John 4:43-54: The Free and Powerful Grace of Christ

Romans 3:23-26 All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Intro

What does Jesus healing of a young boy at the point of death tell us about God’s grace?

God’s grace can be something we talk about so often that we start to miss the magnitude of what it really is.

It becomes just another piece of the jigsaw of our salvation and we forget just how glorious it truly is.

And when we do that we rob Christ of His glory as our Gracious Savior, and we rob ourselves of the joy that is found in truly seeing and understanding the beauty and glory of the grace of Christ as it really is.

How many Christians do we know with a deficient view of grace struggle with knowing God’s love…His kindness to all who believe.

I know I’ve struggled with it. Maybe you do do.

We can have hard thoughts about God and think that He only loves us or saves us begrudgingly.

Or maybe that we are so bad or so sinful that we start to think that there is no way God could possibly love me.

I’m the screw up. Who is under and deserves God’s constant frown

But hard thoughts about God, hard thoughts like these robs the Christians joy and minimizes God’s grace in Christ robbing Him of His glory.

Only when we see Christ’s grace for what it is...what it truly is...can we know the joy Father’s love and and worship Him for all He’s worth.

A true theology of Grace is fundamental to the Christian life.

And Jesus healing the official’s son shows us that theology of grace in all its glory.

Sometimes we can read miracles the one from John 4:43-54 and see it as little more than just an interesting story.

Just another example of Christ’s power as Lord of Heaven and Earth.

But what if there is something more? What if God wanted us to see something behind the story?

What if this isn’t just a story about Jesus healing a boy, but a beautiful picture of the grace of Christ and how he heals each and every one of us.

And what would that tell us about Christ and His amazing grace?

Signs

Now before getting into this passage, we need to begin with the end.

The healing of the official’s son is not just a miracle in and of itself given to us to show us Christ’s great power.

John says it is a sign.

Verse 54: This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.

And signs in the gospel of John are very very important.

At the end of his gospel John says: Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:30-31).

John chose all the signs in His book for a very specific purpose.

That you might believe.

All the miracles in John’s gospel are signs that point to something greater than themselves.

They are not just awesome displays of power. They are theology in action.

They are miracles John chooses to show us something glorious about Christ and His salvation…

They are true miracles that happened in history, but they are miracles meant to point to Christ and inspire faith in His Name.

You can think of Christ’s miracles as living breathing sermons.

When He heals the sick, opens blind eyes, raises the dead, multiplies bread and fish...

All of them are preaching that Christ is the One who reverses the curse, saves us from our sin, and showers His people in the blessings of God.

So Jesus healing the official’s son is not just a story about a young boy being healed.

Its a sign that theologically shows us something about Christ and His salvation so that you and I would see this sign and put our faith in Jesus Name.

What might that be?

Well before we get into that…before we get into what this sign signifies about who Christ is and what He came to do, I want to look at the sign itself.

So the way this sermon is going to work out is we are going to work through the miracle, making some interesting notes along the way...

And then we are going to come back and look at what the miracle points to as a sign of the Messiah.

What does this sign tell us about Christ and His salvation that we might believe in His Name.

So let’s start with verse 43 where John says…

Story

John 4:43-45 After the two days he departed for Galilee. (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.

Now it might not seem like it at first, but this is actually a difficult passage and I’m going to do my best to help explain it because it will come up later when we talk about the grace of Christ that is manifested in this sign.

So in the other gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown (Matthew 13:57) is used to talk about Jesus being rejected at Nazareth in Galilee.

In fact in Luke 4, Jesus began His ministry by being rejected in Nazareth.

He was in the synagogue on the Sabbath day and he opened the scroll of Isaiah to say The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor (Luke 4:18).

And says this has been fulfilled in your hearing.

And when the people from His own hometown start to wonder Is this not Joseph’s son? (Luke 4:22).

Have we not seen Him grow up in our neighborhoods and in our streets? This can’t be the Messiah!

They reject Jesus. And Luke even tells us they were filled with wrath and drove him out of town to throw Jesus off a cliff (Luke 4:28-29).

But He made a miraculous escape and passed through their midst.

But here John quotes that proverb and says the Galileans welcomed Him.

What’s going on? Is the Bible contradicting itself?

Not at all. The Bible is the inerrant and perfect Word of God.

It has no contradictions.

So what are we to do?

It takes some work, but read what John says in context.

After two days he departed for Galilee.

What two days?

The two days Jesus spent with the people of Samaria.

