Jesus Is The Only Way

“Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.” – Romans 4:4-8

Imagine finishing a long day of work and receiving your paycheck. You generally don’t thank your employer for their generosity—you expect that payment. You earned it. But if we approach salvation the same way, we miss the heart of the gospel. Paul reminds us that “to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.” If we think God owes us salvation because of our good deeds, we rob Him of His glory. Paul makes a bold claim: the one who does no work but believes is the one who is justified. That’s shocking to our performance-driven minds. But it’s the truth. Salvation is not a reward for effort—it’s a gift for the undeserving.

Paul uses Abraham to prove this point. The Jews revered Abraham as righteous, even sinless, but Paul shows that Abraham was ungodly when God called him. He didn’t earn favor—he believed. Genesis 15:6 says, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” Faith isn’t a work. It’s not meritorious in itself. The power of faith lies in its object—Jesus Christ. The person who comes to God with a résumé of good deeds hasn’t understood grace. But the one who comes empty-handed, like the publican in the temple crying, “God, be merciful to me a sinner,” is the one who receives mercy. That’s the posture of saving faith.

To reinforce this truth, Paul brings in King David. He quotes Psalm 32, a psalm of repentance written after David’s darkest sins—adultery and murder. Yet David writes, “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered” (Psalm 32:1). Paul sees in David’s words the same truth he saw in Abraham’s life: salvation is by grace through faith. David wasn’t justified because he cleaned up his life—he was justified because he trusted in God’s mercy. His sins weren’t imputed to him, which means righteousness was. As H.A. Ironside said, “The non-imputation of sin is equivalent to the imputation of righteousness.” David tasted the sweetness of full and free pardon, and so can we.

Whether like Abraham, called before the law, or like David, broken under the law, or like Paul, saved after the Cross—salvation has always been by grace through faith. It’s not about your merit. It’s about His mercy. Come as the ungodly. Come as the sinner. Come believing in the One who justifies. And you, too, will be counted righteous. Let that truth humble you, free you, and fill you with joy. Because it’s not just the way—it’s the only way. And it always has been.

“The man who works has a claim; the man who believes has none. And it is the man who has no claim, who casts himself wholly on the mercy of God, that is justified.” – J.D. Jones