Prepared in advance for us to do

As we grow with Jesus, we become aware of what we carry forward. This is the work of the Holy Spirit within us.

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Ephesians 2:8-10

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For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—

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not by works, so that no one can boast.

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For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

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It is vital to remember that none of us are without sin. Grace from the atoning blood of the Holy Lamb of God, is the only possible way to find forgiveness, so that we may walk in the light. So we must be diligent in being aware of what we are shown is our sin, and in humility confess to the Lord, repenting of what we have been shown.

This may seem obvious to some. But I have noticed that within myself, I begin to fool myself saying, 'this is okay, I will do this because he will forgive me.' And that is where I am no longer in the light, I am walking in the darkness of my error. What happens next is I bring destruction upon myself. And I have a harder time confessing it was my doing in the first place.

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1 John 1:1-3

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That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.

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The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.

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We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ

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Peter says be sober and aware. A sober mind is one that pays attention in the present moment, and an aware mind is certain in the choices it makes. These states of being are what we need to have, because our sin is all around us. Our desires are based off our past and our focus on the future, but our sin is in the present moment. If we remain sober and aware, we can replace our sin with what we hold dear in faith.

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1 John 1:5-7

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This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

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If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.

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But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

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Paul says pray constantly. There is a good reason for this. It keeps us focused on staying in the light. We want the life inside us to remain in the light, and the light around us to recognize the life in us moment to moment. The Father is the light, and in him is no darkness. The life is His Son, and he is in the light, sitting at His side as His authority. When we pray, the Spirit of Life is in us, guiding us in our prayer. So in essence, the life is in us, we are in the life, which is of the light. Prayer is an act of faith, and it keeps us aligned with the Father through our belief in His Son.

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Good works are works done by faith the life is in us, and therefore what we do is of the light. We may likely not see the full results of these acts, but when we do act, we confirm to the Father that we acknowledge His Son. It is interesting that Paul says these acts are 'prepared in advance for us to do.' That has implications. It implies that we are being proven to be walking in faith in the light. We are not acting on our own desires, because they are founded in darkness, and there is no darkness in the Father. See?

Without grace it would be impossible to please God, because we know that only through grace founded in our belief, can we know Jesus and therefore know the Father. Since we are vessels, what we fill ourselves with defines what we carry forward, and pour out. We all sin, so what we are shown by the Holy Spirit, we must own, ask forgiveness for, then repent of it. And further, we must produce acts that show we are sincere in separating ourselves from what we have been shown.

None here are perfect, but that is the point of this. Grace gives us a path to having what is perfect come through us by our acts of faith. Acts which are then proven, as these acts were prepared in advance for us to do.

Pay attention, be aware, and pray constantly. Be thankful for the atoning blood, and show it by relying upon it for forgiveness. Don't just regret, but produce acts that prove your sincerity.

The body of Christ is filled with others who also walk this path. Remain in faith of your place among them.

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