grace
noun /grās/
|
The free and unmerited favor of God, as
manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings
Today has been a time that I have been constantly rejoicing
in grace. Between Sunday School and Worship, I am OVERWHELMED by the grace of
the Father. I have really begun to see how far I have fallen and what God’s
truly Amazing Grace has done. There have been times where I have hardly ever
been able to contain my excitement and joy over this. I am beginning to learn
how truly amazing grace really is.
I think Christians need a healthy dose of self-loathing. Not like the “I’m so horrible, I
hate myself, etc.” kind, but the “oh my gosh, I can’t believe I just did that.
I’m so undeserving of God’s grace” kind. Reminder that I said a healthy dose.
The problem with not seeing our sins for what they are is
that we won’t see grace for what it is. You must see how far you fall to see
how far you must be saved. And that, my friends, is the beauty of grace. If you
erase the implications of sin, you completely erase the implications of grace.
Let’s say for instance you own a company that has recently
ran into a truck load of debt. Let’s also say for instance that it is the size
of the National Debt. You, by no means, can fix that problem by yourself. But
someone comes in and saves you from the debt. You aren’t going to walk off
without looking back at the debt and saying “wow, I was saved from a whole heck
of a lot of trouble.” (You may say it in less of a southern way, though). If
you don’t look at the debt you had, you wouldn't be able to truly appreciate
what has happened.
So, applied, what I’m saying is that we have to look at how
depraved we are as sinners to truly appreciate grace. If you were to not
think you were saved from as far of a distance as you really were, it wouldn’t
be the same when you were saved.
The loss of grace and the loss of being overwhelmed by grace
makes for a Christian that really isn’t much different from the rest of the
world except for where they go on Sunday mornings.
And this does not even touch the implications of what grace
is. Grace is a mystery-a sweet and beautiful mystery. I hope to write more as I
continue to look at and study the grace of this amazing God I call my Savior.
And as grace is free, so is it sure.
Nothing can change, or alter, or turn away sovereign grace.-Alexander
Whyte
But God, who is
rich in mercy, because
of His great love that He
had for us, made us alive with the
Messiah even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! Together with Christ Jesus He also raised us up
and seated us in the heavens, so that in the coming ages He might display the immeasurable riches of His grace through His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves;
it is God’s gift— not from works, so that no one can boast. -Ephesians
2:4-9