A Parable of the Weary Soul

What does it mean to be saved by grace, yet still be called to strive with every fiber of our being toward holiness? For centuries, the church has wrestled with this question. If salvation is by grace through faith alone, then why do our works still matter? The short answer is this our works don’t earn salvation, but they reveal if the salvation we profess is real.

To understand this relationship between grace and effort, between saving faith and holy living, consider the parable of an unhealthy soul.

The Parable

There was a man, forty pounds overweight, whose lifestyle placed him on a fast track to disease and early death. His doctor warned him: unless he changed his habits, he would suffer greatly and die prematurely.

The man took the warning seriously. He made sweeping changes, from his eating habits to his exercise routines. Over the next year, he transformed. His health improved. His weight dropped. He had energy and hope again.

Now, was his health restored because of his belief in his doctor’s words or because he acted on those words?

The answer is clear: both. His belief in the doctor’s wisdom and authority was the spark. But that belief proved genuine only because it led to decisive action. If he had ignored the warning, no matter what he claimed to believe, his health would have deteriorated.

Faith That Works

This is the biblical picture of saving faith. We are saved by grace through faith, and not by works (Ephesians 2:8–9). Yet true faith is never passive. It’s not idle. It moves. It obeys. It bears fruit.

James puts it bluntly. “Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:17). Real faith is living faith the kind that walks, repents, grows, and pursues God. Paul calls it the “obedience of faith” (Romans 1:5), and Peter describes it as a life empowered by God's “precious and very great promises” (2 Peter 1:4).

Everything Is From God

Peter opens his second letter with a breathtaking truth: “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). That means every resource needed for our spiritual health has already been given. You didn’t earn your salvation. You didn’t wake yourself up to God's beauty. Even your desire to follow Christ was birthed by grace.

From new birth to final breath, your salvation is a divine gift. “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven” (John 3:27).

Yet that gift includes a call to action.

Make Every Effort

“For this very reason,” Peter continues, “make every effort to supplement your faith” (2 Peter 1:5). In other words, because God has done everything, therefore live like it. Pursue holiness with vigor. Add virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love to your faith.

These are not optional extras they are essential evidences.

Just like the man in the parable proved he truly believed his doctor by changing his lifestyle, so too we prove the reality of our faith by diligently pursuing the character of Christ.

What Our Effort Reveals

Peter says that if these qualities are present and increasing in your life, they will keep you from being “ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:8). But if they are absent, it reveals something deeper: blindness. Forgetfulness. A life untouched by the grace it claims to know (2 Peter 1:9).

This is not to say that true believers never stumble or go through spiritual dry spells. Every saint has seasons of weakness. But if there is no long-term trajectory of growth, no desire for holiness, and no effort to obey, then Scripture warns that kind of faith cannot save (Titus 1:16; James 2:26).

The Grace That Empowers Effort

This is not about earning God's favor. You can’t. But it is about proving that you have received God's favor.

Peter urges: “Be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election” (2 Peter 1:10). You didn’t choose God first He chose you. But how can you know you’re truly His? Look at your life. Are you growing in Christlikeness? Are you striving against sin? Is your faith working itself out in love?

These are not merely moral checkboxes. They are signs of spiritual life. And where they are present, Peter says, “you will never fall” (2 Peter 1:10). Instead, “there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:11).

Striving Is Not Legalism

To strive for holiness is not legalism it is the natural response of a heart captivated by grace. Scripture says, “Strive for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). That’s not salvation by works that’s salvation that works.

God’s grace is not threatened by our effort; it empowers it. “By the grace of God I am what I am,” Paul wrote, “and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10).

The Fruit of Assurance

Our assurance doesn't rest in our perfection, but in our direction. As you walk in faith, daily repenting, daily depending, and daily pursuing holiness, you confirm that you truly belong to Christ. The fruit of godliness becomes the evidence of your salvation not the cause of it.

So, is striving necessary? Yes not to gain God's love, but to display it. Not to merit salvation, but to show its presence.

May we make every effort, not out of fear or pride, but because Christ is worthy, His promises are true, and His Spirit is at work within us to make us more like Him.

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