Brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee.
Acts 23:6

Recently, I’ve been preaching through a series on the significance of spiritual practices of the Christian faith. Spiritual disciplines (such as Bible study, prayer, fasting, giving, serving) are exercises that help strengthen our faith in Jesus. They encourage our devotion to God as we go about our daily lives. However, they do not save us. Only Christ can do that. Paul reminded Christians, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 1:8-9). If misapplied the spiritual disciplines can be twisted into a new form of works based living. It can be tempting, to use them as a way to compare ourselves to others. If this happens they lose their purpose as God intended them. The spiritual disciplines are a Spirit led process of receiving God’s invitation to follow him. The goal is not mastery, but to deeply surrender to God. We do not earn God’s love and grace; they are freely given.
Grace changes everything. It was by the grace of God that Saul of Tarsus had his eyes opened to the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. In his former life, Paul understood godly living as a matter of merit; a works based life. Salvation was something earned only by those who were perfect and righteous. It was not until Christ appeared to him that he was able to understand the truth. Pharisees were some of the most learned spiritual leaders during the time of Christ. The truth was that this Pharisee was wrong, and he was a sinner in need of saving. It is hard to believe that God would choose this man to be an Apostle. His life became a testimony of God’s grace. He traveled the world to share the story of Jesus and how it had forever changed his life and all ways of living. God used this former Pharisee to write nearly half the New Testament. This truth speaks to the way that God calls all to repentance and salvation through transformation in Jesus Christ. May these words of Paul bless you and I this week:

“Though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, 14 and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.”
-1Timothy 1:13b-16