While most agree that “nobody’s perfect,” many say that God in His “grace” will overlook our sins if He sees that we have made a genuine effort to do the right thing, mend our ways, and avail ourselves of the help He offers through the church-if He sees that the trajectory of our lives is headed in the right direction, then in His “grace” He will forgive our sins and grant us eternal life. For others the system is less formal but still includes various religious activities, such as church attendance, baptism, contributing to the offering, and doing good deeds. For some this may be a formal system of sacraments that infuse the soul with the grace of God. A great many who call themselves Christians assume that the grace of God has established a system whereby the sinner can mitigate his deserved punishment by his own efforts. However, there is much misunderstanding about being saved by grace. The vast majority will admit that they have shortcomings and are in need of God’s grace in some form. No one with even minimal exposure to Christianity would be so crass as to claim that he has lived a life of such sterling character that God owes him eternal life. Just as the song “Amazing Grace” has gained almost universal acceptance, it is difficult to find any religious expression with roots in Christianity that does not extoll the virtues of grace. The grace of God is expressed by God’s forgiveness of our sins, and His blessings to us include peace and fulfillment in this life and, in the life to come, unencumbered fellowship with Him for all eternity. The concept of grace as found in the Bible is multifaceted, but it can be summed up in the definition “undeserved favor.” The Bible says that we are saved by grace. The concept of (or at least the word) grace is firmly planted in our culture. It has been recorded by countless artists from Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley, to the Three Tenors, to Rascal Flatts and Alan Jackson. The words of this famous hymn by John Newton seem to resonate with people of all theological persuasions: it is performed in churches of all kinds, from evangelical Christian, to Roman Catholic, to mainline liberal, to Mormon.
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