What is Grace?

Ephesians 2:⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (ESV).

         Ephesians 2 explains what our situation is before God. We have violated His law and therefore we are deserving of punishment. Since God loved us, He sent Jesus to pay the price for our sins. The text explains that Christians (those who submitted to Christ) have been saved by grace. What does it mean to be saved by grace?

         In the Bible, the word grace means gift. A gift, by its own definition, is something given to us that we do not deserve. If we deserved it, then that object becomes a wage. Grace is something that we do not deserve but is given because of someone's love.

         As sinners, we have earned something: punishment. The book of Romans explains that all people are sinners, whether they know it or not. Have you violated God's commandment? Have you ever lied, stole, used God's name inappropriately, lusted, coveted another person's property, or failed to worship God? Then you are a sinner. You have earned a wage. One of the key passages of Romans explains this. 

         Romans 6:²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

         The punishment of death is twofold. First, there is physical death. Physical death entered into this world when Adam and Eve sinned. Second, there is spiritual death, which is hell.

         Some will protest that this is cruel. How can one sin actually send me to hell? First, we are rebelling against the Creator, the one who gave us life and sustains our life. As the Creator, He has absolute right as owner to make the rules. Our sins are a violation against the highest authority in existence. Second, you have actually committed more than one sin. If one sins an average of once a month (which we would consider a good person) for 50 years that person has at least 600 violations against the King of the universe. If we go before an earthly judge today for 600 violations against an earthly kingdom/nation, would we expect mercy or the full force of punishment? 600 violations against any law demonstrate that we do not respect the authority and choose to rebel against it. Now imagine that those 600 violations were not just violations against the law but siding with the enemy of the state. That would be considered treason! And that is what our sin is, siding with the enemy of God, Satan! Should we expect mercy?

         Not only does God grant us mercy (not giving us the punishment, which would be hell) but He gives us a gift. The gift of God, according to Romans 6, is life. This life is heaven. You see, Jesus' sacrifice pays the price for our sin. Here is what happens. We are legally and morally in violation to a just judge, God. His holiness demands that our sins be punished. When we become a Christian, Jesus pays the price for our sins. The gift that is given is the fact that the payment of our sins has been made and we gain eternal life in heaven.

         Many believe that they can go to heaven because they are a good person. Would we be considered a good citizen before the eyes of our nation if we had over 600 acts of breaking the law? No, of course not. As a sinner, you are not considered a good person but a guilty person. You need to be rescued. Your good deeds cannot be used as a bribe to forget about your violations before God. 10 good deeds do not erase one bad deed. If you missed paying taxes for 2 years but did pay taxes for 10, the IRS will still demand payment for those 2 missed years. Your good deeds will not erase your failure before the eyes of the government. The same is true for God. We cannot earn our way into heaven; the price must be paid.

         This is true for all people. Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. My sin may or may not be the same as yours but I am equally a sinner. I need to be rescued. All of the sermons I preached, all the baptisms I performed, all the money I gave to the poor, and all the prayers that I said will not rescue me. If so, that would be a wage. My salvation is a gift, I cannot boast about my salvation. I do not deserve it.

         Grace is one of the most beautiful words in our language. One of the most popular songs today is still Amazing Grace. We should celebrate this grace. After all, it is a gift and the polite thing to do is to say thank you for a gift you appreciate. And, if we truly love the gift, we would want others to receive it to. This gift can be yours if you believe Jesus is the Son of God, confess Him as Savior, repent of your sins, and be baptized starting a new life with Christ. All sin can be forgiven but not all will accept the gift given by God. Will you accept a free gift to heaven?