of things, but it can also destroy things of great value. Are you too proud to accept a free gift from the maker of all things? Are you too proud to admit that there is something that you are not capable of achieving on your own? Are you too proud to shout out to God that you are not capable of attaining His ideal for your life? Pride can be that sin that separates us from God. It is that character trait that will convince you that you earn the wages that are due to you and not the grace that is freely given to you.
Don’t allow pride to blind you to the free gift that is yours simply because you haven’t earned it. No one has earned it. No one is capable of earning it. No one can receive wages sufficient enough to pay for it. It is freely given but cannot be purchased.
Open your heart to the gift. Don’t let pride force you to accept your wages.
Copyright 1998 – 2014 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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