Paul writes, ‘By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God’ (Ephesians 2:8 NKJV). Why did Paul say we are saved through grace alone? Because trying to obtain salvation by keeping the law sets you up for failure. ‘For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.’ You say, ‘That’s an impossible standard!’ You’re right! The law is like an X-ray machine; it can reveal what’s under the surface and identify the problem, but it can’t fix it. The law is also like a mirror. It can tell you that you need to apply make-up, or shave, or comb your hair, but it can’t do these things for you. In other words, the law can show you your problem but can’t solve it. But what the law could not do, Christ did on the cross (see Romans 8:3). When Jesus said, ‘It is finished’ (John 19:30 KJV), all your sins from the cradle to the grave were atoned for. And when you put your trust in Him, you are saved for time and eternity. Some people acknowledge that you are made right with God by grace, through putting your trust in Christ. But, they believe you maintain your salvation by keeping the works of the law. The problem is, even on your best day, you cannot live up to all the demands of a perfect God. The hymnist wrote, ‘Trusting as the moments fly, trusting as the days go by; trusting Him whate’er befall, trusting Jesus, that is all!’

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.