Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.
— Romans 5:1-2
A lumberjack bought a brand new chainsaw and was told it could cut down at least 100 trees a day. But on the first day, he only managed to cut down 25 trees. The next day he tried harder and finally cut down 33 trees. The third day he started early, worked late, and even cut his lunch break short, but he still managed to cut down only 48 trees.
He went back to the store and confronted the manager with his complaint. He told him of his efforts and of the results. The manager couldn’t quite understand what had gone wrong, so he asked to take a look. He grabbed the starter rope, pulled hard, and the motor started with a roar.
The lumberjack jumped back in alarm and yelled, “What’s that noise?!”
Perhaps one of the biggest barriers that makes life so hard for many people is that they don’t understand how easy grace really is. They don’t realize that all you have to do is trust in Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And sadly, because most people don’t ever pull that spiritual “starter rope,” they remain stuck in a works-based religious system that will exhaust them.
Don’t try to overcome sin apart from grace—you never will. Instead, trust in Christ and open the floodgates of God’s powerful grace in your life!
Prayer Challenge
Ask God to help you understand the freedom and rest that grace can bring to your life.
Questions for Thought
Think of a time when you were trusting in your good works to be justified in God’s eyes. Did you ever feel like you were good enough?
What would a full understanding of God’s grace look like in your life today?