SAVED BY GRACE 100%?

Clinton Hardin

In the Christian religious world of today it is not uncommon to hear someone say

“You are saved by grace 100%” or “You are saved by grace alone.”  If these statements

are not explained, they may be misleading.

If the statement “You are saved by grace 100%” means that Christ paid 100% of

the debt we owe because we are sinners, then we have a true statement.  Christ’s shed

blood was essential for payment of our debt.  We pay 0%.  On the cross Christ made this

free gift accessible to us.

" . . . Even so through one man’s righteous act, the free gift

came to all men resulting in justification of life.  For as

by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners,

so also by one man’s obedience many will be made

righteous” (Romans 5:18-19, NKJV).

If Christ had not obeyed God on the cross, you and I would not have God’s grace today:

“In him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the

riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7).  After all, grace and truth came by Jesus Christ (John

1:17).

If the statement “You are saved by grace 100%” means that man is saved without

completing a response that is ordained of God, we have a false statement. In such a case

everyone would be saved and no one lost, for Paul declares that this “free gift came to all

men” (Romans 5:18-19).    However, from Jesus Himself we learn that every person will

not be saved: “Not everyone that says to me Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of

heaven, but he who does the will of my father in heaven” (Matthew7:21).

The conclusion is that man must respond to God’s grace in the way that God has

ordained him to respond.  In the bible we learn that man’s response, ordained by God, is

faith; not works of merit that we might perform: “For by grace you have been saved

through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone

should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).  Christ paid 100%, man 0%: If we are saved by grace,

why is not everyone saved?  The answer, of course, is because not every one chooses to

access the grace of God.  Even though we can’t perform works of merit to earn salvation,

we do, through Christ, have to take action by faith to access this grace.  Paul put it this

way: “. . . through whom also we have access by faith into the grace in which we stand,

and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God” (Romans 5:2). 

What action is involved in the “one faith” (Ephesians 4:4) that accesses grace (Romans

5:2)?  The eleventh chapter of Hebrews teaches us that saving faith is not passive, but

active.  Is it a mental activity only? or is it a combination of mental and physical activity? 

James tells us that if we have a faith of mental assent only, we have a dead faith; and that

we have a saving faith when we act to obey the commandments of God.  Our belief in

Christ would certainly be a mental activity of our faith.  If we didn’t believe Christ was

who He said He was, would we seek Him?  I think not.  However, this mental act of belief

alone will not access grace: “. . . show me your faith without your works, and I will show

my faith by my works.  You believe there is one God. You do well. Even the demons

believe and tremble.  But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is

dead ” (James 2:18-20).

In Luke 6:46 Jesus says “But why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do the

things which I say.”  This statement by Christ, and the parable in verses 47-49, teaches

you and me that faith includes the action of doing what Christ said do.  Repentance would

also be an essential mental act of faith, because repentance takes place in the mind of the

sinner:  “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men

everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30).

The bible teaches us that the physical act of confessing Christ is an essential part of

faith, just as belief is an essential mental act of faith: “. . . that if you confess with your

mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead,

you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).  Baptism is also an essential physical act of faith as we

submit to God to let Him operate on us to perform “the circumcision made without hands,

to put off the body of sins and raise us up with Christ” (Colossians 2:11-12).  Baptism is

an active part of the faith that accesses grace: “For you are all sons of God through faith in

Christ Jesus.  For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ”

(Galatians 3:26-27).

The mental acts of belief in Christ and repentance of our sins lead us to the

physical act of confession of Christ and submission to God in baptism for the remission of

our sins.  At baptism we have completed the mental and physical acts of faith which

accesses saving grace.  Jesus paid for the free gift (the remission of sins) when He shed

His blood on the cross.  He paid 100%, we paid 0%.  

A real life analogy may help us to understand our part in accessing the saving

grace of God.  A friend sent me a letter stating that I could have a free steak dinner at his

expense.  The popular steak house where the free dinner would be available was thirty-five

miles away.  What happened in the process of my accessing this free gift of a steak dinner? 

First, I had to receive and read the letter about the free gift.  Second, I had to believe the

message was true.  Third, I had to have a desire for this free steak dinner.  If I had no

desire for the gift, I would not pursue the necessary action to obtain it.  Fourth, I had to

drive thirty-five miles to the steak house and present the letter stating I was to be served

the $25.00 steak dinner without any expense to me.  The price of the steak dinner would

be paid for by my friend.  Fifth, if I wanted to enjoy this free gift, I had to accept it and eat

it.  Why did I complete these five actions?  I had faith in the friend that sent the message! 

Did this faithconsist of both mental and physical activity?  Yes!  I could have read the

message and believed it, but if I had not completed the required physical actions I would

not have accessed the free gift.  The fact that I performed physical actions in accessing this

free gift did not in anyway allow me to claim that I had earned this steak dinner.  My

friend paid the price in full, I paid nothing.  The mental act of believing the message

without the physical activity of faith would have never accessed the free gift.

Hopefully, this analogy helps us to understand that belief alone (without the

required action) is a dead faith (James 1:17).  Jesus asked the question, “But why do you

call me Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46).  The apostle Paul

knew that trust in God, and love for Him, translates one’s faith into action: “. . . faith

working through love” (Galatians 5:6).   He further stated, “. . . remembering without

ceasing your work of faith and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ

in the sight of our God and Father” (emphasis mine, CH;1 Thessalonians 1:3).  

Acceptance of conditions set forth for a free gift demonstrates what?  Faith!  Genuine faith

does not waver at the conditions given; rather acceptance and obedience to those

conditions, while trusting God for the gift promised, demonstrates the conviction of one’s

faith.

“If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). 

 

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