It is hard to understand how God's grace works, but thank God it does. If it weren't for God's grace, Christ's suffering and sacrifice would have been without cause. Without God's grace, sin would be rampant...well more than it is today at least (Ephesians 2:5). Without His grace, we would still be paupers, not children of God. It is the power of grace that enables us to excel as joint heirs to the kingdom of Heaven (Titus 3:7). Why? Because the power of grace has given us the ability to get rid of sin.
The Importance of Grace:
As was mentioned in the introduction, the Holy Spirit characteristic of Grace grants us the ability to be sinless in the eyes of God.
The definition of grace according to Strong's Dictionary is "that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness: grace of speech" and is also commonly exchanged with the following words, but has the same root meaning.: good will, loving-kindness, favour which produces the following effect "of the merciful kindness by which God, exerting his holy influence upon souls, turns them to Christ, keeps, strengthens, increases them in Christian faith, knowledge, affection, and kindles them to the exercise of the Christian virtues" Strongs Concordance.
You see, as a Holy God, He had to come up with a plan to enable us, mere sinners, to have a relationship with Him. He wanted to have this relationship with a creation of His that chose to have that relationship with Him freely. He craves this love, as we do. We were created in His image to crave this loving relationship. And when sin entered into the world by the one creation He made to have this relationship, He had to come up with a counter plan. The plan of salvation, the Gospel of Grace...Christ!
The apostle Paul spoke of grace quite a bit in the New Testament. He understood that it was because of grace that we have the ability to be saved: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God" Ephesians 2:8 Those who are followers of Christ probably know this verse by heart. It is the anchor verse of the old tract "The Roman Road",and is commonly used along with "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord" Romans 6:23. But just before this verse gives an explanation of the gift given. Paul writes "But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." Romans 6:22
You see, that was IT! This is what all the prophets, and all the religious leaders could not bring to the table before Christ...this grace gift. The reason? SIN. Sin had not yet been conquered in any of their lives. Christ was able to conquer sin by being completely and utterly sinless...until he took on the sins of the world, past, present and future, on the cross. "Whom God hath set forth [to be] a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God" Romans 3:25
"This is what set up the possibility of Christ dwelling within us. This was the missing link between being justified by faith and not being justified by the law. Because no one could be justified by the law. Only through faith in Jesus Christ was this possible. This is what Paul refers to as the mystery of the Godhead...Christ within us"
Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; [Even] the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Colossians 1:25-27.
This Christ within us is God's Word and Holy Spirit. And this is only possible through Christ's sacrifice, giving the impetus to gift of Grace.
The Practical Application of Grace:
One of the reason this edition was so late in being posted is because of the enormity of this topic. I am trying to convey a simple yet complex explanation of the possible relationship between God and man. Volumes of books have been written on this subject, and I am trying to encapsulate it in a few pages of text. But, ultimately, all the posts I have made thus far are on topics made possible through this specific characteristic of the Holy Spirit...Grace.
I try not to make these posts sound like sermons, haha. But this topic yells GOD'S MESSAGE TO US ALL. It is because of His grace that we can experience love, faith, peace, discernment, mercy, hope, and on and on. The practical uses of grace is unmeasurable. We are commanded to live our lives full of grace towards others, to be a shining example of God through showing love, mercy, forgiveness, etc. Remember the definition above; "that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness: grace of speech". This is what we are commanded to do as well.
It is because of that "Christ within us" that we can then reciprocate these things and more. This is where the rubber meets the road as far as "living a Christian life" or as Paul writes
"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your
bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable
service.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of
your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect,
will of God.
For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not
to think [of himself] more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly,
according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith." Romans 12:1-3
So, we should pray to be filled with grace. Yes, we were given a measure of grace at that moment we asked Christ into our lives. But, as we progress in this lifestyle that Dr. Moody spoke of above, we realize that when we start this Christian walk, we are just babies, but as we grow, we need more of God, His Word and Spirit. Grace is no different. Pray for grace this week, and practice to be graceful in speech towards others, to live this week as a living sacrifice to sin. Stop before speaking, catch those thoughts before they go down the proverbial road of destruction, and use that grace given to you as to not waste it in vain. It is, after all...our reasonable Service.
May God richly bless you this week with His Grace. Here are a few verses to consider for your quiet time pertaining to Grace.
Ezra 9:8 Zechariah 12:10
John 1:14-17 Acts 20:24
John 1:14-17 Acts 20:24
Romans 5:15-17 II Corintians 12:9
Colossians 3:14-16
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