Stop Trying To Earn Your Way To God

Devotional

Day 1: All have sinned; everyone needs rescue.

Sin is not merely an isolated mistake but a declaration of independence from God that breaks relationship and brings death; every person is born with this bent toward self-rule, so the only honest first step is to admit the need for rescue and stop pretending the problem is small. [19:02]

Romans 3:23 (ESV)
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Reflection: Identify one habit, attitude, or area where you defend your independence from God; today, aloud or in prayer, confess that independence to Him and ask Him to show you why you need His rescue.

Day 2: Sin's wage is death; God offers life.

Sin earns a paycheck of death — physical separation and deeper, eternal separation from God — yet God offers a contrasting gift: eternal life in Christ, freely given so that the terminal disease of sin is met with a life‑giving cure through Jesus. [30:51]

Romans 6:23 (ESV)
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Reflection: Write down the one way you most feel the "wages" of sin in your life (guilt, broken relationships, fear of death), then take five minutes to thank Jesus for his gift and ask Him to replace that wage with his life today.

Day 3: Salvation is grace, not earned works.

Salvation is an undeserved gift — like getting an A when a failing grade was earned — received by faith alone, not through bargaining, effort, or moral resume; stop trying to earn God’s approval and place the full weight of your life on Christ's finished work. [33:21]

Ephesians 2:8–9 (ESV)
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Reflection: List one thing you’ve been doing to earn God’s favor (service, giving, performance); today stop performing for a moment and pray, “Jesus, I receive your gift by faith,” trusting His grace alone.

Day 4: Jesus' blood secures eternal redemption once.

The Old Covenant sacrifices only covered sin temporarily like spray paint over rust, but Jesus entered the holy places with his own blood once for all, securing an eternal redemption that fully pays the debt sin demanded and finishes what year‑after‑year sacrifices could not. [32:01]

Hebrews 9:12 (ESV)
he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

Reflection: Name one "spray paint" habit you rely on to hide sin (religious routine, moral effort, comparing yourself); today confess that reliance to God and ask Jesus to apply his finished work to free you from pretending.

Day 5: Sanctification produces Spirit-fruit in daily life.

Justification is given in a moment, but God continues an ongoing work of sanctification that transforms desires and behavior, producing the fruit of the Spirit — love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self‑control — as believers walk with Jesus daily and practice obedience and repentance. [40:11]

Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self‑control; against such things there is no law.

Reflection: Choose one fruit (for example, patience) that is weakest in your life; pick one concrete action you will do today (pause before responding, breathe through a stressful moment, delay a reaction) and ask the Spirit to grow that fruit as you practice obedience.

Sermon Summary

I opened with a simple picture: the group project where one person does the work and everyone else gets the grade. Spiritually, none of us is the all-star. Sin isn’t just breaking a rule; it’s breaking a relationship—declaring independence from God. From Genesis to the prophets, God shows sin is a terminal disease, not a paper cut. The old covenant taught us that forgiveness is costly—life is in the blood—and year after year sacrifices made “atonement,” covering the offense but never curing the disease. The law is like an MRI: it reveals the problem but cannot fix it.

That’s why Jesus came. The wages of sin is death, and He stepped into the Holy of Holies with His own blood—once for all—finishing what bulls and goats never could. On the cross He didn’t say “I am finished,” but “It is finished”: the debt paid in full. Salvation is by grace alone, received through faith alone, in Christ alone. Faith is not mere agreement; it’s entrusting your whole life—like jumping with the parachute, or stopping the negotiation and letting the lifeguard pull you from the water.

God doesn’t stop at rescue. He declares us righteous in a moment (justification) and then goes to work over a lifetime (sanctification). Think of buying a fixer-upper: it’s yours the moment you sign, but then begins the remodel—walls move, wiring is redone, foundations get attention you never planned for. The Spirit produces new fruit in us—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control—so our desires, character, and actions increasingly look like Jesus.

So here are the next steps. Admit your need—owning your condition isn’t shame; it’s the doorway to freedom. Trust Jesus fully—stop bargaining with monopoly money and rest the full weight of your past, present, and future on Him. Go public—be baptized, share your faith, stop hiding. Walk with Jesus daily—practice obedience and repentance; don’t hit “remind me tomorrow” when God prompts you. Stay connected—don’t go solo; community is where your faith is strengthened. Today’s an open invitation: trade the failing grade for the A you didn’t earn. He’s done the work. Receive it, and let Him keep remodeling.

