Friday "Light:" Wonderous, Matchless Grace!

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“Wondrous, matchless grace!  We cannot for a moment look outside the grace of God for any motive or reason why He should ever have noticed us, still less had respect unto such ungodly wretches.”   - A. W. Pink

You can’t read the Bible, listen to a sermon, or attend a Bible study group without coming across the word “Grace”at some point. In fact, "grace" appears about 170 times in the Bible! Certainly this qualifies it for some attention.

 

If one spends any time reading the Bible, you will notice a pattern that follows the word “grace” throughout. It doesn’t take too long before you start getting the idea that “grace” is a freely given gift of God. This is essential to the gospel message.

God, in His grace, is willing to forgive us and bless us generously, knowing full well that we don’t deserve it. This is because grace is an important element of His character. It is knit together with His compassion, love, and mercy.

Without His grace we were a hot mess! Just check out these verses for yourself: Psalm 51:5; Romans 3:10, 20;5:6; 6:23a. As you can see, we were spiritually deprived, unclean, blind, and dead. Our souls destined for an eternal punishment.

Thankfully, God offered his favor to us; saving grace. This is evident in Ephesians 2: 8; James 4:6; 2 Thessalonians 2:16. We have come to recognize Jesus Christ as the symbol of grace and truth (John 1:14).

God doesn't have to do this for us. He does it because of his forgiveness, love, and mercy. It's not because of anything we did. He offers his grace to us because that is who he is. This is why we say that He is gracious!

Not only is grace is an incredible gift from God, but salvation is gained through grace (Ephesians 2: 8-9). This is something that is attainable and fully capable of maturing further within the recipient (John 1: 16). 

Even so, grace isn't a free pass to run wild, contrary to what some might believe. But it does offer power, strength, salvation, and righteousness through Jesus Christ. And it is always available to us wherever and whenever we might need it.

Scripture: Titus 3:5; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 3:24; Acts 16:31; Jude 1:21 

Prayer: "Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son, in truth and love.”  - 2 John 1:3 (ESV)

Grace and blessings,

Margot