It is impossible for us, of ourselves, to escape from the pit of sin in which we are sunken. Our hearts are evil, and we cannot change them.

"Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one." "The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." Job 14:4; Romans 8:7.

Education, culture, the exercise of the will, human effort, all have their proper sphere, but here they are powerless. They may produce an outward correctness of behavior, but they cannot change the heart; they cannot purify the springs of life. There must be a power working from within, a new life from above, before men can be changed from sin to holiness. That power is Christ. His grace alone can quicken the lifeless faculties of the soul, and attract it to God, to holiness.

Go on to Why salvation requires more than just developing the good in man...

White, Ellen Gould: Steps to Christ. Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1892; SC 18.1

Questions answered:

• Can anything other than God change the heart?
• Do carnal minds enjoy the law of God?
• Whose power does it take to change a life?
• What does Christ's grace do to us?
• Can we escape sin through our own efforts?