Life Ministries

“By His Grace”

Romans 5:12-19  and  Eph. 2:1-10

    Grace…. The unmerited favor of God…. “Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions…We are “saved by grace - through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God…not by works, so that no one can boast”. (Eph. Chapter 2 )

    To be a Christian, according to the Bible, is to be “made new”. Not just simply choosing a new way of life or lifestyle….It’s not just deciding to go to church or to try our best to become a better person…It’s not about cleaning up the old self at all! In another place it says that as a Christian we are a “new creation”. It involves being informed and transformed! 
    We can decide we are going to change things and live right and do the right things…but it never works because it is us trying to change ourselves…And, we are still under the influence of our old nature, our same old circumstances, and so on…
    Each one of us is the product of a long series of events, teachings, relationships, decisions, circumstances, thinking, and other influences… all of which have shaped us into the person we are today. What and how we think… what and how we feel… our attitudes and our actions are all a result of all these things over the years.  The Holy Spirit is the only one who can change our thinking, change the way we feel about certain things…or life itself, transform and reprogram our attitudes and truly restore the image in which we were created. To be a Christian is to be recreated!
    When man fell into sin, two things happened. First, man was alienated or separated from God… Second, by and because of sin, the image of God (or the likeness of God) was marred and distorted.
    When Christ died on the Cross of Calvary and rose again for our salvation, two things happened; First, he filled the gap between man and God, and by taking away our sins…He has “reconciled” us with the Father. Second, he made it possible for the likeness or image of God to be restored through the indwelling Holy Spirit... And all this is possible because of God’s grace.
    John Wesley often preached about the grace of God coming in three forms; prevenient grace; justifying grace; and sanctifying grace.
    Prevenient grace is that grace which precedes any decision on our part to accept Christ. It is God’s grace toward us to awaken us and cause us to hunger and question and desire to become right with Him. It is also that time when we deserve the punishment for sin, but the Holy Spirit is convicting us of the guilt of our sin…which is His job according to John 16:8.
    We don’t just wake up one day and decide we are going to believe in God and follow Christ… There is a time of preceding or prevenient grace… Let me give you a personal example of what I’m talking about;  When I was accepted to pastor my first church, I drove school bus for a while to supplement my income. One day, one of the girl’s on my bus asked me how she could know more about God…. Now, I could have said; “Well just come to church!”  But, I thought for a moment (perhaps unconsciously hoping God would give me the right thing to say) and I believe God whispered in my ear: “horses”…I knew that this girl liked horses, and had told me about her desire of having her own one day…. So, I asked her how she might get to know more about horses? She said she might get some books about horses…Then we talked about how she might want to talk to someone who has experience with horses or visit a horse farm. Then I said, “But, to really know horses and not just know about them, you have to experience horses for yourself. You would really get to know horses if you had one of your own. To get to know God would require the same process. You might want to get a couple of good books about God - including a Bible of course; You might talk to someone who is experienced;  But, ultimately, you will want to experience God yourself in order to really “know Him.”  This is all just an example of how God’s prevenient grace works in our lives preparing a heart and mind to accept His plan of salvation through the gospel.
    Next comes “justifying grace”. This is the time when we discover our need for God. A time when we realize our sinful condition and our need for forgiveness. The time when we make the decision to follow Christ and lead a righteous life. At that time God’s justifying grace declares us right with Him. “For whosoever shall believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved”… “It is by grace and not works, lest anyone should boast”. Think of it as justice being done because we - and God - accept the Cross of Calvary alone as full payment for our sin.
    And, finally, there is “sanctifying grace.”  This is God’s grace that puts up with us, and our sinful nature, and helps us to grow in Christ-likeness. It is His sanctifying grace that transforms our thinking, changes the way we feel about life and death, gives us an attitude adjustment, and empowers and enables us to live the Christian life “worthy of the calling we have received”  as the Apostle Paul puts it.
    So, it is all by His grace! From beginning to end. However, there are really two things involved in this process… God’s grace and our will.  God’s grace is always available - it is a free gift - offered in the truest form of love. But, it is we who have the choice to accept and act upon his grace in our lives… Those go hand in hand; if we accept God’s grace then we must also act upon it.
    In the pattern of God’s grace, there are some who are in the time of His prevenient grace… still questioning, still seeking, still learning, And I encourage you to keep going. God says “if you seek me you will find me, if you seek me with all your heart”…. There are also some who have made the decision to accept and follow Christ and are under His saving and justifying grace… I encourage you in your Christian walk and challenge you to allow the Holy Spirit to complete His work by yielding to the sanctifying grace of God.
    It is all by His grace….and not of ourselves….lest any of us should boast…. Galations 2:20 says this; “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, ( I might add - or through anything that I could do…) then Christ died for nothing!” It is all by His grace.
    Let me close by helping you see something that God pointed out to me in a song we all sing - “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me….I once was lost, but now I’m found…was blind, but now I see. Twas ( God’s “prevenient grace”) that taught my heart to fear, And (God’s justifying grace) my fears relieved…. How precious did that grace - (God’s justifying grace) appear, the hour I first believed. Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come… His (sanctifying grace) has brought me safe this far, and that (sanctifying grace) will lead me home."
No matter how you describe it, it is “Amazing Grace!”