Ephesians 2:8-10 talks about the reality of the gift of salvation, how it is just the grace of God extended to us which can only be accepted through our faith (belief that it is true, even in the face of evidence to the contrary). There is no consideration of our specialness, and especially not our worthiness in the offering, or even our acceptance, of this gift.

There is no reason for any Christian to have an attitude of superiority or judgment toward anyone. Nothing we have done, or will ever do, will be enough to merit or warrant our salvation. There is NO amount of good works that obtain us the honor of salvation.

This balances the books for all. No Christian can boast, because their salvation is all equal. All are unworthy, deserving only death, but all can be saved if they will just call on the name of Jesus in faith. There is no one whose crimes are too heinous to forgive, nor any who, without redemption in the gift of Jesus blood, can obtain Heaven on their merits alone. We are ALL sinners. Even salvation does nothing to change that. We are still sinners, striving to overcome our vile nature and emulate Jesus.

Our lack of worth is not something over which we should hang our heads. We have no choice but to be who we are. However, we cannot allow our base nature to be used as a justification for our failings. We will all fail on occasion. We must use those failings to drive us closer to Jesus, as we seek forgiveness and to strengthen our relationship with Him. We must also strive to do better, calling upon the Holy Spirit to shore up our meager defenses and to teach us how to become overcomers.

Look again at Galations 5:22. Self-Control. Tough concept, but a central one. It is something very few of us adequately demonstrate. We cling to our RIGHT to do things and defend ourselves, our possessions, and our rights. God is less concerned about our rights and a lot more concerned about our behavior.

We are placed in a special situation. We are called upon to interact with the world, but not be part of it. We don't need to compromise our beliefs and say something God says is sin is not. We need to be firm in our obedience to the Lord. However, it seems each time I try to share the message of Jesus with others, I find people who have been offended by believers who were callous in their view of the person to whom they are speaking. I am forever apologizing for Christians who, while right to say something was sinful, forgot the LOVE of God. When speaking to others, we must continue to focus on the fact that we are only trying to reach them because of the love of God He already displayed to us. Love needs to be the central part of our message, not judgment. Time to focus on loving the sinner, and seperating that from our distaste for their sin. Love is what people should remember after we've shared Jesus with them.