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People without faith, who base their identity on their own efforts (which comes from unbelief in Christ’s efforts), will always be hostile toward the ones who receive their identities by grace, through faith.

“The mind set on the flesh is at enmity towards God.” – Romans 8:8

And if you dare to look like Jesus in this world (1 John 4:17), the mind set on the flesh will be at enmity towards you as well.

But God would not see His promise fulfilled to Abraham through the product of human effort (Ishmael), thereby validating that approach to living. Yet He remained faithful to His promise by bringing about another son (Isaac), born by grace, through faith.

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
-(Eph. 2:8-9)

Likewise we become children of God by grace through faith, neither of which are the product of our human effort.

“…children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” – John 1:13

Grace comes freely as a result of God’s nature, and faith inside us comes by hearing the word of God (not just bible quotes for the sake of bible quotes, but the word about Jesus).

The entire Christian life and every single, little, teeny-tiny promise of it is received by grace, through faith.

Grace without faith is useless: It’s like having a Ferrari in your driveway but not having the keys. While it would still be nice to stare at, and you can think of plenty of things you would do with it if you could get inside, it ultimately does you no good. Faith without grace is equally as useless; it’s like having the keys to a Ferrari, but no Ferarri in the driveway.

Faith is the key that starts the engine of the gifts that grace has already provided. All we really do is believe those gifts are ours, put our foot on the gas and drive. And if we’re not sure where to go, we have a GPS in the Holy Spirit. And if we’re not sure how to turn that on, we’ve got an Owner’s Manual in the Bible.

So vroom vroom! Stop with your faithless human efforts to get what has already been given by the promise. Jesus finished it, he has handed you the keys. Just get in and drive!

Looking to Dive REALLY Deep?

If you’ve been wrestling with half-truths, mixed messages, or internal confusion about your identity in Christ, you need to read 10 Lies Keeping Christians in Sin.

This book unpacks the subtle theological distortions that keep believers stuck—and walks you through the mindset shift that leads to lasting freedom.

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