Grace Equals Gospel
Someone may say, “Well, I’m preaching the Gospel: God hates sin and He’s angry at you.
Repent or burn. Change your ways or you’re in big trouble!” That’s not the Gospel, because it’s not talking about the grace of God. Yes, there is a punishment for sin—but the Gospel emphasizes God’s answer to it.
Paul also uses these two terms—“gospel” and “grace”—interchangeably in Galatians.
Notice how “the grace of Christ” clearly implies the Gospel:
“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel” (Gal. 1:6).
Galatians was written for the same reason as Romans—to establish the grace of God. The Gospel is “good news.” It specifically refers to what Jesus did for us. It’s based upon
His performance, not ours. Our good works and “holiness” do not earn us salvation. We must get
away from this dependence on self. It’s sad to say, but much of what is called the Gospel today is actually promoting trust in self, rather than trust in the Savior. That’s just false religion!
The Only Way to Salvation
Grace is what sets true Christianity apart from every other religion in the world. Other religions may acknowledge and worship a “one true God.” They may even agree that Jesus existed and that His teachings are admirable. They say that He was a good man, perhaps even a prophet, but definitely not God manifest in the flesh. Religion refuses to acknowledge Jesus Christ as the only way to salvation—right relationship with God.
Every false religion—even religious Christianity—puts the burden of salvation upon the individual. In other words, “salvation” is based upon your performance. If you live holy enough, do enough good things, observe all of these rituals and rules, then you might be able to be saved. The problem is—and Romans makes it crystal clear—that none of us can live up to those standards. We can’t save ourselves!
True Christianity is the only faith on the face of the earth that has a Savior. On Judgment Day, each one of us must stand alone before God and answer the question, “What makes you worthy to enter into My presence?” The followers of every other religion will say, “I was holy and gave to the poor. I never did these things and always did these others. I even journeyed to the holy city and performed the prescribed rituals. I prayed three times a day and fasted.” However, the Word plainly reveals that all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory (Rom. 3:23). Who wants to be the best sinner that ever went to hell? Therefore, you simply cannot trust in yourself for salvation.
However, a born-again believer would answer that same question differently. They’d say, “Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. I’m trusting completely in His goodness and His
performance. It’s definitely not anything I’ve done. I get in based on what He did for me through His death, burial, and resurrection.” Now that’s the right approach!
