Sunday School

My good friend, Bubba, asked me to stand in for him today and teach his Sunday School class. The lesson, Acts 4:32-37, tells us about the "grace of giving." It was a lesson on generosity and authenticity. As I studied last week to prepare for today, God raised many questions about my own life and where I stood in relation to the "grace of giving?"
I consider myself a "giver." However...when I give...do I give reluctantly or with a cheerful heart? When I give, do I give things that aren't wanted...such as advice???? When I give, do I put unspoken requirements on the recipient??
God has impressed upon me that I am still a work in progress. He is still chiseling away to make me more like Jesus. I'm thankful He has not given up on me. He is working on me and my attitude of forgiveness and understanding. He is impressing upon me why He allows bad things to happen to good people. He is helping me to continue to love those that are acting unlovable and doing things that I just don't understand. When I think about it....He is constantly holding up a mirror so that I can see clearly who I really am and contrasting it with who He wants me to be.
"We are saved by grace." Grace is God's unmerited favor. We don't deserve His grace. We can't be good enough or do enough good works to obtain His grace. There is only one way and that way is through Jesus. It doesn't matter how many SS classes we teach. It doesn't matter how many discipleship programs we participate in. It doesn't matter how many times we go to church. If we are counting on these things and our "goodness" to get us into heaven...woe be unto us. No, all we have to do is to pray....admit that we are sinners and can't save ourselves, repent or turn away from our sins, and ask Jesus to save us. Scripture says that if any man call upon the name of the Lord, he will be saved. Doesn't say a thing about being a "good" person. We can never be good enough.