Key Takeaways

1. Sin is independence, not mistakes Sin is not a harmless wrong turn; it is declaring autonomy from the One we were made to love and obey. That’s why it fractures communion with God at the deepest level. Until we name sin as relational rebellion, we’ll treat it like a smudge, not a cancer. Naming it rightly opens us to grace that actually heals. [20:20]
2. The law reveals but cannot heal The old covenant sacrifices and the law function like diagnostic tools—they expose our condition without providing the cure. Covering isn’t cleansing; repetition proves insufficiency. We need more than better behavior; we need a Substitute whose life ends the debt, not just services it. [28:33]
3. Grace alone, received by trusting surrender God hands failing students an A because Jesus finished the assignment we couldn’t begin. We don’t negotiate rescue; we yield to it. Faith is the jump, not the theory of parachutes—placing the weight of our life on Christ’s finished work. [33:21]
4. Justified once, sanctified over a lifetime God declares us righteous in a moment and then reshapes us room by room. Sanctification touches foundations we’d rather leave untouched, yet it’s how the Spirit grows real fruit in ordinary days. The long obedience is evidence that the Rescuer also remodels. [39:39]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[12:41] - Thanksgiving and series teaser
[13:34] - The grade I didn’t earn
[19:02] - All have sinned, not some
[20:20] - Sin as independence from God
[26:02] - Atonement and the old covenant
[27:53] - Why sacrifices couldn’t remove sin
[30:51] - Wages of sin, gift of life
[31:24] - Jesus’ once-for-all redemption
[32:58] - It is finished—debt paid
[33:21] - Grace through faith in Christ
[38:49] - Justification and sanctification explained
[40:11] - Fruit of the Spirit grows in us
[42:40] - Next steps to respond
[49:02] - Prayer and response

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading (ESV)
- Romans 3:23
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

- Ephesians 2:8–9
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Observation questions

What does the preacher mean by “all have sinned” — who is included and why is that a shocking claim? [19:02]
According to the sermon, how did the Old Covenant sacrifices function — what did they show and why were they insufficient? [27:53]
How does Ephesians 2:8–9 describe how salvation is received, and why does the preacher insist faith is more than intellectual agreement? [33:21]
What distinction did the preacher make between Jesus saying “I am finished” and “It is finished,” and why is that important for understanding the cross? [32:58]

Interpretation questions

When Scripture and the sermon say sin is “independence” from God rather than merely a mistake, how should that change a person’s understanding of their own failures and needs? [19:23]
How should the statement “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life” shape the way one thinks about consequences and grace in everyday choices? [30:51]
The preacher described justification as a one-time declaration and sanctification as a lifetime process. How should that distinction affect a believer’s confidence before God and effort in spiritual growth? [39:08]

Application questions

Admit your need: When was the last time you honestly told someone (or God) you needed rescue? What would “admitting your need” look like for you this week (a conversation, a prayer, a confession)? [42:55]
Trust Jesus fully: Is there an area where you’re still trying to “pay” God with your behavior, money, or effort? Identify that area and name one concrete action you will take this week to stop bargaining and rest in Christ. [43:43]
Go public: If you are not baptized, what practical step do you need to take to be baptized in the next 60 days? If you are baptized, what is one specific way you will share your faith publicly in the next month? [44:07]
Walk daily with Jesus: Think of a recent time when you hit “remind me tomorrow” on a convicting nudge from God. What was that nudge, and what will you do differently the next time you feel prompted? [46:14]
Let God remodel: Name one “room” in your life (a habit, relationship, fear, or area of pride) you don’t want God to touch. What is one small, doable step you will take to surrender that area to him this week? [41:06]
Grow the fruit: Choose one fruit from Galatians 5:22–23 (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control). What specific, measurable action will you practice daily this month to cultivate that fruit? [40:11]
Stay connected: What concrete step will you take this week to move out of isolation—join a life group, invite someone for coffee, or sign up to serve? Who will you contact and when will you do it? [46:32]

(Use these questions to guide 60–90 minutes of discussion: start with the Bible reading, move through Observation → Interpretation, then spend the most time on Application so people leave with tangible next steps.)

