The Power of Grace

I don’t know about you, but I am so grateful for the grace of God.  If you don’t fully understand what grace is I am sure you are not alone. What was meant to be a simple gesture of God’s love for us can seem quite complicated at times…especially when seen from our human prospective. I think if we’re honest, as we attempt to yield ourselves more to our spirit man and less to our natural man, God’s grace is revealed to us more clearly.

Grace is defined as the unmerited favor of God.  Unmerited favor is undeserved favor.  This means that there is nothing we could have ever done in the past and nothing we could ever do going forward that would motivate God to give it to us.  It was all His plan on our behalf. 

You see, when Adam and Eve fell from grace and were forced out of the garden, out of paradise, and away from that sweet communion they had daily with God, He already had something in the works.  Sin caused us to be separated from Him.  God wanted us to have a way back to Him.  He wanted us to be able to choose Him. His plan for redemption of man included a once and for all atonement of mankind’s sin.  The sacrifice would have to be a man but also be blameless.  It would be many years later, but would be well worth the wait.  Jesus would arrive on the scene with the sole purpose of fulfilling His father’s will.  It would be the death of God’s own son that would open the door to God having many sons.  His death, burial, and resurrection would pave the way for us to receive salvation from death, Hell, and the grave, which are the wages of sin.  But because, He that knew no sin became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), our souls have been spared from an eternity of Hell. 

It is upon receiving this information, as truth, that sets us free and gives way to grace and its power.  I think we look at the unmerited favor of God and think “Whew! That was close! I dodged a bullet on that one! Thank you Jesus!” And then we go merrily on our way, not truly considering His great sacrifice.   Don’t get me wrong I do believe we are grateful to some extent.  After all it really is a lot to take in.  It’s  quite miraculous when you think about it.  We have been made righteous and have been put in right standing with God.  What’s more is that we are now justified.  It is just-as-if-I’d never sinned. On top of that our eternity is secured in Heaven!  It just gets better and better!

What a great God we serve!   Have you considered how truly blessed we are?    I want to remind you today that as beautiful as God’s grace is to us it also carries great power.  Grace covers us so that we can again be in fellowship with our creator.  That was His plan.  It also empowers us not to fall into sin again.  Let God’s grace strengthen your resolve to say “No!” when confronted with the temptation to sin, and to honor the life-giving power of Jesus’ blood and the power of God’s gift of grace. 

Keep in mind that we don’t have to go it alone or fight temptation with our own strength. Where we are weak He is strong!

 “…My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness…”

                                                                                 2 Corinthians 12:9