Saved by Grace, Not by Works

One of the biggest questions people ask is this:

Are we saved by grace or by works?

The answer is clear throughout Scripture:

We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

If salvation depended on perfectly obeying God's law, none of us would be saved. Every one of us has sinned and fallen short of God's standard. That is exactly why we need a Savior.

I remember debating some legalistic Christians who argued that believers are still required to obey nearly all of the laws given under the Old Covenant.

So I asked a simple question:

"If we're still under those laws, are we also supposed to stone people who commit certain sins?"

Their answer was no.

When I asked why, they said it was because stoning people is against the law of the land.

Ironically, that response proved the point.

If we are choosing which Old Testament laws still apply, then we are already acknowledging that we are not living under the Old Covenant in the same way Israel did.

Jesus established a New Covenant through His death and resurrection. He fulfilled the Law, and those who place their faith in Him are justified—not because they have earned it, but because God is gracious.

That doesn't mean God's moral standards no longer matter.

Nor does it mean grace is a license to live however we want.

The apostle Paul anticipated that objection when he asked, "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means!" (Romans 6:1–2).

Saving faith changes us.

When Jesus becomes the Lord of your life, your desire begins to change. You no longer obey God in an attempt to earn salvation—you obey Him because you love Him.

Jesus summarized God's commandments with two great commands:

1. Love God.

2. Love your neighbor.

That is the heart of the Christian life.

Will we obey perfectly?

No.

We still struggle with sin, and we still fall short. But Christians are called to deny themselves, take up their cross daily, and follow Christ. Our obedience is not the price we pay for salvation; it is the fruit of a heart that has already been saved.

We love because He first loved us.

Jesus took the punishment that our sins deserved. He bore our guilt on the cross so that we could be reconciled to God.

In response, we seek to live for Him.

Not to earn His love.

Because we have already received it.

Salvation is by grace alone through faith in Christ alone.

And genuine faith produces a life that desires to follow the One who gave everything to save us.