| You may be wondering what GraceLadies is all about. The founder of our group named us "GraceLadies" not because of the manners we display or a quality of life we have, but because of how the Lord Jesus Christ saves mankind from sin. Grace is God's unmerited favor toward us. We deserved nothing but His wrath, yet He extended grace and mercy to us in the person of Jesus Christ, who was "full of grace and truth." Some people have made the word "grace" into the acronym God's Riches At Christ's Expense. Ephesians 2:8-9 talks more about grace, saying "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." There is nothing that we can do in and of ourselves to please Him; good works, baptism, church membership--none of these, commendable though they may be, can satisfy God's requirement of righteousness. God does not keep an accounting system on each person's life and when life is over, if your good deeds outweigh your bad ones, you get to go to heaven. Isaiah 64:6 says that all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags in the sight of God. Salvation is by His grace, not by any works of our own. The fact is, that before God extended His grace to us, we were dead in our trespasses and sins. Romans 3:23 tells us, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." More sobering is Romans 6:23, which states the penalty for our sins: "For the wages of sin is death." We all die physically. But in addition, this verse refers to a second or spiritual death. Revelation 21:8 describes this second death: "But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death." Hell is not easy to speak of, but that does not change its reality. This is where the penalty for sin is paid. Good works, no matter how noble or sincere, can never erase or outweigh our sins. Our sins separated us wholly from God, and were it not for His grace, His mercy and His love, we would remain divided from Him forever. Yet Jesus Christ has already paid the penalty for our sins! Consider what the Word of God says:
 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation [payment, atonement] for our sins. (I John 4:10) For He [God] made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)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)For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Are you willing to set aside your reliance on church membership, baptism, or any other good works, and instead trust completely in Jesus Christ alone to save you?
If you have never settled this matter, why not do so today? In your own words, admit to Jesus that you are a sinner, and that you deserve the penalty of your sins. Tell Him that you believe that He died on the cross and paid that penalty for you. Ask Him to have mercy upon you and save you. Praise be unto God for His unspeakable gift! Grace and peace to you.
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