"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God."
Ephesians 2:8
Part 1
God’s grace, His undeserved, or “unmerited favor,” is a favorite topic of the Apostle Paul. In fact, he brings up this idea at least twelve times in the book of Ephesians alone. He used the word grace in his usual greetings to believers, as in,
“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 1:1-2).
Paul loved this principle of grace as it is applied to the doctrine of salvation.
“Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24).
This primary teaching, he brings up again in our verse for today.
“For by grace are ye saved.”
Our salvation from God is a gift of His grace. In no way can we ever deserve His redemption from sin. And that is the beauty of this gift, as we will see He freely gives it to the believing sinner.
“Through faith.”
We can receive this free grace gift only “through” the channel (by means) of “faith.”
“Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end, the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all” (Romans 4:16).
Here’s a simple illustration that might help us to understand the place of faith in our salvation. At Christmas, we wrap our gift we wish to give in a box with fancy paper and ribbon. The gift is inside the package. It is not the trappings that are important but the present. The box and paper are but the conveyance, the means of giving the gift that is within. Salvation by grace is the gift of God, and faith[1] is the means of bringing that gift to us. Faith is vital, but in this verse, it isn’t the gift but the channel through which salvation comes to us. Where this illustration breaks down is, we usually throw the Christmas paper and packaging away, and yet our faith is essential to us daily, and it grows as we grow in grace.
“When salvation comes, into my heart by faith it is not my faith but God’s grace that puts salvation there” [2] (MacLaren).
“It is not faith that is the gift of God; it is salvation by grace. That is plain from the next verse: ‘not of works, lest any man should boast.’” [3]
Why is it that we can never earn our salvation from sin? Come back tomorrow, and we will finish our thoughts on this verse.
[1] While we understand that the “faith to believe” comes from hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:9), in our verse for today, Ephesians 2:8, the “gift” is “salvation by grace,” and not “faith” (see the Greek grammar in Robertson and Vincent). Here are some passages that point out that God must do a work in man so that we might be able to have a right relationship with Him (see Deuteronomy 30:6; Jeremiah 9:23–24; Lamentations 5:21–22; Romans 2:29). Never forget that God has first revealed Himself to man, “general revelation,” and “special revelation,” otherwise man could not know God nor trust in Him.
[2] Alexander MacLaren. Expositions of Holy Scriptures, the electronic version in eSword.
[3] Great Texts of the Bible, the electronic version in eSword. The Greek text is clear, the “that” in the phrase “that not of yourselves” is neuter and cannot modify the feminine “faith,” but must modify the expression “for by grace are ye saved.” See Vincent, Robertson, etc.