“For by grace are you save through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).
“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost” (Titus 3:5).
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom.6:23).
I think you get the point. From one end of the Bible to the other, the Lord beats to death the point that man has nothing he brings to the table when it comes to salvation. There are many blurry doctrines that are hard to nail down, but the doctrine of salvation is not one of them. So the big question is, why would a person chose to strive for righteousness when it is given as a gift to the one who puts their trust in Jesus?
I have given this much thought. Here are some rebuttals I get when I present the gospel of grace.
There is no free lunch.
My church doesn’t teach that.
If that’s true then I have waisted many years going to church and giving money in an attempt to enhance my spiritual letter sweater.
You believe what you believe and I will believe what I believe?
I don’t care what all those verses say, it just can’t be that easy.
I have always done my best, and I am certain that will pass the entrance examine.
One guy told me he had never sinned. I said, you just did.
But I don’t believe the above statements are the real reason. I think pride plays a huge role in wanting to feel righteous by living a life you become proud of. But there is even a greater reason.
“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor. 4:3-4).
What person in their right mind would turn down the free gift of salvation? But, humanity is not in its right mind. The human race is in darkness and no matter how beautiful the church structure is, those blinded by the enemy cannot understand the gospel.