“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith… not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8–9
On my recent ministry trip through Tennessee, I came across something that stopped me in my tracks: an enormous spiderweb. It stretched wide between the trees, intricate and carefully woven, and I remember thinking how remarkable it was. So much work had gone into building something so elaborate. And yet, as I stood there looking at it, another thought came to me: for all its size and beauty, I could reach out with one hand and sweep the entire thing away.
Immediately, I thought about how easily we can approach God the same way.
We look at everything we have built—our good deeds, our service, our generosity, our ministry, perhaps even the years we have faithfully attended church—and somewhere inside us, we begin to believe these things must count for something before Him. We may build something that looks impressive to us, just as that web looked impressive to me. But what happens when we ask it to carry a weight it was never designed to hold?
Scripture uses remarkably strong language about trusting in our own righteousness. Job speaks of those whose confidence is as fragile as a spider’s web. It may appear substantial until the moment someone tries to lean upon it. And this is the danger: good works can be beautiful. They can bless people, serve the Kingdom of God, and bring glory to His name.
But they cannot save us.
There is only one foundation strong enough to carry the weight of our salvation: what Yeshua has already accomplished for us. Paul writes,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith… not by works.”
Ephesians 2:8-9
We do not earn our way into the presence of God by becoming impressive enough, religious enough, generous enough, or good enough. Salvation is a gift we could never purchase for ourselves. We are redeemed through the blood of Yeshua, and we stand before God because of His grace.
This does not mean our works are meaningless. In fact, Paul continues immediately afterward:
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works.”
Ephesians 2:10
The order is everything. We do not do good works so that God will save us; we do good works because He has saved us. We serve because we love Him. We care for others because His love has transformed us. We use what He has placed in our hands because we want our lives to glorify the One who gave everything for us.
That distinction protects us from both pride and despair.
When things are going well, we cannot point to everything we have accomplished and say, Look what I have built. And when we fail, we do not have to wonder whether we have somehow fallen beyond the reach of God. Our confidence was never supposed to rest in our performance. It rests in Yeshua.
Standing before that spiderweb in Tennessee, I found myself asking a question that I believe is worth asking from time to time: What am I actually trusting to hold me? My service? My obedience? The things I have accomplished for God? Or am I resting completely in what Yeshua has accomplished for me?
Our works have a beautiful place in the Christian life, but they make a terrible foundation for salvation. Do not build your hope on something that cannot hold you. Build your life upon Yeshua. His grace is enough. His redemption is complete. And His blood has already paid the price we never could.
May the Lord keep our hearts humble, our faith firmly rooted in Yeshua, and our lives full of good works that flow from gratitude rather than an attempt to earn what He has already freely given.
Shalom,
Pastor Saleem