It’s All of Grace

Romans 3:23-24 – “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

For the natural man the bitterest pill to swallow is the message of GRACE. To tell a person that only grace can save him hurts his pride; it means that salvation is all of God. There is not a single thing a sinner can offer as a claim on this needed yet sovereignly bestowed favor.

Paul says there is no difference: “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” We are all in the same boat. This is a humiliating message. As one man said to me once, “Do you mean that I have never done anything good in the sight of God? “That’s right, my friend,” I replied. “They that are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom. 8:8). “There is none that doeth good, no, not one” (Rom. 3:12). We must all come to the Lord the same way – as worthless sinners! God says, “When I see the blood (of Christ), I will pass over you”.

A minister once sat next to an unbeliever on a train and began talking about spiritual things. He had difficulty convincing the man that character and good works could not save a person, but only faith in Jesus Christ. Soon the conductor came along requesting, “Tickets please!’ As the man presented his, the conductor looked at it, checked the date, punched it, and passed on to the next seat. This was the minister’s opportunity, He said, “All the conductor looked at was your ticket. He did not inquire about your character. He did not care who you were – whether you were a good man, a moral man or a criminal. So it is with salvation. You need God’s ‘ticket to heaven’ stamped by the Blood of Jesus Christ!

Reminds me of the old song: “Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain – He washed me white as snow.”