Saved by Grace

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Ephesians 2:8-10

Bernard of Clairvaux was a twelfth-century French monk who had an appreciation and insight into the treasures of God’s grace. In his writings on The Love of God, Bernard describes the workings of grace in this manner:

“When you received your existence and when you were sanctified and when you received eternal  salvation, which of these, O man, did you or could you perform? ...You did not create yourself as you were not there to do so (John 38:4). Nor in sin could you restore yourself to grace. Nor in death could you rise again.

...Who then is unaware that righteousness comes only from God? The self-righteous man. And who is he who justifies himself? It is the man who imagines that his merits come from some other source than grace.

The One Who gives rewards is He Who made them in the first place. The one on whom He bestows His favors says, ‘What shall I render unto the Lord for all His benefits?’ That is to say, to give back for what He has previously given? The psalmist proclaims that his existence and his righteousness belong solely to God, lest in denying their source, he lose them both...”

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father...”
Ephesians 1:2