Heirs of Grace

There's an ancient story that continues to shape our understanding of freedom and faith today. It's the story of two women, two sons, and two entirely different paths to inheritance. One path leads through human effort, resulting in endless conflict. The other path flows from divine promise and leads to freedom.

The apostle Paul uses this story as a powerful allegory to help us understand a critical distinction: the difference between living under legalism and living as heirs of grace.

The Tale of Two Sons

Abraham was promised he would become the father of a great nation. The catch? He and his wife, Sarah, were well past childbearing years—think late 80s, early 90s. When Sarah first heard God's promise, her response was essentially, "I'm sorry, what?"

So they waited. And waited. And if you're anything like most of us, you know that waiting on God's promises can feel excruciating. We want what we want, and we want it now.

Think about those psychology experiments where they put a glazed donut in front of a child and say, "Don't eat this. If you wait, I'll give you more." Some kids touch it tentatively. Others take a little taste. Eventually, some grab that donut with both hands because they're tired of waiting. Only a few wait patiently and receive the greater reward.

Sarah and Abraham got tired of waiting. Sarah suggested that Abraham have a child with her servant Hagar. At least then the promise could be fulfilled, right? They took matters into their own hands instead of waiting on God's timing.

The result? A child born through natural means—through human effort and the flesh. This represents the law: something we try to accomplish ourselves.

But God remained faithful. Eventually, Sarah—in her old age—conceived and bore a son. This was no natural occurrence. This was a walking miracle, a child born through divine promise. This son represents grace: something only God can accomplish.

Here's the sobering reality: conflict between the descendants of these two sons continues to this day. The inheritance of taking matters into our own hands, of living by legalistic effort rather than grace, is ongoing conflict.

The Problem With Rule-Keeping

Legalism establishes a system in which salvation or spiritual standing depends on meeting certain standards. Don't dress a certain way? Not spiritual enough. Don't give a certain amount? Not truly saved. Don't serve on enough committees? Second-class Christian.

The inheritance of legalism is conflict—conflict with ourselves as we struggle to measure up, conflict with others who don't meet our arbitrary standards, and ultimately, conflict that divides rather than unites.

When we create rules beyond what Scripture requires for salvation, we build barriers that God never intended. Some churches have dress codes so strict they would turn away someone who showed up in jeans—potentially on the very day that person was supposed to hear the gospel and meet Jesus.

Imagine having that on your conscience.

God is a God of order, not chaos. Yes, we need some structure. But there's a monumental difference between godly order and man-made legalism.

What Legalism Actually Looks Like

Legalism shows up in churches and Christian circles in several sneaky ways:

Adding to the gospel for salvation. Baptism is vital—it's our first act of obedience as believers. But baptism doesn't equal salvation. Remember the thief on the cross? Jesus said, "Today you will be with me in paradise." He didn't say, "Hold on, you can't go because you haven't been baptized yet."

If you confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord, you will be saved. Period. Everything else flows from that foundational truth.

Demanding a specific appearance. Somewhere along the way, especially in Baptist circles, someone decided that if you really love the Lord, you won't smile. You need to look "saved and sanctified." But honestly, that often just looks constipated.

Jesus would never have attracted crowds of people—especially children—if all He did was walk around with a sour face. Grace says come as you are and let God do what only God can do.

Elevating tradition over transformation. This happens when we insist on certain worship styles, Bible translations, or orders of service. "It's not church if we don't have pews." "This is how we've always done it."

But what if God wants to do something new? What if He asks us to blow up our comfortable traditions because He's about to bring transformation? Shouldn't we be willing to do whatever it takes—even stand for a year without chairs—if it means one person encounters Jesus?

Behavior policing without heart change. We focus on external morality—no drinking, no certain types of music, no watching particular shows—while ignoring pride, bitterness, and gossip. We pick and choose which sins to condemn.

Yes, as believers, there are things we probably shouldn't do. Not because they're "against the rules," but because they harm our walk with Christ and damage our testimony. But measuring someone's spirituality by their external behavior rather than their heart transformation is legalism.

Spiritual elitism. This treats people who don't give enough, serve enough, or lead enough as second-class Christians. "I'm on three committees and teach Sunday school, so I'm more spiritual than you."

The same blood that saved the person sitting in the pew doing nothing saved you. None of us is a personification of spiritual perfection, so none of us is qualified to set the standard. Only Jesus can do that.

The Freedom of Being Heirs

Here's the beautiful truth: in Christ, we are not children of legalism. We are heirs of grace.

Legalism sets a constantly moving standard that can never be achieved. If your salvation depends on what someone else determines you should be doing, you're in trouble. The goalposts keep moving.

But the standard has already been met through the blood of Jesus Christ. Because He has adopted us as sons and daughters by grace through faith in His completed work, our inheritance is grace—not conflict.

Why would anyone want to go back to trying to meet unrealistic expectations when we've been set free by the blood of Jesus? Why would we choose slavery when we've been offered freedom?

Grace doesn't mean chaos or "anything goes." It means recognizing that transformation comes from the inside out, through relationship with Jesus, not from external rule-keeping.

One Requirement

In the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam and Eve everything with just one restriction: don't eat from that one tree. They had incredible freedom with just one boundary.

Today, there's still just one requirement to follow God: receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Everything else flows from that one decision.

Not from how well you dress, how much you give, how many committees you serve on, or how perfectly you behave. Just Jesus.

That's the inheritance of grace. That's what it means to be children of the promise rather than children of the slave woman. That's freedom.

So the question isn't whether you're measuring up to someone's arbitrary standard. The question is: have you accepted the grace that's already been offered? Have you received the inheritance that's already yours through Jesus?

If you have, you're free. Walk in that freedom. Live as an heir of grace, not a slave to legalism.

And if you haven't, today is your day. The promise is for you too.