GRACE

GRACE

Definition:

The free and unmerited favour of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings (Oxford American Dict.)

Romans 3:23-24

• “...all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God...” but we are “...justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
• Sums up the Gospel message

Ephesians 2:8-10

• We are saved by grace, not of works that no one should boast.
• BUT we are created for good works
• I.e. if we are saved by grace we must show the faith through which we receive His grace, by good works.
• “Faith without works is dead.” James 2:17

Romans 5:2

• We access God’s grace by faith.
• What is faith? Heb 11:1
• Knowing that we are unworthy/undeserving, yet taking God at His Word and trusting that the riches of His grace are available to us by the sacrifice of His Son.

Philippians 3:9

• We are not saved by works or by fulfilling the law.
• The righteousness that comes by the law is your own but the righteousness that comes through grace by faith “...is from God.”

Romans 11:6

• Salvation by grace and salvation by works are mutually exclusive.
• Salvation by works is only wrought by fulfilling the law, which results in that person’s righteousness alone.

2 Corinthians 8:9

• “...that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.”
• Principle of substitution is fundamental to the way grace works.
• I.e. Christ gave up what was His (namely His riches in glory) and became poor so that we may have access to His riches.
• GRACE: God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense

2 Corinthians 5:21

• The “Beautiful Exchange”
• Christ, Who knew no sin, took our sin upon Himself so that we may be freed from it.
• We, who knew no righteousness, are now offered the righteousness of God through Jesus’ sacrifice. (2 Cor 8:9).

Romans 2:4

• “...the goodness of God leads you to repentance.”
• I.e. if God’s grace makes one think they can continue willfully sinning, that person has a flawed understanding of it.
• The first reaction to experiencing God’s goodness and grace should be repentance.

Romans 6:1-2

• “...We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?”
• We cannot keep sinning when under grace (v15).
• The sin nature in us must die, being replaced with the life of God.
• Rom 5:17, Gal 2:20, Gal 4:19

Hebrews 10:26-32

• It is dangerous to continue sinning willfully after we have been saved.
• It is as if we have “...insulted the Spirit of grace.”
• I.e. abusing grace/ taking it lightly, not being appreciative of the cost at which it came.
• “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Roman 8:1

• “...no condemnation to those who are in Christ who walk... according to the Spirit.”
• We are not under condemnation when under grace - Christ’s blood covers our shortcomings - but only if we walk according to the Spirit.
• Walking according to the Spirit is a deliberate and determined choice we have to make everyday.
• Heb 12:1, 1 Peter 2:1- 11

Galatians 5:16-26

• “Walk in the Spirit and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.”
• To live under grace, we must walk in the Spirit. This means to put aside all “works of the flesh” (v19-21).
• And instead, practise the fruits of the Spirit (v22-23).
• “If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” (v18).

1 John 3:9

• “Whoever has been born of God does not sin.”
• The nature of a child of God must not contain any sinful motives/desires.
• This nature must be deliberately worked in us on a continual basis so that we continue to “walk in the Spirit” and not in the flesh (Rom 8:1-2).

1 Peter 1:13-19

• A major part of walking in the Spirit means striving for holiness & right-living before God.
• Right-living begins with right-thinking.
• “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct...”
• Controlling the mind: 2 Cor 10:4-6, Rom 12:1

1 Peter 5:5

• “God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
• God bestows more grace upon us when we walk humbly before Him (Micah 6:8).

2 Corinthians 12:9

• “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”
• His grace compensates for our shortcomings.
• Therefore we can “boast in [our] infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake.”

Acts 4:33

• God’s great grace was upon the apostles/early church, equipping and empowering them to carry out their ministry.
• Because the early church was living in unity, unashamed of the Gospel, fervent in prayer, generous in giving (v31-35).

2 Corinthians 5:17

• Are we “new creations”? Have “old things passed away” and “all things been made new”?
• The above is a prerequisite to being “in Christ.” We must always check ourselves to ensure we are constantly walking in the Spirit and not in the flesh.
• Only then are we rightly living under the amazing grace of God

Grace in no way means we have allowance to live less godly lives - instead it is simply the medium through which God’s gift of love and eternal life are made available to us for free through the redemption that came through Jesus Christ. A deeper understanding of what grace really is will cause us to yearn for a closer relationship with God, made manifest in our lives by increasing holiness, godly character and behaviour, and the eradication of sin nature which is a by product of walking according to the flesh.