The Secret to Effortlessly Excellent Grades

Hi there. If you’re reading this, I presume one of the following three possibilities:
1) You are a student and want to excel in your studies effortlessly with no work
2) You were redirected from the daily verses message sent in the morning
3) You stumbled on my blog page by chance and/or other reasons

So, you want to know how to succeed effortlessly in your exams. You want to attain the perfect score in your General Certificate of Education (GCE) examinations. You want to rise above the mediocre in your academic performance. In fact, while you’re at it, while you reign in your academic life, why not also reign in life? Why not also reign over sickness, poverty, trials and tribulations?

The Bible tells us how to reign in life. For if because of one man’s trespass (lapse, offense) death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive [God’s] overflowing grace (unmerited favor) and the free gift of righteousness [putting them into right standing with Himself] reign as kings in life through the one Man Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). [Romans 5:17 AMP] It is by receiving God’s abundance of grace, which is unmerited favor (unearned and underserved, by the way), and the free gift (not reward) of right standing before God. 

You want to reign over sin and sickness? Receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness.
You want to reign over depression and defeat? Receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness.

You want to reign over trials and tribulations? Receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness.

You want to reign over poor grades and poverty? Receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness.

But how? Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. [Matthew 6:33 KJ21] Seek first the kingdom of God. And all these things, good grades, financial stability, perfect health, healthy relationships and much more, will be added unto you. They are complementary.

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? [Romans 8:32 NKJV] God could have chosen to give us over to death and spare Jesus, signifying how much more He loves Jesus than us underserving people. But what did God do? He gave Jesus over to death and spared us, signifying how much more He loves us than Jesus. If Jesus is God the Father’s darling beloved child, in whom He is well pleased (Mark 1:11), how much more does God the Father love us as His children?

Pastor Joseph Prince, one of the frontrunners of the gospel of grace in the 21st century, once said this: You will never understand how much God loves you until you realize how much God loves Jesus, because He gave Jesus up for you.

And if the Father has given heaven’s best, His only begotten Son (John 3:16), how much more does His blessings follow, since Jesus is heaven’s best? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? The word ‘freely’ there means graciously, and undeservingly. God has freely lavished all of heaven’s blessings unto your life! And He will empower you to life a life that glorifies Him. He gives you the gift of no condemnation, so that you can go and sin no more. (John 8:11) But not just that! His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. [2 Peter 1:3 NASB] We know what it means for godliness, but what about life?

Does health pertain to life? He has given you all things.
Do finances pertain to life? He has given you all things.
Do relationships pertain to life? He has given you all things.

Now, what does that mean practically? Does it mean to study hard? Will studying hard produce good results, as the world defines it? Well, studying hard and working hard does produce results; limited results. Why? It’s because that’s relying on self–effort. And let’s face it: as humans, we are limited. We get limited glory for our limited work. How then, can work produce unlimited glory? Let God do the work, and He gets unlimited glory for His unlimited work. “If God wants to have all the glory, let Him do all the work,” says Pastor Prince1. Let God study through you rather than you studying on your own. Let God work while you rest. Rest in His abundance of grace and gift of righteousness for success. And when you do succeed in His grace, return all glory that He gave you to Him. (1 Corinthians 10:31) 

Just to clarify, it does NOT mean to slack off. If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. (2 Thessalonians 3:10) Don’t think of trying to get good results without studying. However, don’t think that studying alone gets you good results. It’s not by your effort that you excel; it’s by His effort. How to put it even more practically? Love your job. The Bible says that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor: it is the gift of God. [Ecclesiastes 3:12–14 KJ21] So, in whatever vocation you are in, enjoy it!

If you are a teacher, enjoy teaching with God’s wisdom! That’s how you teach for the glory of God!
If you are a civil worker, enjoy working with God’s wisdom! That’s how you work for the glory of God!
If you are a business, enjoy doing business with God’s wisdom! That’s how you do business for the glory of God!

And, for most of you reading this: If you are a student, enjoy studying and do it with God’s wisdom! That’s how you study for the glory of God!

What I’m trying to say is this: God has already given you good results. He has already secured excellence in your student life, not just in academia, but also as an all–rounder. How then do you get good results? By resting in God’s sure favor for you, that though you deserve it not, He gave it to you on account that you, the believer, are the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21) and hence, your lack of qualification, by your efforts, allow you to accept Jesus as your qualification to all the blessings in Deuteronomy 28. You are already qualified for good results! It is God’s blessing for you, underserved and unmerited, according to the riches of His grace.

How then do you take hold of it? By resting in God. Resting in God does not mean that you will slack off. It means that you let God work in you, through you and for you. Let God give you the joy and passion for studying. Let God give you the love for school, church and so on. Let God bring you to the right place and the right time, all the time. Surely goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life! (Psalm 23:6) So, by all means, study! But study with the grace of God. Don’t study for good results; study from good results.

Don’t study to attain what you want. Study to attain what God wants. And what does God want? That you enjoy your vocation. Ask God to give you that joy. Surrender your studies to God. Give God all the glory by letting Him do all the work for you! Let God be your joy in studying. Let Jesus be the center of your studies! Let go and let God study through you. And you won’t be able to help it but see effortless success!

Just to leave you with this nugget: the word 'saved' in the original text (Greek) is not just 'to rescue'. It is to rescue, but it also means to "heal, preserve, save (self), do well and be (make) whole". Receiving Jesus, just trusting in His finished work, will open the doors to wholeness, wellness, health and preservation. It's all about Jesus!

If you would like to be saved, you may pray this simple prayer:

Lord Jesus, I confess that I am a sinner. Thank You for loving me and dying for me on the cross. Your precious blood washes me clean of every sin. You are my Lord and my Saviour, now and forever. I believe that You rose from the dead and that You are alive today. Because of Your finished work, I am now a beloved child of God and heaven is my home. Thank You for giving me eternal life, and filling my heart with Your peace and joy. Amen.

Acknowledgements:
1Joseph Prince Speaking At Hillsong Conference 2012: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELd1L0qYeO8