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His Part
“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us” (Titus 3:5).
It is difficult to hear that man is an utterly lost sinner who can never find his own way back to God. We like to think there is something we can do to help save ourselves, but according to God’s Word we are not only lost, but without any ability to save ourselves, as the following story illustrates:
Ironside tells the story of a convert who rose in a meeting to give testimony to the saving grace of God. He told how the Lord had won his heart and given deliverance from the guilt and power of sin. He spoke of Christ and His work but said nothing of any efforts of his own. When the man’s testimony was ended the leader of the meeting said, “Our brother has only told us of the Lord’s part in his salvation. When I was converted there was a whole lot I had to do myself before I could expect the Lord to do anything for me. Brother, didn’t you do your part first before God did His?”
The other was on his feet in an instant and replied: “Yes, I clear forgot. I didn’t tell you about my part, did I? Well, I did my part for over thirty years, running away from God as fast as my sins could carry me. That was my part. An’ God took after me till He run me down. That was His part.”
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