Favor is rooted in grace, not human achievement

Favor is rooted in grace, not human achievement

Mary wasn’t chosen for performance; she was chosen by grace. Favor from God did not come because she had earned it or because she met a spiritual checklist. The gospel flips the expectation that God’s approval is bought by our effort; instead, it is given freely to those who receive it.

Resting in God’s favor changes how you live. It removes the frantic striving to impress God and invites a posture of humility and gratitude. When you accept that God’s work in you begins with His mercy and not your merit, you can breathe, serve, and love from a place of freedom rather than fear.

Romans 9:16 (KJV): “So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.”

Reflection: Identify one area where you are trying to earn God’s acceptance (performance, approval, achievement). What is one concrete habit you can stop this week to remind yourself that grace, not performance, is the ground of your relationship with God?

To listen to the sermon that corresponds with this devotion, click the link: https://www.mbcpb.org/media