Right before this in John 4:42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.

And when they came to Jesus they asked Him to stay with them and He stayed there two days (John 4:40).

So Jesus spent two days in Samaria where He was honored as Messiah, the Savior of the world.

And then after two days He goes to Galilee where we are told they welcomed Him.

But look what else John says. Having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.

What feast? The one back from chapter 2.

John 2:23-25 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.

Now you don’t see it in english, but there is a word play going on in the Greek.

When Jesus did not entrust himself to them, that is the same Greek word for when John says many believed in His name.

The idea being they believed in Him, but Jesus did not believe in them.

Why? Because He knew all men.

He knew their faith was not true saving faith.

It was a spurious and superficial faith.

They believed because they saw the signs that He was doing, but they did not believe in what the signs represented.

Their faith was in Jesus as a Miracle-worker and not in Jesus as the Messiah and Savior of the World.

That’s the same kind of faith these Galileans welcomed Jesus with here.

They welcomed Him as a miracle worker, but they did not honor Him as the Savior of the world.

Having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.

There is a great irony, where these Samaritans, these unclean people far from God honored Christ, but the Jews, Christ’s own people, his own hometown didn’t honor Him, but merely welcomed Him.

They honored Him in a way by welcoming Him as a Miracle-worker, one who could do many signs, but they did not honor Him in the way He deserved.

They loved the signs, but they did not love the Sign-giver so in this way, their welcome of Christ was actually their rejection of Him as their Savior and Lord.

A prophet has no honor in His hometown.

Just as John told us in John 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.

And all of this shows us the love, resolve, and sacrificial grace of Christ.

The end of chapter 4 kicks off a series of stories where Jesus is rejected as the Christ.

John says After two days He departed for Galilee FOR Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in His own hometown.

Meaning the reason Jesus went to Galilee is precisely because He was going to be rejected.

It would have been easy for Jesus to stay with the Samaritans.

To find more people who would honor Him as Christ and not deal with the rejection and opposition of the Jews.

Christ’s Resolve to Be Rejected and Suffer the Cross

But that’s not why Christ came. Christ came to save sinners.

And to do that He had to go through the Cross.

You understand Christ was the bravest man who ever lived.

He was born a sacrificial lamb.

He knew He’d be rejected. He knew He would ultimately be crucified on the cross.

And He went anyway.

Just as He left the glory and honor of heaven to a world that had rejected Him...

Jesus left the glory and honor of Samaria to follow the road to the cross to the very end knowing all that it would cost.

Christ love and earnestness to save sinners was so great that He walked eyes wide open into the suffering He would face knowing every single one of His sheep would die without Him.

Christ loved us so much that He embraced the rejection He would face up to and including the ultimate rejection of being made sin to suffer the wrath God had against us on our behalf...

That He was more willing to embrace His own death than He was that any one of us should perish.

His love and grace for us was so great that He left all honor behind behind and departed for Galilee precisely to be rejected.

To press on toward the cross to suffer and die in our place for our sins and rise again three days later all to give us the grace of eternal life.

Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29)

That’s why Christ came to His own and His own people did not receive Him.

To save His people from their sins.

And the Galileans welcomed Him but they did not honor Him as the Savior of the World.

So the background that gives shape to this whole passage is this false, spurious faith vs. true, saving faith.

And that takes us to verse 46 where we start to see what true faith in Christ looks like along with a glorious picture of the blessing true saving faith brings to everyone who believes.

The Healing

John 4:46-48 So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. So Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.”

So when Jesus comes to Cana, where He had turned water into wine, an official from Capernaum came to Jesus because his son was ill, even at the point of death.

Now the word used for this official is someone associated with a king.

Think Nobleman, or royal official.

He was probably someone from the court of Herod Antipas.

This was not the Herod that tried to murder Jesus when He was born, but this was his son.

When his father died, he was made ruler of Galilee, and this is the same Herod Antipas that murdered John the Baptist and met with Jesus before His crucifixion.

At any rate, this official is a big deal, but he comes to Jesus because he’s desperate.

Even though he probably had access to the best doctors and medicine money and status could buy, nothing could heal his sons illness.

So he traveled the 15-25 miles give or take from Capernaum to Cana in a last hope effort that Jesus would come and heal his son.

And Jesus’ response is rather surprising.

Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.

Now Jesus is not just talking to this official.

The you Jesus uses is plural. You all. you people. You Galileans.

And basically Jesus gives them all a rebuke.

All you care about is signs and wonders.

