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“Grace Unbound” is a declaration of the central truth of the gospel: all have sinned, none can save themselves, and God Himself has provided, in Jesus Christ, a righteousness that we could never earn, never deserve, and never improve.
Let us look at what the Word of God says:
> “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
> Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
> Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood,
> to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past,
> through the forbearance of God.”
> — Romans 3:23–25 (KJV)
These three verses are among the most important in the entire New Testament. They describe:
1. The universal problem — sin (v. 23)
2. The divine solution — justification by grace (v. 24)
3. The righteous basis — the blood of Jesus as propitiation (v. 25)
The lyrics of the song are essentially a sung exposition of these verses:
This is grace unbound. Grace that is not constrained by human merit, human effort, or human tradition — but grace anchored in the finished work of the cross.
Romans is Paul’s most systematic presentation of the gospel. He writes to believers in Rome whom he has not yet visited, to lay a clear doctrinal foundation.
From Romans 1:18 to 3:20, Paul conducts a kind of spiritual courtroom. He brings three categories of humanity before the bar of God’s justice:
1. The pagan world (Romans 1:18–32) – those who openly reject God.
2. The moralist (Romans 2:1–16) – those who trust in good morals, conscience, or natural law.
3. The religious Jew (Romans 2:17–3:8) – those who trust in the Law, circumcision, religious privilege.
At the end of this section, in Romans 3:9–20, Paul sums up his argument with a devastating conclusion:
> “There is none righteous, no, not one…
> For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:10, 23)
This is the *verdict* of God’s court: all are guilty, all are under sin, all are accountable to God, and no one can be justified by the works of the Law (Romans 3:20).
Once the whole human race stands speechless, without defense, then — and only then — Paul introduces the grace of God in Christ:
> “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested…” (Romans 3:21)
Romans 3:23–25 is the heart of this “But now.”
The lyrics of the song place us into this drama. The verse and outro remind us of the verdict:
“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”
The chorus announces God’s astonishing response:
“Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous.”
Two key words here open up the heart of this passage: “justified” and “propitiation.”
### 3.1 “Justified” – *dikaioō*
Romans 3:24 — “Being justified freely by his grace…”
The Greek verb is δικαιόω (*dikaioō*). Its basic meaning is:
It is a legal term. Justification is not God making us righteous by a process of improvement. It is God declaring us righteous on the basis of what Jesus has done.
The tense here is present participle: “being justified.” It describes a continuing condition resulting from a once-for-all act — the death and resurrection of Christ.
This deepens the meaning of the lyric:
“Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous.”
God does not merely feel benevolent toward us. He makes a judicial decision. He issues a verdict from His throne:
> “You are righteous in My sight, not because of what you have done, but because of what Christ has done on your behalf.”
### 3.2 “Propitiation” – *hilastērion*
Romans 3:25 — “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood…”
The Greek word is ἱλαστήριον (*hilastērion*). It has two main nuances:
1. Propitiation — a sacrifice that turns away wrath by satisfying justice.
2. Mercy seat — the lid of the ark of the covenant in the Most Holy Place, where the high priest sprinkled blood on the Day of Atonement (see Exodus 25:17–22; Leviticus 16).
In the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament), *hilastērion* is used for the “mercy seat.” This was the place where God met with His people on the basis of shed blood.
So when Paul says God set forth Jesus as *hilastērion*, he is saying:
This illuminates the lyric:
“For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life.”
The sacrifice is objective and finished. Our part is to believe — to place our faith in the blood of Jesus as the only basis of acceptance with God.
Let us now examine the song thematically, in the light of Scripture.
### 4.1 “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”
This is Romans 3:23 in plain language.
Four truths are embedded here:
1. Sin is universal – “everyone has sinned.”
2. Sin is active – “has sinned.”
3. Sin is measured against God, not man – “God’s glorious standard.”
4. Sin is “falling short” – *hysteréō* (“to lack, to be deficient, to come behind”).
This destroys all self-righteousness. The moral person, the religious person, the successful person — all stand on level ground with the criminal and the addict: “everyone has sinned.”
The outro of the song repeats this line, reminding us that our story begins and ends, in ourselves, with failure. But the center of the song — like the center of the gospel — is not our failure, but God’s grace.
### 4.2 “Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous.”
This is Romans 3:24 in lyrical form.
Three key elements:
1. “Yet God” – The divine intervention
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ.”
Humanity’s condition is hopeless *until* God steps in. The gospel always turns on those two words: “But God,” “Yet God.”
2. “With undeserved kindness” – grace
We contributed nothing to our justification except the sin that made it necessary.
3. “Declares that we are righteous” – justification
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
Grace does not say, “You are not so bad.” Grace says, “You are guilty, but I declare you righteous on another basis — the righteousness of My Son.”
