How great it is to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ! Through His death, burial and Resurrection, Jesus secured our salvation, promising us an eternity in heaven. But do you ever think beyond eternity in heaven and consider how salvation applies to our lives here on earth?

By going to the cross, Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice for our sins so that we never again have to make a sacrifice to receive forgiveness (Heb. 10:11–12). So why do we keep sacrificing ourselves through works of the flesh? It is easy to say we are saved by grace and to believe in Christ’s sacrifice, but do we really act free from sin? Unless we freely receive God’s grace, the answer is no.

Probably one of the biggest misunderstandings today is not what grace is, but how it is attained. We often try to get grace, when God wants us to simply receive His grace. “For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8, AMP).

Whenever we want to get something, we actually have to put forth some sort of effort. We have to work to get a paycheck; we have to travel to get places; we have to study to get through college; we have to pay money to get food, gas, clothing, etc. We cannot get very much in this world for free. However, God is greater and above anything in this world (1 John 4:4). All we have to do is serve Him and accept His free offer of grace.

First Peter 3:18 instructs us to grow in grace, which the Amplified translation describes as “undeserved favor, spiritual strength.” How can we grow in something that we do not know? The Greek root word for grace is charis, which also presents the idea of “favor.” [Rick Renner, Sparkling Gems from the Greek (Tulsa: Teach All Nations, 2003), 848.] Think of grace as God showing favor to His children, and as God giving His Son’s life to do humanity a favor. Both of these concepts should excite any Christian who has ever questioned the authenticity of God’s love for them.

If we could ever grasp the reality of how much God loves us, then we would not feel as if we had to try and get grace or try and earn His favor. Many Christians today, myself included, have an “infection of perfection,” or simply put, we have a major problem with perfectionism. We love the Law and sometimes get so busy doing the work of the Lord that we forget who we are working for!

Perfectionism can drive us to making up religious rules. For example, we might tell ourselves that we have to read a chapter of the Bible each day, attend every possible church function, or pray for an hour each morning. And since we are only human, we eventually neglect some of these “rules” and try to compensate the next day by doing extra “for God” (so we say), which only leads to more frustration and condemnation.

So how do we stop the works-righteous rollercoaster and learn to fully accept Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice on our behalf? We can start by studying the Bible on topics that relate to grace, such as God’s love for people and examples of different people in the Bible receiving forgiveness. If Saul (Apostle Paul) could receive forgiveness for murdering Christians (Acts 9), and Peter could receive forgiveness for denying Christ (John 18:15–18, 25–26; 21:15), then why should we feel so guilty over straying from our “spiritual routine” for a day?

I believe that much of our works-righteous mindset comes from growing up in modern-day society. Everyone competes to get ahead, and stay ahead. In the Baby Boomer generation a college degree ensured a high paying position in a company where most employees worked for at least 10 to 15 years. My mom and step dad, both in their early 50’s, have worked at the same place for 30 years! In contrast, my generation, known as Generation X, feels pressured to earn as many degrees as possible, plus have an ample amount of on-the-job experience, only to diligently search for a decent job where one might work maybe five years.

Even more important, I believe many people have an unbalanced sense of self-worth. Although I have come a long way, I still struggle with this daily. Many of us try extra hard to do good deeds, help others, and accomplish our own goals just to like ourselves. If we would concentrate on pleasing God instead of everyone else and working to further His Kingdom instead of to feel accomplished, we could lessen our frustration and freely receive love and grace from God, and other people. Faith without works is dead (Jas. 2:17), but works without faith is suicide!

One example always comes to mind concerning grace and works—Mary and Martha. The story in Luke 10:38–41 tells of Jesus visiting these two sisters. Mary sat with Him and listened to His teachings, but Martha ran around busy cleaning and preparing for her guest. When Martha complained about doing all the work herself, Jesus told her not to worry so much, to relax, and enjoy His company. How many times do we overlook Jesus because we get too caught up in works? Or how many times do we neglect our earthly relationships because we cannot make the time to stray from our daily routines?

God made us all to need Him and each other. He never intended for us to take on a Martha-martyr mentality. Once we fully understand the value of Christ’s sacrifice through His death, burial and Resurrection, we can make God’s grace our own, fresh and new each day. Everyone who accepts Jesus as his or her Lord and Savior has free access to the grace of God. Christians need to activate that free gift and stop living in condemnation. Sure we need to do our best and strive for perfection, but at the same time we should accept our human limitations and enjoy the relief of having God’s sweet forgiveness.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:23–24 NIV).