But you don’t believe in what the signs are actually pointing to.

You’re happy to have my miracles, but your not happy to have me as your Lord and Savior.

And this is a good place to talk about spurious and superficial faith versus saving faith.

Superficial vs. Saving Faith

Many people today have the same superficial faith the Galileans did in John chapter 4.

They come to Christ and call themselves Christians out of a selfish desire for what Christ can offer them.

They don’t come to Christ for His own glory out of repentance for forgiveness of sin.

They want all the blessings of discipleship without any of the cost.

They want blessing, friendship, an easy life.

Better spouse. Better kids. Better job. Better house.

They come to Christ thinking just a little bit of religion will fix their life, not realizing with Christ its all or nothing.

Their faithfulness is as fickle as the wind.

As long as things are going good they follow Christ.

But when they go bad or when things don’t go the way they hoped they would they don’t press into Christ, but instead start wandering far from Him.

We see this all the time in the Bible belt.

I’ll follow Christ, but I’m ultimately the boss of my life.

I’ll do things His way until my way is better.

That is a false, superficial faith. A superficial faith that saves no one.

What kind of faith do you have? What’s your discipleship look like?

Is it following Christ all or nothing no matter the cost?

Or is it following Christ as long as He gives me what I want?

One is a discipleship that asks, “What can Jesus do for me?”

The other is one that says, “Look what Christ has done for me.”

Are you following Christ for His glory and to honor Him, or are you really living for something else.

True faith…saving faith comes to Christ wholeheartedly with an all of life commitment to follow Him, and one that commits to follow Him to the very end through all kinds of trials and tribulations.

Saving faith doesn’t just come to Christ for all His miracles and all His gifts...for a life of ease and blessing.

Saving faith counts the cost and comes to Christ as a Savior who frees us and calls us to repent of all our sin.

And Saving Faith comes to Christ as Lord.

Comes to Him as King of our life with a desire and commitment to live for His glory and obey every one of His commands.

When we read Jesus’ rebuke that Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe, what we need to hear is a call for all people to come and die.

To take up their cross and follow Him.

The Galileans had a faith in Christ that came to Him as a Miracle-worker.

They came to him as consumers who were only interested in serving themselves.

They wanted the signs but they did not want the Messiah the signs pointed to.

Superficial faith.

But saving faith comes to Christ as Savior and Lord.

Is that your faith?

Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sin and are you striving with all of your might to put it to death so that you might no longer be a slave to sin but of righteousness?

And is Christ the Lord of your life? Do you live for Him and His glory or do you still live for yourself?

Whether you come to Christ this morning or you’ve been following Christ for 50 years…that’s the kind of faith we should strive for, because that’s the only kind faith that saves.

But going back to the story, Jesus’ rebuke does not dissuade this man.

He basically ignores what Jesus said, and pours his heart out.

And ironically, this was where this man begins to grow in true saving faith because by clinging to Jesus, he was saying I have nowhere else to go.

John 4:49-54 “The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”

You can hear the breaking heart of the man. Instead of saying son, the man says my child.

In Greek its a term of endearment and affection.

Its like he’s saying Sir, which is also the word the New Testament uses for Lord...

Lord, please come down before my boy, my little boy dies.

Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way.

Simple faith in what Jesus had said.

The man didn’t see a sign or wonder that made the man believe Jesus had healed his son.

He just trusted what Christ had said.

And...

As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering.

That’s the same word for living.

The sickness was gone!

The point of death was like it never even happened.

Verse 52...

So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” And he himself believed, and all his household.

This is where we see the flame of faith come to life.

It had been a spark. It had been an ember. He believed what Jesus had said.

But after seeing the miracle, he didn’t just believe in Jesus as a Miracle-worker.

He believed in Jesus as the Messiah.

As His Savior and Lord.

He and all His household.

Sign

And finally verse 54...

This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.

We’ve seen the sign. But what does the sign signify.

What does the sign show us theologically about Christ that we might believe in His Name?

Well, let’s look at this story in context.

For the past few chapters, eternal life has been the resounding theme of the Gospel of John.

Jesus’ first sign in Cana when He turned the water into wine, manifested His glory by showing that He was the Messiah who brings true cleansing from sin and sweet wine of salvation - joy blessing, and eternal life.

In chapter 3, Jesus told Nicodemus you must be born again to have eternal life (John 3).

And in John 4:14 He told the woman at the well Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

And now with the healing of the official son, He says Go your son will live and John tells us that was a sign.

