Life in Christ is Built on Grace
Friday’s Verses:
From Colossians 2:6-7 ESV
“As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.”
Saint Paul’s instruction is brief, yet powerful. As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him. Our Christian life doesn’t start one way and continue in another. We begin with Christ given to us, and we walk by continuing in the same way.
This is important because there is a tendency to trade the gospel for works. We embrace Christ by faith, but then we try to live as if our effort, consistency, and growth will sustain us. When our faith is weak or life feels shaky, we blame ourselves.
But Paul reminds us of where we started. You did not make yourself worthy to receive Christ. You did not improve yourself until Christ was given to you. Forgiveness, life, and salvation were proclaimed to you by the Word, and you received them by faith through the Sacraments. The same Christ who was given to you now upholds you. Your faith does not depend on how tightly you cling to Jesus, but rather on how tightly he clings to you.
To be “rooted and built up” in Christ is passive language. Roots dig deep before anything appears above ground. Buildings don’t fall down because we’re working to build them up; they stand because the foundation is already in place. The Holy Spirit works in you below the surface to grow your faith by God’s Word—through the preaching of the Gospel, the promises of baptism, the absolution, and the Lord’s Supper—often when it feels like nothing is happening at all.
And when you feel weak or faithless, the fruit of this kind of life is thanksgiving. Christ is certain, so you can give thanks in every situation. You are settled and stabilized in the faith that was once delivered to you, a faith that rests solely on Jesus.
So continue in the same way that you first received Christ. Empty-handed. By faith. And offer thanks that your life in Christ is built on grace, not your performance.
✝️ A Prayer for Today:
Gracious Lord, uphold my faith this day, keeping me on the path of true faith in Your Son, my Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.