I recently bought a book by Matthew Correll entitled Faith Alone: The Way To Christ (Spiritual Living In Light Of God's Grace). In chapter five of this marvelous book he starts off with a quote by C.I. Schofield which says...
"The Law condemns the best person; grace justifies the worst."
Here is what the psalmist said as he was living under the demands of God's law...
Psalm 40:12 For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me.
Under the law of God in the Old Testament setting it could truly be said that the law condemned the "best" person. The best of the best could never live up to the demands of a Holy God. It has been said that if you have ever broken just one of God's laws then you are guilty of breaking them all. The writer of the book of Romans in the New Testament said that all have sinned and all have come short of the glory of God. The guilt of not being able to measure up to God's perfect standard is very oppressive to the human soul. Notice what the psalmist said "mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head." The psalmist was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of his sin and it was affecting his life emotionally, physically and spiritually. I truly believe that the reason the United States of America is such a medicated society is because of the guilt of unforgiven sin.
Thankfully, we don't live under the law and the Old Testament system anymore. We live in the age of grace. Remember Schofield's quote? "Grace justifies the worst". You may have lived a life of unbridled sin and debauchery but grace says you can have your record totally expunged! Here is what the New Testament writer says...
/Colossians 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
2 Corinthians 5:19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
2 Corinthians 5:19 New English Translation In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s trespasses against them, and he has given us the message of reconciliation.
Grace through Christ's work on the cross and resurrection from the dead forgives ALL our sins and no longer COUNTS sins against us! It forgives the worst! Maybe you can identify with that phrase "the worst". Perhaps you have sinned to the point that you don't feel you can be forgiven. The good news is that God's grace is free for the taking. If you will simply believe that what Christ did on the cross 2000 years ago is all that is necessary to pay for your sins then the Bible says you become a forgiven person, a child of God. I encourage you to watch the video in the right sidebar of this site. Yes, you can be forgiven in three minutes because of His grace!