A sign of what?

That Jesus has the power to give eternal life and save us from condemnation and death.

John 1:4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Just like the boy who was at the point of death, John 3:18 says whoever does not believe in Him is condemned already.

We are dead in our sins and at death’s door…one breath away from eternal condemnation.

But in healing the official’s son, Jesus showed that the has the power to give life to all who believe in Him.

And Jesus gives this eternal life by grace through faith.

That’s what the healing of the official’s son illustrates when we start to look at it through the lens of a sign.

The man believed in Christ’s word that his son would live, and that faith ultimately led to the man believing in Christ with true saving faith as Savior and Lord.

So the Big Idea of the healing of the official’s son when we see it as a sign chosen by John that we might believe in Him and in believing have life in His name (John 20:31), is that...

Christ gives eternal life to all who believe in Him by grace through faith.

And in the story there are detail and shadows of Christ’s grace in healing the official’s son that when we look at them through this lens, shows us the glory of all that Christ’s grace is.

We see how glorious this grace by faith is for all who believe.

Christ gives eternal life to all who believe in Him by grace through faith...And that grace is benevolent, free, and powerful to save.

And those are going to be the three points we are going to look at in this story.

What does the grace of Christ in healing the official’s son from the brink of death to life tell us about the grace of Christ in saving us who were dead in our trespasses and sins and giving us eternal life.

Number 1...

I. Christ’s Grace is Benevolent Grace

Benevolence is defined as disposition to do good or an act kindness for the sole benefit of another.

It is good will. Generosity.

Over the top and abounding grace.

And that is the precise grace Christ gives to us.

John 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.

We touched on this earlier but I really want to look at it so that we don’t miss the amazing, benevolent grace of Christ.

In His incarnation Christ willingly left the glories of heaven to be despised and rejected by men.

He left Samaria and went to Galilee where He would receive no honor.

He was despised and rejected by men so that we could be beloved and accepted by God.

What overflowing benevolent kindness Christ had for us to face down the rejection of the cross, despising its shame, and to do it all for us.

To be rejected so that we might be saved.

And all of us in our sin left to ourselves would have only continually rejected Christ.

John 3 says the reason men don’t come into the light is because they love their sin and they don’t want to give up their evil works or have them exposed (John 3:18-20).

All of us were so lost and enslaved to our sin that we would have died rejecting Christ unless He were so gracious to call us out of our sin and draw us to Him.

In Isaiah 65:2-3 God says I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and making offerings on bricks, talking about idolatrous worship...

And Christ as the glory of the Father full of grace and truth shows that grace and kindness of God towards sinners spreading his hands to a rebellious people all the day long in being despised and rejected by men all to save those who would repent and turn to Him.

It’s hard for us to fathom that kind of benevolent grace.

Who would lay down their life for their enemies?

Our God and Savior Jesus Christ.

His grace is so kind, so overflowing with love and kindness that He does not save us begrudgingly.

He didn’t die against His will for you and for me...

John 10 No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again...I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:18,11).

Dear Christian, never question Christ’s love for you.

His willingness and delight to save you.

Christ does not love you with a begrudging love.

He loves you with a love that despite your rejection of Him and love for your sin, still laid down His live for you that you might be saved.

As the Great Preacher Martyn Lloyd-Jones said:

When we deserved nothing but punishment and hell, when we deserved nothing but to reap the fruit of our own sowing, when we were nothing but the children of wrath, God, because of his eternal and everlasting love, and according to his knowledge and wisdom, looked upon us with that eye of favour so that now we are peculiarly under his grace.

Phillips, John, 1st ed., vol. 1, Reformed Expository Commentary, 283–284.

Or as Isaiah said....

Isaiah 53:3-5 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

Christ’s Grace is Benevolent Grace.

Number 2...

II. Christ’s Grace is Free Grace

Eternal life is a free gift of grace completely independent of merit or works.

Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

We see this in the story.

When the man first came to Jesus he did not have genuine faith....

He had a feeble faith that sought after signs.

That’s why Jesus included him in the rebuke.

He didn’t believe Jesus was Messiah God who could do all things.

For example, he assumed Jesus had to be physically present to heal his son.

That’s why he kept asking him to come down. Come downhill from Cana to Capernaum. Come down to my home.

And number 2 he might have believed Jesus could heal his son’s illness, but he did not believe that Jesus could raise him from the dead.

That’s why you hear his urgency.

He completely ignores Jesus’ rebuke and just says Sir please come down before my child, my little boy dies.

