Ephesians 2:7-10 (KJV)
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

These are highlight points fro my message that were taken by one of our precious sisters:

How are we saved, and how are we kept?
• We are God’s workmanship. He formed you and He have a destiny for you. That you need cooperate in order to be part of it, which requires surrender.

• On this side of the cross it is no longer about law keeping, it’s about surrendering to the Holy Spirit.

• God created you to do good things. His good things. But He’s the one who knows what those good things are.

• As Pastor Sharon taught us a while ago, something may be good, but is it a God thing. Sometimes, the very thing we want to do that are good may take us away from the path that God has for us or chosen for us.

• If you’re not willing to go off road with God, you’re not going to be able to see the things God has for you. If you stay on the path that everyone else is on, you’ll only see what everyone sees. God wants to do something new for us. This new thing requires a new way of thinking. And that thinking will change the way you speak, and the way you walk.

• Insanity means, doing the same thing and expecting different results. And the church, as a whole, has been doing a lot of the same thing, waiting for a miraculous outpouring of the Holy Spirit to do a new thing.

• I believe that in this season time, God is doing a one-on-one personal revival. It is a very personal thing between an individual and God.

• Obedience will put you on the right place, at the right time to speak to an individual.

• He ordained that we should walk in good works. He ordained it before the foundation of the world. He chose it, because He chose us, and we are His workmanship.

• People are often confused about why they get disciplined. You get disciplined if you refused to yield to the Holy Spirit. Sin has nothing to do with it. Sin, was nailed on the cross. We no longer bound by the law, but freed by grace. All our sins were paid on the cross. We should not feel guilty about a sin God already forgave on the cross. But if you have a bad attitude or are in a situation, you need to surrender it to the Lord. By seeking Godly counsel, praying and being patient. You can’t stop a bird from flying over you, but you can stop it from making a nest in your hair!

• We have salvation and healing through Christ.

• Grace (charis from from chairo = to rejoice. To be calm, cheerful and well of. To be cheerful. Most Christians are not cheerful, calm or well of. Our happiness is based on how much money we have, or our circumstances. But when we don’t feel well, our mood changes.

• Your healing is tied to the cross. A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.

• The enemy’s attempt is to get us to a point where we forget what Jesus did on the cross.

• When Adam and Eve sinned, and God asked them what they’ve done, Eve replied, “the serpent caused me to forget and I did eat it. (Genesis 3:13 Young Literal Translation). What did she forget? That she was already like God. God created them and us in His image and His like. We have something Adam and Eve didn’t have. You have God Himself dwelling within you. So, your joy should be unmeasurable because God loves you. He demonstrated His love by giving up His son to die on the cross for you. He sanctified you, and made you holy, and made his residence inside you.

• So, every time you’re tempted to think you’re nobody, take your hand and put it on your heart and say, “Lord by faith and I believe your words, you’re right here with me. You have made me holy. So, I yield to you my thoughts in this particular area; I yield my tongue, and attitude to you."

• We have an awesome Father. We need to start thinking elevated thoughts and believe that the delays here on Earth are for a reason.

• God is about building character. Money is nothing to Him. But He knows what money can do to us.

• Fear is never of God. If you are afraid, then His love for you has not been perfected. It’s not about how much you love Him, but by how much He loves you.

• When you are afraid, yield it God and remember what He has done for you, and the many times He showed up.

• We should be the most grateful people on Earth, but we don’t show it.

• If we don’t have wisdom, we should ask God for it. It requires wisdom to know what God wants for us.

• We are to lead by example. When people see how you respond to trials and circumstance, it builds their faith.

• The very essence of Grace is that there is no judgment.

• We get afraid when things happen to us, because we are not so sure that Grace is all that it encompasses. It’s believing, that God loves you, but…. There’s always a but... So, give that to God. Remember all the times God showed up.

• How do we learn to trust God? We learn to trust God when we go through storms, trials, and tribulations.

• By Grace we are saved. God saved us by His Grace, not by our works. It’s a gift from God.

• When Jesus walked among us, and people came to Him? “Do you believe that I can do these things? According to your faith being done to you.” You are saved through faith.

• In Greek, Faith is: Faith – pisitis (pis’-tis) – from peitho (pi’-tho) – to convince; persuasion, i.e. credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher) especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstractly, constancy in such professiob; by extension, the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself. Faith is confidence in what we hope for and the assurance that the lord is working, even though we cannot see it

• What are you convinced? Are you convinced on how saved you are? Are you convinced of His love for you?

• God didn’t save you to do whatever you want. Paul said, "All things are lawful for me," but not all things are expedient. "All things are lawful for me," but I will not be brought under the power of anything. 1 Corinthians 6:12

• Keep your convictions to yourselves. Don’t impose your convictions on someone else. Let God be the one to put those barriers. The one thing we have to convince people of is that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. Because once they know they are righteous, and they have right standing with God, and all their sins have been forgiven, and God loves them; you bring them to a point where the Holy Spirit can talk to them and give them their own individual boundaries. That’s very important. We need to be convicted of how much we are loved.

• Jesus came to give you life, and life in abundance. He left us here so we can be a living testimony of Jesus.

• If you know who you are, and how much you’re loved, you won’t sin. You won’t miss the mark. You will not react during trials, but rather act. You will not do the things the flesh want you to do. You go to the Lord and give Him the situation.

• Faith at its core is trusting God. You can’t work up trusting God. You know how you learn to trust God, by going through trials, tribulations and storms and He brings you through it. Our problem is that we forget. We should pray for God to help us not to forget when He showed up.

• It cost God everything to give you everything. If you’re not living the fullest of Christ paid for you on the cross, neither have I. But, every day I reach out to Him and like Paul said, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. (Philippians 3:12 KJV)

• Philippians 3:10 KJV- “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;” Paul did not mean that he needed to obtain resurrection from the dead. He meant the people that are dead and walking among us. People are dead in their thoughts, faith and religion. To rise above all and to know Him more intimate.

• Dead people don’t pay debts, or worry We are dead to the things of this world. We are to set our minds on things above. The life that Christ came to give you is hidden in the beautiful knowledge that when we were born again, the spirit person that we once were died in that moment. And a new person was born in its place. Living in the same old house, but a new tenant, with a new owner, Jesus Christ.