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.

 

 

 

Grow in Grace part Two

 

Our Text for consideration is 2 Peter 3:18 “But grow in grace, and [in] the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him [be] glory both now and for ever. Amen.”  As this is a very broad concept, I will quote from some books that capture the essence, so why reinvent the wheel.

 

“I must grow in grace at home and wherever I may be, in order to give moral power to all my actions. At home I must guard my spirit, my actions, my words. I must give time to personal culture, to training and educating myself in right principles. I must be an example to others. I must meditate upon the word of God night and day and bring it into my practical life. The sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, is the only sword which I can safely use.” {AH 180}

 

“The work of sanctification begins in the home. Those who are Christians in the home will be Christians in the church and in the world. There are many who do not grow in grace because they fail of cultivating home religion.”  {CG 481}

 

“In giving us the privilege of studying His Word, the Lord has set before us a rich banquet. Many are the benefits derived from feasting on His Word, which is represented by Him as His flesh and blood, His spirit and life. By partaking of this Word, our spiritual strength is increased; we grow in grace and in knowledge of the truth. Habits of self-control are formed and strengthened. The infirmities of childhood--fretfulness, willfulness, selfishness, hasty words, passionate acts--disappear, and in their place are developed the graces of Christian manhood and womanhood.”  {CG 505}

 

“Strength comes by exercise. All who put to use the ability which God has given them, will have increased ability to devote to His service. Those who do nothing in the cause of God, will fail to grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth. A man who would lie down and refuse to exercise his limbs, would soon lose all power to use them. Thus the Christian who will not exercise his God-given powers, not only fails to grow up into Christ, but he loses the strength which he already had; he becomes a spiritual paralytic. It is those who, with love for God and their fellow men, are striving to help others, that become established, strengthened, settled, in the truth. The true Christian works for God, not from impulse, but from principle; not for a day or a month, but during the entire period of life.”  {ChS 106}

 

  “It is the privilege of every soul to make advancement. Those who are connected with Christ will grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Son of God, to the full stature of men and women. If all who claim to believe the truth had made the most of their ability and opportunities to learn and to do, they would have become strong in Christ. Whatever their occupation—whether they were farmers, mechanics, teachers, or pastors—if they had wholly consecrated themselves to God they would have become efficient workers for the heavenly Master.” {CCh 68}

 

I like a good collection of books by Christian Authors, as when one gets stuck for words or concepts, there usually is always some thoughts available to clarify a point to get one up and going again, and often by sending one back to the Bible again.  From this we find that Grace is not a static, “Once Event,” but a continuous growth and development process as admonished by Peter.

 

If a plant will not grow, then we become concerned, if our child is born, and then stays in exactly the same state, decade after decade, we are very, very, worried, so what do you think our wonderful Lord Jesus thinks when he looks at us, and we are not feasting on the bounties provided and are still the same.  Paul ran into the same problem in Corinth, 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 “And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, [even] as unto babes in Christ.  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able [to bear it], neither yet now are ye able.  For ye are yet carnal: for whereas [there is] among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?”

 

Are you, or am I, still a Christian Baby, still on baby formula instead of a real solid diet of something substantial to chew over, something to get the teeth into, digging still deeper in “The Word” and growing in grace and knowledge?  We need an improved spiritual diet of good solid food, good workout exercises to build up strength and then to put that all to working for our Master, Jesus Christ, by living and sharing as per the “Gospel Commission.”  Back to our opening text 2 Peter 3:18 “But grow in grace, and [in] the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”

 

Paul in Ephesians has this to admonish with, Ephesians 6:11-13 “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places].  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

 

Grace has done its work of growth, and the baby Christian is now a mature and strong “Soldier of the Cross,” and we have depicted here as an armour clad warrior, with powerful muscles who is wrestling and overcoming, being victorious and conquering that which is before.  Dear reader, please stand up and step out as a Dedicated Soldier of the Cross, saved by Grace through Faith.