The Greek is more of the idea that He begged.

And Jesus healed his boy.

And He didn’t do it because this man or the people around him did anything to deserve it.

This nobleman didn’t hear Jesus’ rebuke and confess his lack of faith.

He didn’t appeal to his wealth or his status as a nobleman saying you have to save my boy.

He simply appealed to Christ’s mercy and humbly repeated his request.

The very same thing every sinner does when they come to Christ.

Wretched sinners who have no hope but God’s free and benevolent grace.

We don’t come to Christ with works.

With any good in us.

We come to Christ as people with nothing to offer and no where else to go.

And out of the love, kindness, and mercy of God He gives us grace upon grace.

Sometimes we as Christians can feel like God is disappointed with us.

We see our sin…you might be entrapped in some sin now…and think how could God possibly love me.

Or that He always has you at a distance.

But Free Grace says God does not love us or save us based on our own goodness, our own works, or anything we have to give.

Nothing of our own merit.

He loves us based on nothing but the perfect merit of the perfect righteousness of Christ.

God’s grace is so free and so good and so kind that he sends rain on the just and unjust alike.

How much kinder is God’s grace to His own beloved children bought and paid for with His Son’s precious blood.

We did nothing to deserve or earn our salvation…but God gave us grace anyway.

When the Prodigal Son came back after squandering his life and inheritance, he doesn’t even get the chance to confess his sin before his Father has already run down from a long way off to hug him and kiss him and say...

Bring quickly the best robe...put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet…Bring the fattened calf and kill it.

Let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and now is found (Luke 15:22-24).

Christ’s grace is a free grace and a free gift not based on merit or works.

And finally, Number 3...

III. Christ’s Grace is Powerful Grace

We see this three ways.

Number 1…This boy was on the very brink of death.

Nothing else had worked.

This man who had all the resources, all the wealth, all the power had no where else to go.

And Jesus saved this little boy.

Number 2…Jesus healed this boy without even being near him.

Depending on how you measure it Capernaum was 15-25 miles away.

The man assumed Jesus had to be with the son to heal him.

But nothing was impossible for him.

And number 3…We are told that boy was healed that very hour.

There was a radical transformation.

No sickness or death lingered.

In a moment, in an instant…Christ made all things new.

In Him is life, and He alone has the power to save.

This is good news, because being dead in our trespasses and sins, we have no hope of saving our selves.

We are adrift in an endless ocean with no hope of salvation.

We are born dead and on the brink of death.

And yet…God in Christ has the power to save.

In Luke 18 Jesus said its easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter into heaven.

And that’s true for everyone.

We are all born with an evil, unbelieving heart (Hebrews 3:12).

We love darkness and hate the light of the gospel (John 3:19-20).

We are blinded by Satan following the prince of the power of the air like the erst of the sons of disobedience and were by our very nature children of wrath (Eph 2:2-3).

We were far from God and without hope in the world (Eph. 2:12).

All of us could have asked with the rest of the disciples, “Who then can be saved?”

That’s the question we are asking.

How can sinful, unholy men be forgiven and made right with a holy and righteous God?

Its beyond us.

But thanks be to God Jesus answered, “What is impossible with man is possible with God (Luke 18:26-27).

Left to ourselves it was impossible for us to be saved.

None of us had any hope were it not for God’s powerful grace.

He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins and rise again three days later.

The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God for all who believe (1 Cor 1:18).

Through the cross, God did the impossible.

Jesus became sin on our behalf so that in Him, we might become the righteousness of God.

Maybe you think your sin is so bad or so ugly, that God can’t possibly love or save you.

That it would be impossible for someone like you to be saved.

Well here’s good news.

Who is mightier than Almighty God?

Is your sin so great that infinite strength cannot conquer it?

The good news of the gospel and the cross of Jesus Christ is that His grace is a powerful grace, mighty to save.

Conclusion

The story of Jesus healing the official’s son is so much bigger than a boy being saved from the brink of death.

Its not less than that. Its a true miracle. This boy was healed.

But its so much more than that.

Its sign of the Messiah that shows us that...

Christ gives eternal life by His grace to all who believe in Him. And that grace is benevolent, free, and powerful to save.

Its Benevolent grace - overflowing with love and kindness to all who believe.

Its Free Grace given as a gift through faith independent of merit or works.

And its a powerful grace that can save all who believe and wash the foulest clean with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot (1 Peter 1:18-19).

Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29).