Daily Devotional
We Have Grace to Do Good

April 13, 2023

Ponder This

I got a letter from a person the other day, and I know the person meant well. The letter said, “Pastor, I enjoyed the message on grace. It was so good when you took the offering, and you said, ‘Because of the grace of God, we give.’ I’m so glad that you didn’t mention that because you know tithing is the Old Testament law.” This letter grieved me because the person had missed the point. Because I’m saved, that doesn’t mean I don’t want to give to the level of the tithe; it means I want to give more.

The Bible says the righteousness of the law is fulfilled in us. It’s not that we say, “Now that I’m saved by grace, I’ll live by a lower standard.” No, we live by a higher standard because we have the love of Jesus on the inside.

The law says, “Don’t commit adultery” (see Exodus 20:14); grace doesn’t mean you can. The law says, “Don’t steal” (see Exodus 20:15); that doesn’t mean I can. Instead, the righteousness of the law is fulfilled in us. William Henry Griffith Thomas once said, “I will not work my soul to save, for that work my Lord has done; but I will work like any slave, for the love of God’s dear son.”[1]

• What are some of the laws of Scripture that you struggle with?
• Since you became a follower of Jesus, how has your attitude toward good works changed?

[1] William Henry Griffith Thomas, The Catholic Faith: A Manual of Instruction for Members of the Church of England (United Kingdom: Longmans, Green, 1920), 117.

Practice This

Write down the laws or teachings of Jesus you struggle with most. Ask God to transform your heart in those areas to serve Him with gladness.