Grace came to faith at a young age, but Christians aren’t perfect. We’re in a spiritual battle all our lives with an active, cunning adversary: Satan. I wanted readers to see how easily we can fall into traps and be seduced by worldly philosophies. Even when we are saved by grace, we suffer consequences. God comforts us, loves us, and shows us the way to walk through this life.
Roman had to learn the hard way. Some people have to go to hell before they can see or hear the truth.
The prevailing cultural view seems to be everyone will go to heaven no matter what they’ve done or not done or what they believe. Advocates of this belief say God is love, and there is no hell. In truth, Jesus talked more about hell than He did about heaven. Research showed me there are near-death experiences that are not full of light and joy, but are horrific and terrifying.
It is absolutely true God is love, but a text taken out of context is a pretext. God is also just. He is holy. He is righteous. Sin brought death to Adam and Eve—and to all of us. This life is not all there is. The wages of sin is death, and hell comes after. God sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the price for our sins, in blood, so that we can be saved out of death into life eternal in heaven with Him—if we believe in Jesus’ work on the cross. It is a matter of choice. Believe and be saved. Reject Him and spend eternity in hell. Jesus has done everything needed to keep us safe, to give us a future and a hope. Jesus did not come to enhance our lives. He came to save us.
This is one of the reasons I wrote The Masterpiece. It isn’t only about two broken people trying to find wholeness together. It’s about where wholeness can be found for each and every one of us. In Christ Jesus. No place else.
If you want to know why you are here, what you were meant to do, where to find love that lasts forever, and what the meaning of life is, seek the Lord. He has all the answers you need. “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” （Ephesians 2:10）。
Francine Rivers
What were your initial impressions of Roman? Of Grace? Did your impressions change throughout the story, and if so, how and why?
When Roman offers to let Grace live in the guest cottage, she struggles with whether to accept. She tells her friends she’s been praying about it but hasn’t felt like she’s received a clear answer, except that other opportunities she explores don’t seem to come to fruition. If you were Grace, would you have taken that as a clear answer from God? Have you ever been in a similar situation? How did you ultimately make a decision?
At the end of chapter 5, Grace has conflicting thoughts when she finds out about Patrick’s betrayal. What did you hope she’d do? Why?
What do you think it means that Grace notices details in Roman’s work that no one else sees?
Grace remembers that Patrick “hadn’t forced her to give up anything, but he’d known how to make her feel guilty enough to surrender all her dreams so he could attain his.” Are you or someone you know being manipulated by false guilt? Why is this such a convenient tactic for manipulation—or even to make us doubt our own actions and decisions? How can we combat it?
When Grace asks Roman what he believes, he says, “We’re born. We survive as best we can. We die. End of story.” Have you ever felt that way, or known someone who did? How did Roman’s response make you feel? Sum up your own beliefs in a short statement like Roman’s.
Susan tells Grace that if Roman can’t let go of his past, he will never reach his full potential, and Grace knows the same applies to her. What elements of their pasts do each of them need to let go of? How do we see this happening in the story? Are there things in your past that you need to let go of?
After Roman and Grace visit Aunt Elizabeth, Grace shares her experience about an angel visiting her as a child, which opened her heart to the Lord. Have you or a friend ever had a supernatural experience like this? If you’re comfortable doing so, share it with the group.
Roman did not have a supernatural experience as a child, or anything that specifically pointed him to Christ. Are there indications that God was indeed looking out for him, just as He was looking out for Grace? Can you look back on your own life and see ways that God was guiding or protecting you, even without supernatural intervention?
Grace wonders why she couldn’t see the truth about Patrick, and in chapter 26, Aunt Elizabeth comments to Miranda that Leanne couldn’t see the similarities between her husband and their abusive father, either. Why do you think that is?