By Grace Through Faith
Salvation cannot be earned. There’s no behavior, no matter how holy or righteous, by which we can achieve salvation. Rather, it’s a gift of a gracious God. By grace we mean God’s extraordinary love for us.
In most of life we’re accustomed to earning approval from others. This is true at school, at work, in society, even at home– to a degree. We may feel that we have to act “just so” to be liked or loved. But God’s love, or grace, is given with out any regard for our goodness. It’s unmerited, unconditional, and unending love.
As we come to accept this love, to entrust ourselves to it, and to ground our lives in it, we discover the wholeness that God has promised. This trust, as we’ve seen, is called faith. God takes initiative in grace; but only as we respond through faith, is the change wrought in us.
This is the great theme of the Protestant Reformers, as well as, John Wesley and the Methodists who followed: we’re saved by grace alone, through faith alone. We’re made whole and reconciled by the love of God as we receive it and trust in it.
