For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:8-10 (NIV)
There is a preordained life of good works for every soul and believers in sweet Jesus will walk in them. This vocation can only be accomplished through His power and energies and is done for His glory and not our own. The pride of these good works is an abomination to our God. What do we have that we did not receive and if we have received it how can we boast? The Holy Spirit is the Great Deposit given to every believer so that we may walk in a manner worthy of our high calling as children of the King. He never owns what mere flesh can accomplish and the One Who gives the power gets the Glory. Without Him, we can do nothing of eternal value. Further, when we are standing firm in the center of His good, pleasing and perfect will, we are in the best place on earth to be. Trust me.
We must expect and allow Christ to do His works in and through us and there is nothing like it. What He works in, He works out. The Fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control truly reflects the heart of our God. As we dig into God’s Word we are shown how to manifest these in ever increasing measure through His power as we die to self and live for Him. It is the way to take hold of the life that is truly life, the way of abundance that Jesus came and died to freely give us. It seems so counter intuitive does it not? We are all about rolling up our sleeves, staying up all hours of the night, dropping sweat off our brows and getting us nowhere fast. Oftentimes, sadly, God takes us to our extremities to get us to simply look up, cry out, and depend upon Him. When we live for ourselves it becomes bondage and never ultimately satisfying no matter what the world touts. Be courageous and zealous as it is as winds to the sails and courage to the soldier. Being fervent in Spirit and guided by the Word of God will keep us never lacking. Let us fight the good fight of faith for His glory and for our good.
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (NIV)