### 4.3 “He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.”
This echoes Romans 3:24: “through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
The word *redemption* here is apolytrōsis, meaning:
We were not only guilty; we were enslaved:
The “penalty” for our sins is, first of all, death:
Jesus paid that penalty in full:
So the lyric, “He freed us from the penalty for our sins,” summarizes:
This is why Paul can say in Colossians 1:13–14:
> “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
> In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.”
### 4.4 “For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin.”
This line is the theological center: Romans 3:25.
“God presented” — God took the initiative. The cross is not man persuading God to be kind; it is God providing the way to be both just and the justifier (Romans 3:26).
“Jesus as the sacrifice for sin” — *hilastērion*.
At the cross, God’s justice and God’s love meet. The wrath of God against sin is satisfied in the death of His Son, so that His mercy can flow righteously toward us.
Isaiah saw this prophetically:
> “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief:
> when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin…” (Isaiah 53:10)
“Pleased” here does not mean God enjoyed Christ’s sufferings. It means God’s righteous purpose was fulfilled through them.
### 4.5 “People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life.”
Here we come to the human response: faith.
Romans 3:25 — “…through faith in his blood…”
Three truths:
1. “Made right with God” – Reconciliation
2. “When they believe” – Faith is the instrument
Faith is not a work; it is the outstretched, empty hand that receives what God has done.
3. “That Jesus sacrificed his life” – Faith in the blood
When we trust in the sacrificial death of Jesus — His poured-out blood — we are united to Him and share in His righteousness.
Faith transfers our trust:
The chorus repeats, unchanging:
“Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous.”
What changes is not God’s declaration, but our recognition and reception of it by faith.
This truth is not merely to be understood; it must be appropriated. The New Testament never separates doctrine from practice.
Here are four practical responses.
### 5.1 First: Renounce self-righteousness and acknowledge universal sin
We must accept God’s verdict:
This includes:
You can say:
“Lord, I agree with Your Word. I have sinned. I have fallen short. I bring no righteousness of my own. I renounce any trust in myself.”
Until self-righteousness is renounced, grace is blocked. Grace comes to the guilty, not to the self-sufficient.
### 5.2 Second: Believe God’s declaration of righteousness in Christ
Faith is not a vague feeling. It is taking God at His Word.
We must deliberately transfer our trust from ourselves to Christ:
This may require repentance from unbelief — acknowledging that you have not believed what God says about the sufficiency of the cross.
You can say:
“God, I believe that You have set forth Jesus as the sacrifice for my sin. I believe that through His blood I am justified. I choose to trust in His righteousness alone.”
### 5.3 Third: Confess and proclaim your new standing before God
Derek Prince frequently emphasized the importance of saying what God says.
What you confess shapes your spiritual experience.
Reject statements like:
Instead, proclaim:
Your feelings may not immediately line up with this. But you align your mouth with the Word, not with your emotions.
### 5.4 Fourth: Walk in the freedom purchased by redemption
Redemption is not merely a change of legal status; it is a transfer of dominion.
Grace does not give license to sin. Grace gives freedom from sin’s mastery.
Therefore:
The same grace that justified you also trains you:
Grace unbound does not produce lawlessness. It produces holiness rooted in gratitude and in a secure standing before God.
### Proclamation of Faith
Speak this aloud, thoughtfully and deliberately:
> “Through the blood of Jesus, I boldly accept God’s verdict about me.
> I confess that I have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,
> but God, with undeserved kindness, has justified me freely by His grace.
> God has set forth Jesus as the sacrifice for my sin,
> and I put my faith in His blood alone as the full payment for my guilt.
> I renounce all trust in my own righteousness,
> and I receive the righteousness of God as a gift in Christ.
> God now declares me righteous in His sight.
> I am redeemed from the penalty of sin,
> released from the dominion of darkness,
> and brought into peace with God.
> Sin shall not have dominion over me,
> for I am not under law but under grace —
> grace unbound, revealed in the cross of Jesus Christ.
> Amen.”
### Prayer
“Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for the revelation of Your righteousness apart from the law. I acknowledge my sin and my total inability to save myself. I thank You that You have set forth Jesus as the sacrifice for my sin, and that His blood fully satisfies Your justice.
Holy Spirit, write these truths on my heart. Deliver me from every form of self-righteousness and unbelief. Teach me to live each day on the basis of justification by grace through faith. Strengthen my faith in the blood of Jesus. Let every accusation of the enemy be silenced by the finished work of the cross.
I choose to stand in the grace in which I am justified. I receive my new identity as one declared righteous by God. Let this grace rule in my life, producing holiness, gratitude, and boldness before Your throne. I ask this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.”
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