“I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen 12:1-3 NKJV)
In the name of Jesus. Amen. In Confirmation, we learn that we are saved by, “grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ.” The question is, “What does this mean?”
Everything always begins with Jesus and what He did for us. He is true God, begotten of the Virgin before all eternity, and also true Man, born of the Virgin Mary. He lives a perfect life in our place, keeping the Law for us. He suffers under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He rose again from the dead on the third day.
Jesus alone is righteous. He wins our salvation on the Cross. His death alone is our salvation. We are saved by what Jesus did for us.
What Jesus did for us, we didn’t deserve. We deserve to be the one suffering and dying. We deserve to be the one who goes to hell. Instead, Jesus suffers and dies for us. Jesus goes through hell for us on the Cross – abandoned by His Heavenly Father. He does all this solely by grace, solely as a gift, without any merit or worthiness in us.
Faith receives in the Word of God what Jesus did for us on the Cross. Faith is nothing more than receiving gifts from God. Faith is saying, “Amen,” to the gifts the Lord gives. That’s what faith does: faith receives! God gives gifts, faith receives them. The gift is free, the receiving it is free.
Abraham believed God, believed that God would do what He promised. He received as a gift all the gifts that the Lord promised for me. He received what the Lord gave him: New land, great nation, new name, and blessing to all families.
God credited Abraham’s faith, his receiving God’s gifts for him, as righteousness. To say that we are saved, “by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ” is to say that we are saved like Father Abraham was saved. He received what the Lord did for Him as a gift. We receive as a gift what Jesus won for us on the Cross.
Jesus alone is our salvation! He won salvation for us on the Cross. He did that by grace alone. What Jesus did for us is received by faith alone. In the name of Jesus. Amen.
“By grace I’m saved, grace free and boundless; My soul, believe and doubt it not. Why stagger at this word of promise? Hath Scripture ever falsehood taught? Nay; then this word must true remain; By grace thou, too, shalt heav’n obtain.” (TLH 73, v.1)
Higher Things Reflections are written by Rev. George F. Borghardt III, Assistant Pastor at St. Mark Lutheran Church, Conroe, TX.