The arm of flesh (human effort) will fail. Jesus never fails.

Beloved of God, Grace is a Person. His name is Jesus Christ. Titus 2:11 says of Him: "God’s marvelous grace has manifested in person, bringing salvation for everyone."

Verse 14 of the same Titus 2 says: "He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds."

Believers in Christ, God's saving Grace that saves and heals us is the same power that saves us from our sins and sets things right in our lives, causing us to live a godly life as well as serve the living God in the way that pleases Him.

Is there a sin or addiction that you are trying to overcome? Do you feel jealous when good things happen to others and hate yourself for it? Are you having challenges believing that all you have to do to live in triumph over sin and death is rest in Christ's love? Do you feel empty and just don't know what to do? By Grace, stop trying to defeat such things by your efforts and rest in God's saving Grace. Tell Him "Lord Jesus, I don't know what to do, but my eyes are on you."

Believer, the Lord God isn't judging you for your sins or for not having a clear vision of His Kingdom. How could He when His word says in John 3:17-

"For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him."

How could He when, based on Christ's "single sacrifice for sins," His Spirit witnesses to us that "their sins and lawless deeds I will remember no more" (Hebrews 10?) How could He when His heart is overflowing with love for you? How could He when "the chastisement for our peace was upon Him"?

Those sins that you struggle with and which antichrist pastors say that God will punish you for if you don't free yourself (as if you were not trying!,) God Himself sent His own Son to save us from them, because He so loves us. See Matthew 1:21 -

“And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Cast all your care on Jesus, even the care of your weaknesses and imperfections. He will save you from them all. The arm of flesh (human effort) at living a godly life and doing the right thing will fail, just as it failed Peter who boasted and knew 100% that he would never deny Christ. After Peter boasted in his own ability to live right, Satan asked for him to sift him like wheat and he denied Christ three times.

This confidence in the flesh (human effort at being godly) is why so many "men of God" are falling in disgrace today. If you confess that you can't drive and have Christ as both your Vehicle and Driver, nobody will bother to come and test your driving skills. Boasting that "I can never do that" gives Satan the opportunity to sift a person like wheat. Only by the power of Christ in us do we overcome. None of self-effort. All of Christ.

Plus believer, your pastor is not your High Priest so flee from anyone who positions himself as infallible outside God's saving Grace. Christ is the High Priest of all who believe in Him.

Many pastors/churchgoers act like some sins are beneath them, boast in their own will-power or human ability to live a godly life, preach that the flock should do same and try to pass this false doctrine off as the message of Christ. Such teach a false message that says-

"Now that you are saved by Grace, you have to keep the Law, stop sinning and be good by your own will-power so that God's wrath won't fall on you and so that you can make heaven."

This horrid mixture of part-Law and part-Grace is the "neither cold nor hot" that Christ speaks of in Revelation 3.

In Christ, we are fully under Grace - undeserved, unearned, unmerited favour. Does this mean that we just twiddle our fingers all day and do nothing but wallow in sins as antichrist pastors falsely say? Certainly not! We are doing works too, just like those who falsely believe that it is their good sense, self effort-driven obedience, giving and sowing that gingers God to bless or protect them.

But by Grace, our mindset about how our works come about is different- for all of our receiving from God and the good works we get to do - loving, giving, obedience, generosity, witnessing and the many exploits that we get to do - we know that of ourselves, we can do nothing. Jesus Christ - The Lord our Righteousness - is the "skeleton" that put and holds us upright. Even blood that is the life in man is produced in the bones:) Without Him, we have no life. Our boast is 100% in Christ. This is why it is difficult to find a true believer boasting that:

"God gave me a jet because I sowed my car" or

"I am free from satanic oppression because I fasted for 70 days."

Notice no Christ saving, providing or doing anything in these stories of salvation from earthly ills? No God giving us all things FREELY with Christ as it is written in Romans 8:32-

"He who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?"

