What is Grace?
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”
2 Corinthians 9:8 (NKJV)
Grace is the power of God. It is the loving demonstration of a just and holy God towards a lost and sinful world, expressing His desire to save and transform them into His likeness. Grace is God giving us what we do not deserve; His favour that overflows from His goodness.
Grace is a free gift from God to all who put their faith in Christ Jesus to save them. Jesus gives us this free gift of grace, which is called righteousness (to be in right-standing with God). We cannot do anything else, other than to accept His grace, in order to be made right with God.
When we accept that we are right with God because of Jesus’ death on the cross, we become right with God. This belief opens the door for God's grace, allowing us to live right with God on a daily basis. Right believing produces right living.
The word grace (and gracious) is used over 170 times in the Bible. Paul used the word 87 times in his thirteen letters. Clearly, grace is one of the most important concepts in the entire Bible and separates all other religions from true Christianity.
What Does Grace do?
“8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God 9not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)
Grace saves us. Through salvation we are born again into the very nature of God, which empowers us to live lives that will honour the One who saved us. Grace saves us to become children of God and thereafter continues to transform us into His image.
“11For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. 12It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”
Titus 2:11-12 (NIV)
Grace empowers us. God empowers us with His supernatural ability to say “No” to ungodliness and “Yes” to the things that please Him. It is God’s ability at work in us, enabling us to get right that which is humanly impossible.
Living a holy life is impossible without God enabling us to become holy. That is the power of grace. Grace is God's indwelling ability empowering us to be righteous when we could not be righteous on our own.
“22This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
Romans 3:22-24 (NIV)
We are justified by grace through faith. To be justified means to be made righteous (JUST as IF I had never sinned). Without Christ we are hopelessly lost and unable to live righteously. This is true for everyone. Through the cross, Christ took the consequence of our sin, which is separation from God, upon Himself. We are completely forgiven and we are welcomed into a loving relationship with God.
How do we Receive Grace?
“1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.”
Romans 5:1-2 (NIV)
We receive grace by faith, just as we received salvation by faith.
“6But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’ 7Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”
James 4:6-8 (NKJV)
Humility gives us access to more grace. Apart from receiving God's saving grace, we can access more grace when we humble ourselves before God. Pride is seen in the way we accept or reject truth. As we embrace truth and repent, God releases more grace. Alternatively, rejecting truth will result in a lack of grace, meaning a lack of God's power at work within us to help us overcome.
As Christians, What do we do When we sin?
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 1:9 (NIV)
When we sin, we should confess our sin to God and where possible, to those we are accountable to. We receive God's forgiveness and His grace to turn away from the sin through repentance. We do not need to be saved all over again, but we do need to acknowledge our wrongdoing and where necessary make restitution to those we have wronged. God's grace, as always, is present to help us.
QUESTIONS
• Are you living and experiencing God's grace in your life at the moment? Explain:
Are there areas in your life where you struggle with sin regularly? How have you dealt with these areas in the past? How will you deal with these areas in the future?
Are there currently areas in your life that you feel are hard work to overcome? Where do you still need victory? Name those areas:
This Week:
• I will apply
• I will share with __________