God's Grace

I cannot fully describe grace sufficiently through human words. And to attempt to surround God’s grace with words is an awesome journey whose destination can be found in the journey itself. Suffice it to say that we have only scratched the surface concerning the grace that is only found inside the shed blood of God Incarnate. Because we have minimized the depravity of our own sin, not just the concept of sin theologically, it follows that our definition of grace lacks the depth that would be revealed against the relief of the true nature of our sin. We are great theologians concerning sin, but when it comes to identifying our own personal sin, even after knowing Christ, we are woefully inadequate and mostly volitionally shallow in our assessment of our sin as compared with the sin we so easily observe and forcefully condemn in others.

But the life is in the blood. And life eternal comes only through God’s grace which is only found in that same shed blood. It sounds so medieval and unsophisticated in this climate of technology, psychology, and a general exaltation of human endeavor of any kind. But that grace alone is what saves, what sanctifies, and what provides a door into the Divine. All good works and deeds should lift up that grace and should never lift up any man or even the works themselves. There is only One that is good, and there is only one good work, and upon that finished work stands or falls all other works that claim to be good. In Jesus’ name they are good deeds; apart from the name of Jesus they are counterfeits designed to lift up man himself.

But how easily we who have received of God’s grace demand law from those without. The gospel is grace and grace alone. Just believe and be saved. How arrogant it is for those of us who have been rescued from the dunghill and eternity’s horrors by grace through child like faith, to rise up and condemn sinners for behaving in a manner consistent with their nature. Our message is “look and live” and our banner is Yeshua Hamasia. If this isn’t the age of grace what is? Do not fret over anything, beloved, but in passion and love preach and live the grace of God through the Person of Christ. We stand on the Rock called Grace and from that Rock we persuade men with a genuine love for their souls and gratefulness for God’s grace in our own lives.

Release the things of this world and let words of grace and redemption flow from your lips. But what about the evils of this present world? The greater the sin, the louder the call of grace. The gospel is good news for the unrighteous and bad news for the self righteous. Jesus Christ has come to save sinners, so allow Him His mission, and in fact, be a true yokefellow of His heart. Some will be saved with compassion, making (an eternal) difference.

Let us strive to be conduits of gospel grace and not dissonant voices that condemn from the safety of God’s grace. Judgment will come soon enough, but for now we must lift up the Redeemer in thought, word, and deed. The days are evil and the time grows short. Most of the harvest is in the barn, but the fields still bear the whited grains of fruit not yet plucked. There is no higher privilege than to present the good news of Jesus Christ to the vilest sinners among us and see what work grace can accomplish in the heart of a former enemy of Jehovah.

I stand as one of those and publicly admit it was all of God and His grace and none of me. It continues to be so today and it will redound to the glory of God throughout eternity!