The Bottom Line, Ministries Christian News, Articles, & Poetry 
The lyrics to an old traditional hymn go, “Only a sinner saved by grace. Only a sinner saved by grace. This is my story, to God be the glory. I’m only a sinner saved by Grace.”
I am only a sinner saved by grace. God is holy and compared to Him, I fall way short. Sin is something people don’t want to talk about. It is not only evil acts; it is not measuring up to God’s perfection and righteousness.
It is wrongdoing, and violating moral, religious, and divine laws. It is straying from God‘s path, disobeying his commands or acting selfishly against his will, leading to separation from God. (Believe it or not, this is AI’s definition, which happens to be biblically accurate). “This is what sin is-dishonoring God by preferring other things over him, and acting on those preferences.” (1)
Based upon this definition, every person is a sinner, and God could be like a tyrant, lowering the boom every time we mess up. He could say, “Since you are a sinner, I can’t let you into heaven because where I dwell there’s no sinfulness.”
But God is not like that! He is a God of grace. What did God do about our sin? II Corinthians 5:21 says “For our sake, he made Christ to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Oh, what a loving God we have! He loves us no matter what we have done.
The words of Jesus are recorded in John 6:37. “All that the father gives me will come to me and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”
Billy Graham used a song at the end of each crusade entitled, “Just as I am, I come.” John Piper wrote, “ The measure of God‘s love for us is shown by two things. One is the degree of his sacrifice in saving us from the penalty of our sin. The other is the degree of unworthiness that we had when he saved us”(2).
Do you feel like you are a slave to sin, that you can’t help yourself? Piper continues,“When Christ died to remove our condemnation, He opened, as it were, the valve of heaven’s mighty mercy to flow on behalf of our liberation from the power of sin”(3). Romans 8:1 says, “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” The word condemnation is a legal term that includes both the sentence and the execution of the sentence. Further, we have been declared justified by faith (Romans 5:1), and have been declared righteous by God. The love of God and his saving grace is more than we could ever humanly fathom!
Do you feel like you are living in darkness, deception, and despair? “The Son of grace shines the light of his grace into the darkest recesses of our heart, not as an act of vengeance, but as a move of forgiving, transforming, and delivering grace” (4).
No matter what you have done in your past, or how you may be living right now, you can come to God just as you are and experience His amazing grace by accepting Jesus as your personal savior.
1. John Piper, Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die, Crossway Books, 2006, pg. 20
2. Ibid, pg. 28
3. Ibid, pg. 77
4. Paul David Tripp, New Morning Mercies, Crossway, 2014, February 14th Devotional
AMEN!
This message reminded me of another act that God did in the Old Testament to show His Grace to us.
It was when God sent a dove to deliver an ‘olive branch’ after the worldwide flood as a universal symbol of peace, victory, and reconciliation. Not that He is unjust but it has to be received on His terms.
Today it is offered to all but only those who realize that they are guilty by breaking His laws will have it. It cannot be bought. No one in their right mind wants filthy rags. That is what sin is like to a holy God.
We see this example after the flood was receding from the earth due to the rebellious ways of mankind who refused to repent. The Bible speaks about a dove symbolizing peace that had an olive branch in its beak. This was the way God signaled the end of His judgment and the dawn of a new covenant.
Our Lord Jesus is the Prince of Peace who extends to mankind His mercy and forgiveness through His sacrifice. We can’t earn it, only receive it. Your life is tainted by sin so you cannot offer Him anything but your honesty that leads to repentance for the wrongs you have done.
Multitudes perished during the flood but the wise were saved and had a second chance. People need to wake up to see that they too are in danger if they don’t put their trust in Him to have their lives changed by His amazing grace.