In Ephesians 2:8-9 the Bible says "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God Not of works, lest any man should boast. " God, in his unbounded mercy, has seen fit to extend to sinful, unworthy man his grace that we might be saved from our sin.
This grace is given to you through the gift and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Paul explained this in Romans 3:24 when he said "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." God s grace is manifest to you in terms of the sacrificial death of Christ. It is important to understand this gift is not offered to a select few, but to the whole world. As the apostle says in I John 2:2, "He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the WHOLE WORLD." The saving grace of God has been extended to all of humanity.
The fact that God offers his grace as a means of salvation to you gives rise to the question: "How can you be saved by grace?" This question is answered in different ways by different people. Unfortunately, the answers that some give reflect a gross misunderstanding of God s grace and perpetuates the abuse of God s grace.
Many promote the idea that because we are saved by grace, we have no personal responsibility to yield ourselves in obedience to God. it is argued by many that because you are saved by grace, you do not have to be baptized, attend church regularly and live a godly life. This belief displays a terrible misunderstanding of God s grace. It encourages people to live careless, ungodly lives with the false hope that God s grace will forgive them in their rebellion. This is a terrible abuse of God s grace.
This error is not new. New Testament writers confronted this problem and exposed its error. One such example is found in Jude :4 where the Bible says, "For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, UNGODLY MEN, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ." Jude faced the problem of people using God s grace as an excuse to live disobedient lives. Is this so different from the false prophets today who contend you can be saved by grace alone? Does this differ from those who contend you can be saved without submitting yourself in obedience to God? This first century error is remarkably similar to the abuses of God s grace that are being promoted today.
God will not tolerate such abuse! The same error was promoted in the days of Malachi and God didn t tolerate it then! In Malachi 2:17 he says "Ye have WEARIED the Lord with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one THAT DOETH EVIL IS GOOD in the sight of the Lord, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?" To say that God s grace will lead him to forgive those who refuse to obey his will is to say the evil are good in the sight of the Lord. Malachi says this doctrine WEARIES THE LORD! And this is essentially the same as the modern concept that God saves you by his grace, without obedience on your part.
In spite of the truth, many insist that salvation is totally by grace, apart from any obedience. One passage that is misused to support this is Romans 4:4 where the Bible says, "Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt." Some believe that "worketh" in this passage refers to acts of obedience to Christ and therefore, such obedience is not necessary. However, "works" here refers to circumcision and the law of Moses, not obedience to Christ. This is evident because verse 13-14 says, "For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through THE LAW, but through the righteousness of faith. For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect:" The context is contrasting justification by circumcision and the law of Moses with justification through the promise given to Abraham. it in no way suggests you may be justified by grace alone, without obedience to Christ.
And what of Paul s statement in Ephesians 2:9, that our salvation is "not of works"? Does this mean you can be saved by grace without being obedient to God? Like Romans 4, the answer lies in the fact that the works of which he is speaking are works of the law of Moses, not obedience to Christ. This is evident because the context in Ephesians 2:15 speaks of the law of Moses being abolished. Compare this with Paul s words in Romans 3:20. "Therefore by the deeds of THE LAW there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. " But the fact that you are not justified by works of the law in no way suggests you are not required to obey the law of Christ today!
Rather than teaching us we can live in sin and still be saved, God s grace teaches us that we must deny ungodliness and live a righteous life. In Titus 2:11-12 Paul says, "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live SOBERLY, RIGHTEOUSLY, and GODLY, in this present world;" God s grace teaches you to obey, not that you are at liberty to disobey! In Romans 2:4 the Bible says, "... the goodness of God leadeth thee TO REPENTANCE." God s grace compels you to turn from your sin, not continue in it. God s goodness calls on you to obey his will, not ignore it. God s grace is not an excuse to sin!
There is no question that sinful man must have the grace of God in order to be saved. You cannot be saved without the grace of God. You cannot be saved without the death of Christ. You cannot solve your sins alone. You must have God s grace! But how can you find the salvation that Jesus offers by grace? In Hebrews 5:9 the Bible says, "Being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that OBEY him;" The salvation that God s grace offers is for those who OBEY him. You cannot be saved by God s grace while living in disobedience to his will.
Don t be deceived by this doctrine. Don t be enticed into believing that you can be saved by grace without obeying God s will. God s grace compels you to obey him. To take any other course of action will bring wrath on your soul You can only be saved by grace when you obey the will of God. Are you living in obedience to the will of God? If not, you need to change your life now. Answer the call of his grace and obey him today.