Grace Part One
The other day, someone said that they were saved by “Grace” and I knew that they were not talking about that cute Surf Life Saver’s rescue of them last summer, and that got one thinking. This is just part of a text found in Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:” Grace is simply put as, “Unmerited favour,” something that you get that is not earned or deserved, sort of like winning the lottery and you were only just gifted the winning ticket that morning, well that sort of simply is, just grace.
Now the text tells us that grace is not the saving force, it is faith. Like saying that grace is the rolling body of your car and Faith is the motor, you need both, grace to roll along but powered by faith. But what is faith you ask? Romans 10:17 “So then faith [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Matthew 4:4 “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”
There are many who profess to be Christians, while they are living a sinful, immoral life; but their profession will not cover them in the day of God. There is a large class who trample upon God’s law, who break its precepts, and teach others to do the same, terming it a “yoke of bondage;” while with words they exalt Jesus, and talk of being saved by grace. These are the ones who are turning the grace of Christ into lasciviousness. All such teaching has a tendency to enfeeble the moral tone of the religious world, and accounts for the miserable, heartless, outward form that is taking the place of the genuine piety that God desires in his people. How many come under the condemnation of the words of Christ! “I would that thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” {RH, July 24, 1888}
The righteousness of Christ is a free gift, bestowed without money and without price. Man had nothing he could give for it; for he had no virtue of character that was not the gift of Jesus Christ. He could not claim even the ownership of himself. “Ye are not your own; ye are bought with a price,” even with the precious blood of Christ. The righteousness of Christ must be accepted as a free gift by us who are all undeserving. No thread of legality is of any value in the salvation of the soul; for we are saved by grace, through the subduing love of Christ, and the heart is made a willing sacrifice. By keeping the love of God in the heart, the love of the world is kept out, and we become built up in the most holy faith. Christ is the author and finisher of our faith; and when we yield to his hand, we shall steadily grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour. We shall make progress until we reach the full stature of men and women in Christ. {YI, February 17, 1898 }
Faith works by love, and purifies the soul, expelling the love of sin that leads to rebellion against, and transgression of, the law of God. This true love in the heart always leads its possessor into harmony with the commandments of God; for through the agency of the Holy Spirit, the character is transformed, and the mind and will of the human agent are brought into perfect conformity to the divine will, and this is conformity to the divine standard of righteousness. To those who are thus transformed, Christ will say, “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” {YI, February 17, 1898 }
Those who trust wholly in the righteousness of Christ, looking to Him in living faith, know the Spirit of Christ and are known of Christ. Simple faith enables the believer to reckon himself dead indeed unto sin and alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. We are saved by grace through our faith, and that not of ourselves; it is the gift of God. Should we try to unfold these precious promises to the worldly wise, they would but ridicule us; for “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). {FW 91}
These wonderful quotes give us something to get our teeth into, as the saying goes. To sum this up into a few words, Grace reaches down to us, our Faith responds and reaches up to grasp the hand of God. Remember God is polite, and will not step in where not wanted or invited. If you do not want his help, then he will honour your wishes, Invite him in and he will come in with fullness or little, based on our willingness. Therefore a full surrender will bring in the fullness of Heavens Bounties, and God will make the very best out of you, but in the exact format that you would have chosen for yourself if you could see the end from the beginning.
So, Dear reader, choose life, choose Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour, get a real vibrant prayer life, feed on his word by diligent reading and study, and that will increase your Faith as well. Then go forth living as a genuine Christian, let us practice living our Eternal Life right here and now.
