Lyrics
Verse 1
You've lost it all, your dignity and pride.
A sinking soul swimmin' in the tears you cried.
Alone and hopeless without a word to say,
'Cause guilt has taken it all away.
Chorus 1
Except for grace and your faith
And knowing that God's love will forgive mistakes,
There's nothing that can clear your painful past,
Bear your bitter pain, or could ever take your place,
Except for grace!
Verse 2
We've all stood right where you're at,
Facing the shame of failures and regrets,
Leaving us empty, broken, and afraid to dream
'Cause sin has stripped us clean of everything.
Chorus 2
Except for grace and our faith,
And knowing that God's love will forgive mistakes.
There's nothing that can clear our painful pasts,
Bear our bitter pain, or could ever take our place
Except for grace!
Bridge 1
The price is much too high for us to ever pay,
We could try forever and find no other way!
Chorus 2 (Repeat)
Except for grace and our faith,
And knowing that God's love will forgive mistakes.
There's nothing that can clear our painful pasts,
Bear our bitter pain, or could ever take our place
(Nothing else could take their place)
Except for grace!
Verse 3 (Grace Greater Than Our Sin)
Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary's mount outpoured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.
Chorus 3
Grace, grace, God's grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God's grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin!
Verse 4
Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold,
Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold,
Points to the refuge, the mighty cross.
Verse 5
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide;
What can we do to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide,
Brighter than snow you may be today.
Verse 6
Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace,
Freely bestowed on all who believe!
You that are longing to see His face,
Will you this moment His grace receive?
Video
Meaning & Inspiration
"Except for Grace / Grace Greater Than Our Sin" opens by describing total loss, dignity, pride, and hope all gone, a soul sinking in tears with nothing left to say. That extended description of complete depletion frames the entire medley around a condition beyond self-repair before any remedy is named.
Its chorus names the only exception to that hopelessness directly, grace alone, repeating that nothing else, not effort, not time, not willpower, could ever clear a painful past or bear bitter pain. A bridge into the classic hymn "Grace Greater Than Our Sin" extends that same theme further, naming Calvary specifically as the place where grace exceeding all sin was outpoured.
Rooted in contemporary gospel paired with nineteenth-century hymn tradition, the medley functions as an extended declaration that grace alone answers what nothing else can address, its closing verses borrowing a well-known promise of being made whiter than snow, extending an open invitation to receive that same grace in the present moment.
Related Scripture
- Ephesians 2:8-9 Describes salvation by grace through faith, not by works, directly echoed in the song's repeated declaration that only grace can save.
- Isaiah 1:18 Describes sins as scarlet becoming white as snow, directly echoed in the song's description of becoming brighter than snow.