Theme: Grace

Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

2 Corinthians 12:9, ‘And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”’

Background:

A popular definition states: Grace is getting something we do not deserve, Mercy is not getting what we do deserve. God’s unmerited favour on us is easy to see in the gift of salvation, but the 2 Cor 12:9 verse also points to an ongoing provision or transformation.

Question:

What does grace mean to you, what is your experience of God’s grace, and how do we respond to that gift?

The Ephesians quote points to God’s gift in His grace of salvation through faith in Jesus, and many of the other verses as well. Romans 3:23

But the Corinthians quote reminds me of one of my oldest sayings, which is, “There but for the grace of God go you and I.” And I think of instances where, if I had insisted on following my own plans and ideas, then in retrospect I can see that disaster would have followed. But God had other plans for me.

So grace also refers to how God actively present with us, He is continually empowering and equipping us, and providing all we need to do His will, and to grow into the people He wants us to become.

This was confirmed by many of these verses:

Belief itself is a gift in God’s grace – Acts 18:27 “… he was a great help to those who by grace had believed”

He builds us up – Acts 20:32

Gives us strength and power to do His will – 1 Corinthians 3:10, “By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder,”

Builds us into who He wants us to be – 1 Corinthians 15:10, “But by the grace of God I am what I am,”

Enables us to do good works – 2 Corinthians 9:8, “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that … you will abound in every good work.”

Gives us power to do things – 2 Corinthians 12:9, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”, and Ephesians 3:7, “I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power”

Gives us power to know what to say – Colossians 4:6, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone”

Gives us encouragement and hope – 2 Thessalonians 2:16, “… by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope,”

Strength – 2 Timothy 2:1, “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus”

Teaches us to live righteously – Titus 2:11, “For the grace of God … teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age”

Enables us to face hardships – Hebrews 4:16, “… find grace to help us in our time of need”

To serve others – 1 Peter 4:10, “… to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms”

God’s grace is a presence with us – 2 John 1:3, “Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.”

The worst disaster I can think of is to reject God and live in opposition to Him, but praise God that I can say, “There but for the grace of God go I”