Paying The Piano Teacher

The Apostle Paul said in Acts 15:11 “…We believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved…”.

Grace is a gift from Heavenly Father given through His Son, Jesus Christ. This gift is the enabling power and spiritual healing offered through the mercy and love of Jesus Christ.

Is this Gift free? Do we have to do anything to earn this grace? Is this why we have the commandments?

To help explain the answers to these questions I Love the explanation of our Savior’s grace comes from Brad Wilcox in a talk given titled “His grace is sufficient”.

He said “Christ’s arrangement with us is similar to a mom providing music lessons for her child. Mom pays the piano teacher. How many know what I am talking about? Because Mom pays the debt in full, she can turn to her child and ask for something. What is it? Practice! Does the child’s practice pay the piano teacher? No. Does the child’s practice repay Mom for paying the piano teacher? No. Practicing is how the child shows appreciation for Mom’s incredible gift. It is how she or he takes advantage of the amazing opportunity Mom is giving her or him to live a life at a higher level. Mom’s joy is found not in getting repaid but in seeing her gift used — seeing her child improve. And so she continues to call for practice, practice, practice.

If the child sees Mom’s requirement of practice as being too overbearing (“Gosh, Mom, why do I need to practice? None of the other kids have to practice! I’m just going to be a professional baseball player anyway!”), perhaps it is because she or he doesn’t yet see with mom’s eyes. She or he doesn’t see how much better her or his life could be if she or he would choose to live on a higher plane.

In the same way, because Jesus has paid justice, He can now turn to us and say, “Follow me” (Matthew 4:19), “Keep my commandments” (John 14:15). If we see His requirements as asking too much maybe it is because we do not yet see through Christ’s eyes. We have not yet comprehended what He is trying to make of us.”

Just like the child does not repay mom for the piano lessons, we cannot repay our Savior for his atoning sacrifice for us. In likewise fashion, we as followers of Christ cannot earn our salvation. It is the gift our Savior has given us. Whether we accept it or not.

May we all try harder each day to show our gratitude and appreciation for our Savior Jesus Christ by choosing to follow him and his perfect example.