The Jerusalem Council reminds us that faith in Jesus alone is all that is required for salvation and for full membership into the people of God. However, just like the people of the early church, we have a nasty habit of trying to add to the gospel. The reason being that we want to bring something to the table, we want to earn our salvation, we want to have a reason for why we should be loved. In most of our lives this doesn’t look like us trying to earn 100% or even 50% of our salvation; rather, it’s usually 10%, 5%, or even 1%. The thing is, though, even trying to earn 1% of your salvation or hold onto 1% of the reason God should love you and accept you, places an unbearable yoke and burden upon yourself that you cannot carry. Rather, Christ is calling us to trust in the work he completed for us fully and totally. Do not try to place any confidence or boasting in yourself—place it all on Christ!

Application Question: Through prayer and good conversations with friends, ask yourself: where in my life am I trying to earn God’s love or earn my salvation? Where am I not experiencing the full joy and freedom of the gospel?