Are You Worthy of Grace?

If someone offers you a gift and you toss it into the wastebasket, is it of any benefit to you? Unless you accept it, you cannot possess it. Similarly, when people reject Christ’s gift of grace, they cannot consider themselves forgiven of sin. Even though Jesus paid for the sins of the world, those who choose to decline His benevolence and pay for their sin themselves are not exempt from the consequences of their choice when they stand before the Righteous Judge on the day of judgement. There is no salvation through works – only judgement. 

While grace is free, it is incumbent upon us to demonstrate that we are worthy of receiving the gift. We do this by coming to terms with the reality that we are sinners and unworthy, and then surrendering our lives to Christ. Isaiah 64:6 discloses, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” And Romans 3:23 teaches us, “for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” We all need a Savior.

WE ARE SAVED BY GRACE

We are saved by grace – through faith (Ephesians 2:8), and this very same faith is credited to us as righteousness (Romans 4:3-8). When we surrender to Christ, we are saved. It is He who does the saving, not us, however we must take that step of faith. Faith, if it is not accompanied by action is dead (James2:17). Faith generates repentance.

When the woman who was afflicted with bleeding for twelve years worked her way through the crowd to touch Jesus’ cloak and was healed, Jesus told her that it was her faith that healed her (Matthew 9:20-22). She braved the social and religious obstacles of her condition in order to draw near to Christ. Jesus was the source of the healing, but her faith was the conduit that enabled it.

So, when scripture talks about Jesus paying for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2), we must remember the context provided by Hebrews 9:28, “so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him.” The payment has been made for those who choose to receive it.

In Romans 5:12-21, Paul elaborates on how the sin of one man “resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification for all people.” For as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous,” (Romans 5:18-19).

Does this mean that everyone is saved? 1 Timothy 4:10 is often misinterpreted to mean everyone, however when interpreted with the principle that scripture interprets scripture, the intent is evident that it means everyone who believes. “This is why we labor and strive, because we have put out hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially those who believe.” The gift is available to all, however, those who believe are the benefactors.

There are those who preach universal salvation and claim that unless everyone is saved, Jesus only provided a partial salvation. That unless all human beings are saved, Jesus failed in paying for “all” the sins of the world. Universalism also intimates that all roads lead to God, however this is counter to the teachings of Jesus and irreconcilable with scripture, and Christ’s proclamation that, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6).

The Bible clearly states that belief is a necessary component of salvation. People love to quote John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” Yet, they often forget the context provided by the subsequent verse, “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:18).

A SLIPPERY SLOPE

Furthermore, there are those who believe that since we are saved by grace and not through works, there is nothing we can do to earn salvation, therefore, there is also nothing we can do to lose our salvation. This is a slippery slope. What happens when people recant their faith? The Bible tells us there will be a great falling away in the last days. That apostasy will be widespread. Does this mean many people who thought they were saved will not be saved? Were they ever saved at all?

Jesus said, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” (John 10:28-29). The truth of the nature of God is that He doesn’t coerce us or force us to believe in Him. Jesus holds us with an open hand. Nothing can pluck us away but we are free to step off anytime we choose. Salvation is voluntary.

Does this imply that there are false converts to Christianity? Revelation 3:2-5 seems to imply there are. “Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of My God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not repent, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with Me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before My Father and His angels.”

This notion is consistent with other passages of scripture. Mark 13:13 states, “Everyone will hate you because of Me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” And Luke 21:19 reads, “Stand firm, and you will win life.” Furthermore, Jesus declared, “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21).

Paul warned the church at Corinth not to take faith for granted. Just as the Israelites who were saved through Moses did not remain faithful in the desert and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness, Christians should not test Christ (1 Corinthians 10:1-11). “So if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall.” (1 Corinthians 10:12). Furthermore, Paul admonishes believers to test themselves to see if their faith is authentic (2 Corinthians 13:5).

The scriptural truth is that in order to be a saving faith, belief must be an enduring faith. I recently wrote about learning from Israel (https://www.partneredwithchrist.com/cycles-of-cynicism/) and here again is a lesson for Christians. Paul teaches in Romans11:11-24, that Gentile believers are ‘grafted” into God’s family because of Israel’s unbelief, and he warns that unless Gentile believers continue in enduring faith, they too will be “cut off” from the family tree. Obedience is synonymous with authentic faith (Romans 11:30-31).

LIVE A LIFE WORTHY OF THE CALLING YOU HAVE RECEIVED

Paul admonished believers to be worthy of grace. In Ephesians 4:1 he writes, “As a prisoner of the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” And in Philippians 1:27, he pleads, “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.”

Moreover, in Colossians 1:9-10, the apostle states, “We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.”

God will never drag anyone kicking and screaming into heaven. If you don’t want to be there He simply won’t leave the invitation open for eternity. Jesus told the parable of a wedding feast in Matthew 22:2-22. He said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

Then he sent more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

But they paid no attention and went off – one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find. The bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

But when the king went in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless. Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are invited, but few are chosen.’”

Jesus taught that we must be worthy of grace. He taught that there will be a wedding banquet that is free for everyone to attend, however when we prioritize our daily business or daily lives over Him, we prove ourselves unworthy of His grace. Jesus proclaimed, “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.” (Matthew 10:37).

Are you worthy of receiving the amazing grace that our Creator offers us through faith in Jesus Christ? Are you willing to prioritize eternal blessings over earthly pursuits? If Jesus were to summon you tomorrow would you drop everything and follow Him? Would your preoccupations prevent you from even hearing the trumpet sound? Be careful that the worries of this life do not drown out the call of Christ (Mark 4:18-19).

The price of admission for the wedding feast has already been paid, however, we must demonstrate that we truly want to attend. We must want to be there more than anything else and we must be willing to sacrifice ourselves in order to signify our worthiness. That’s not earning admission because you can’t earn something that is free. However, genuine faith requires action that demonstrates our authenticity as Christians, expressed through our sincere love for Christ and a willingness to follow Him unreservedly.