Falling short of the grace of God can mean opting for legalism; it can mean demanding deliverance; it can mean relying upon your own ingenuity instead of allowing Christ to live His life through you; it can mean choosing your righteousness instead of accepting His; it can mean opting for religion’s ritual instead of relationship. And, any number of other things.

Satan’s list of temptations to dissuade us and distract us from grace is long. In the moment, in the crux of whatever afflicts us, it is enticing to select one of his rationalizations as reasonable...and fall short.  

To stop short of grace is to stop short of Jesus Christ and Him alone. Nothing more, nothing less.

To stop short of grace can also mean adding to Jesus Christ—as if He is insufficient in and of Himself. Remember: One of the central tenets of our faith is, Christ and Christ alone, i.e. sola Christos.

As people of grace, we must stay focused. We cannot add to Jesus Christ and we cannot take away from Him. Attempting either is to fall short of grace.

Stopping short is not an option. It wasn't an option when I was cleaning bricks. It isn’t an option in living a life of grace.