Sermon Clips

On the cross, Jesus said, it is finished. He wasn't saying I am finished. He was saying that the full payment has been made. The full payment has been made. Let me give you a little bit more about the theology of salvation so you can wrestle with this as I did when I was a freshman in college. Ephesians 2, 8, and 9, it says this, For it is by grace, everybody say grace. It is by grace you have been saved through faith. Everybody say faith. By faith. And this is not from yourself. This is a gift. [00:32:55] (32 seconds) #itIsFinished

Here's what you need to know, that it is by grace alone. It's by grace alone. Grace is getting an A when you deserve a failing grade. That's why grace is, God's grace is so amazing because I deserved a failing grade. You and I deserve to be on the cross, but we get an A? Grace is undeserved favor. We didn't earn it. Otherwise, our nature would boast about it. Sometimes we like to boast about it as if we're earning it. God said we've deceived ourselves. Salvation is by grace. [00:33:35] (36 seconds) #graceAlone

There's only one person who is able to earn it, and it's Jesus, the Son of God, and He earned it Himself on the cross, and then He offers it freely to us. He wants to give you, if you haven't received it, a grade that you don't deserve and that you didn't earn. So it's by grace alone. But how? How do we receive it? Through faith alone. We read it. Through faith alone. Through faith alone. See, faith isn't just intellectual agreement in your head. It's trusting with your whole life. [00:34:25] (37 seconds) #faithAlone

If you ever jumped out of an airplane that's not on the ground with a parachute, you don't just believe that that parachute can save you. You don't just intellectually believe that it can save you. You actually jump. That's like saving faith, surrender. So it's by grace alone, through faith alone. What was the last part? In Christ alone. It's not your nationality. It's not your sweet grandmother who can pray in cursive prayers. It's not because you go to New Life Church and serve on a ministry team. [00:35:39] (33 seconds) #inChristAlone

It's not your good works. It's in Christ's work. It's in Him alone. He said this. Jesus said this in John 14. He said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. He alone can save us. And He offers that gift. You see, the Old Covenant and the New Covenant refers to it as well, is that we're drowning in our sin. We're drowning in our sin. So imagine that you're drowning and a lifeguard comes to rescue you. [00:36:12] (35 seconds) #onlyJesusSaves

Do you negotiate your rescue with the lifeguard? You don't hand him or her your resume. You just let them pull you out. You just surrender to the rescue of the lifeguard. That rescue is God's amazing grace. The person is Jesus. It's in Christ alone. And you cannot earn it. This message is not only for some of you who have yet to put your trust in Christ and today you're pondering, putting your faith in, surrendering to Jesus. But it's those of you who have. [00:36:47] (38 seconds) #surrenderToJesus

``Heaven will not be full of people saying, I nailed it. I deserved an A. It will be full of people saying, I was drowning in a mess of my own making and Jesus rescued me. Jesus rescued me. The only thing that we nailed is the Savior to the cross because of our sin. But he offers us a grade that we didn't earn, we didn't deserve because of what Jesus done. And then he continues his work within us. God doesn't end with rescue. A get-out-of-jail-free card. [00:37:47] (39 seconds) #rescuedByJesus

Justification is this. It's that God declares a sinner as righteous. He justifies you. When I was a kid, I learned it this way. He made it just if I had not sinned. Get it? Justified? Just if I had not sinned. He declares that a sinner is righteous solely because of the work that Jesus, the crucified and risen Son of God did when he went to the cross and he rose back to life. Justification happens in a moment. It's through faith that you're justified. You are saved. You're made right. You're declared righteous. [00:39:06] (32 seconds) #justifiedByFaith

But then God does this work, this ongoing work in our life called sanctification. It's that ongoing work in a believer making you more and more like Jesus, transforming your desires, your character, and even your behavior, your actions, so that you look more like Christ. And that happens over a lifetime, that he is working on you. And here's one of the main ways that this word sanctification happens in us. Galatians 5, 22 and 23. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives. [00:39:39] (36 seconds) #sanctificationJourney

It's like when you buy a house. Anybody ever bought a fixer-upper house? All right? You buy a house that needs remodeling. The second you buy it, it's yours. Technically, it's the bank if you took out a mortgage, right? But we say it's ours, right? But that's justification, right? You have it. But then comes the work of remodeling. The walls, some walls are torn down. The plumbing is fixed. Rooms are repainted. That's God's ongoing work of sanctification in your life. [00:40:32] (39 seconds) #remodeledByGrace

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