“The letter (law) kills but the Spirit gives life" is a very popular Bible verse. With the Spirit of the Lord, it is neither by (human) might nor by power. It is impossible for doers of works of the letter (Law) that kills who repose confidence in the flesh (human effort) to deceive themselves in this matter: if you knew and believed that it is Christ in you doing the works and not your own might and power at obeying the Law, it would be difficult for you to point accusing fingers at others who are still living in sin and threaten them with judgment if they don't change. Rather, you would see how helpless man is to overcome sins and produce good works and point such to Christ who saves from sins and transforms the sinner who truly believes to live right as He is doing for you.

At different times, people have tried to give me credit for being a dedicated Christian, generous, a good parent or for being a hardworking employee and even tried to say that this is why God blesses me. But I know who I am of myself and apart from Christ in me- I am the worst of sinners! These fruits are evidences of salvation in Christ, not conditions. I would be wallowing in sins and utterly lacking in good deeds were it not for the Grace of God (undeserved, unearned, unmerited favour) - Christ Himself- working in me. God's goodness comes first. Then repentance (changing your mind about God.)

I cannot number the benefits that the Lord loads me with daily but by Grace and only by Grace, far be it from me to chalk His many benefits in my life down to money that I gave to the needy, my witnessing for Him, my (non-existent) self-effort at being a good person or my good deeds. None of these things would I be able to do by my own human effort (arm of flesh.)

Beloved of God, this is the way of the Lord:

He works in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13) and then He rewards us for the good deeds that He Himself gave us the desire to do and which He did in, through and for us. He makes us strong and able to do exploits. We see by Grace that of ourselves, our will-power to live right is utterly useless and that there is no good whatsoever in us as was Paul's experience in Romans 7:18-

“For I know that nothing good lives within the flesh of my fallen humanity. The longings to do what is right are within me, but will-power is not enough to accomplish it."

God's word says human effort (the arm of flesh) will fail, is powerless and cannot. But Pride in the arm of flesh (human effort at obedience) that will fail says:

"No, I can. God must be wrong. I still have some good in me. I can keep the law and resist temptation to commit sin by my will-power. Faith without works is dead so I must and I can do works to prove that I have faith. Since I can do it, others must too. They are just lazy and love to sin.”

God's mercy - the skeleton that keeps many self-righteous pastors/churchgoers from crumpling into the useless and helpless heap of flesh that man is of himself - is why such churchgoers and even pastors can condemn and threaten people that they have classified as "hardcore sinners" with hell fire, all without pointing the sinner to Christ as Saviour from sins or considering that these poor sheep are struggling to overcome their sins and are failing because the arm of flesh will fail.

There is nothing like "I can never do that" in the dictionary of the life of man who depends on himself to be good. Never trust yourself to save yourself from sins. Trust in Christ. Ask and as He did with Thomas, He will make all things plain to you. He will give you reason to believe. Before you know it, His peace that surpasses all understanding will overwhelm you! He will save you from your sins and cause you to live right.

Philippians 4:6-7 (MSG) - "Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life."

There are works under Law (works of the Law that produce works of the flesh) and there are works under Grace- accomplished not by might nor by power but by the Spirit of the Lord in all who believe in Jesus Christ. The difference is the MINDSET of the doer - HOW do we believe these works come about?

Is it through self-effort (arm of flesh that will fail) at obeying the Law and doing righteous works to get God to bless? Man cannot but boast and give himself credit for his works here hence "I sowed my car and God gave me a jet. How can God bless you if you don't do likewise?" Isaiah 64:6 says these kinds of works result in righteousnesses that are like "a menstrual rag" in God's sight. This is wrong believing that gives sin dominion (Romans 6:14) and causes sins to proliferate (Romans 7:5.)

Or is it by putting absolutely no confidence in the flesh (our own will-power) but attributing all of the good works (much fruit) that we get to bear to our being one with Christ the Vine and having Him as our ONLY Source of righteousness and strength? Romans 7:4 says this results in us producing a harvest of good deeds for God. This is Right Believing. All the glory goes to Jesus Christ.

Believer, rest in Christ is not inactivity. Rest in Christ is Holy Spirit-directed activity. We get to do exploits. In Christ, we live life “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;” Philippians 1:6.

Right believing always produces right living.