5 posts tagged “grace”
One cannot accept God’s free gift of grace if he first doesn’t understand what grace is. Exodus 35:6-7 proclaims the graciousness of God: “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.”
What is grace? The definition that we’re most familiar with is simply “undeserved favor.” It’s getting something you don’t deserve. So how do you come up with this definition biblically? It must be noted that in order to get an accurate view of what the Bible says, you must view the Bible as a whole. It must be “precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little, and there a little” (Isaiah 28).
Ephesians 2:89 says that we are saved by grace. We know that we all deserve death because no one is righteous (Romans 3:23), but that God gave us a “pardon” by sending his Son to take the punishment for us (John 3:16). It is through that pardon that we are saved (if we accept it). That’s a clear example of God giving us something that we don’t deserve (salvation/eternal life) and how the Bible says that is grace.
Paul’s message is consistently about grace. He uses the term (the Greek word charis or charisma) more than 100 times in the New Testament. From the New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology (NIDNTT):
“For Paul, grace is the essence of God’s decisive saving act in Jesus Christ, which took place in his sacrificial death, and also of all its consequences in the present and the future (Rom 3:24-26).
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Paul unfolds the reality and power of charis in a stubborn conflict with rabbinical ideas of justification by works and synergism. This leads him to set up and then contrast two antithetical, mutually exclusive series of ideas: grace, gift, the righteousness of God, superabundance, faith, gospel, and calling on the one side; and law, reward, sin, works, accomplishment owed, one’s own righteousness, honor, worldly wisdom, and futility on the other side. The person and work of God’s Son has made it possible for justice in the Judge’s pardon not to conflict with grace. In Christ, therefore, God’s grace is given as a precious gift. Apart from him there can be no talk of grace. But this also means that grace can never become a quality that someone possesses in one’s own right.”
Paul constantly contrasts grace with the law. In Romans 4 (specifically vv. 4-16), the ideas of grace and debt (a reward for work accomplished) are mutually exclusive. In the previous chapter it is also clear that righteousness comes from faith by grace and not through the law (emphasis mine):
“But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.”
Romans 11 tells us that being chosen by grace and a life based on works have nothing in common. Grace would not be pure grace if they did; it would be compromised by the principles of accomplishment and achievement—“So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace” (vs. 5-6).
In Galatians 2:21, Paul offers the high point of his theology of grace: “I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”
In Galatians 5, Paul warns the church that those who try to find their justification through the law or through their works that they are alienated from Christ:
“You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.”
Grace is a free gift from God. Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin are death but the gift of God is eternal life! Salvation is a work of God for man, rather than a work of man for God. No aspect of salvation, according to the Bible, is made to depend, even in the slightest degree, on human merit or works.
It is only by understanding this concept that one becomes a child of God and can begin to conform to the image of the Son of God.
To read my take on what the Bible says, go here.
That link is my response to what happened last night at small group. Basically, our leader told us that he believes that if you have any sins in your life that you haven't repented of when you die then you're going to hell. There was, of course, a longer conversation, but that's the gist of it. This is the conversation that ended in tears and anger. At least one person left the room with the attitude that if that view was correct, he didn't want to be a Christian anymore.
I've been heartsick over this since last night. But since God has gifted me with the use of words (when my attitude and heart is right, of course), I felt impressed on to write the post I linked to above.
Something disturbing happened tonight at my small group, and I covet your prayers. A discussion was started that ended badly because it became evident that our leader holds a belief about salvation and grace that isn't biblical (though he swears up and down it is). It got so bad that his wife left the room crying and a man who wraps his whole existence in God is now doubting his faith. And the whole time, the one with the differing view did not change his opinion or admit that he could be wrong or seem to care that others were upset and offended.
Pray that the spirit of confusion will be rebuked. Pray that God opens his heart (and ours). Pray wisdom for me as I put together a study that will be Scriptural on this issue. Pray that hurt feelings will be healed. Pray that God will guide all of us to the Truth. Pray that unity, not discord, will once again reign.
I have a new favorite song.
I doubt there's a single person in the United States who has never heard the song "Amazing Grace." Everyone at least knows the first verse.
Chris Tomlin has taken that song and added a new refrain/chorus to it.
Amazing graceHow sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, Amazing grace
The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God, Who called me here below
Will be forever mine
Will be forever mine
You are forever mine
Chris Tomlin said, "I was doing some research on John Newton and the writing of the hymn, "Amazing Grace." John Newton wrote these lyrics as a poem for a sermon describing what God had done for him; that God had not only saved his soul, but also saved him from slave trading. That inspired me to write the simple refrain, "my chains are gone..." I also found it interesting that the familiar last verse, "when we've been there ten thousand years..." was not in the original, but added years later by another author. I have included in this version Newton's original last verse."
Today is the world premiere of the video. Watch it here.
Watch the trailer for the movie Amazing Grace.
This book is absolutely incredible. I sat down to read it last night and couldn't put it down! I finished the whole thing in about an hour and a half, and it was one of the most convicting books I've read in awhile. He got inspired to give up everything he had and fully rely on his faith.
Basically, he and a friend became homeless and lived on the streets for 5 months. They went through 6 cities and the book chronicles the journey. He starts out by transitioning through the rehab program at the Denver Rescue Mission (we give this book out to a lot of our donors) for 30 days. That way he gets slightly acclimated to the homeless culture before he gets thrown out into it. Then he does each other city for a month: DC, Portland, Phoenix, San Francisco, and San Diego.
The experience was, needless to say, life changing for him and reading the book was pretty revolutionary for me too. One thing he kept bringing up, and it keeps coming up in my own life, is how a Christian needs to do. He mentioned church after church that would not welcome the two smelly homeless guys. There was one occasion where Mike and Sam slept on the front steps of a church on a Saturday night hoping to get woken up the next morning in time for the service. They woke up while the service was going on and realized that every person there had avoided the front door and gone in a side entrance.
Another example was when they got kicked out of a church picnic...by the Director of Homeless Outreach for the area! It made me angry. But it was a wake up call. I got a lot of great quotes for my own article. One thing that really convicted me is that even though I work at the Durham Rescue Mission, I'm not really doing anything. You know? I mean, I know the place couldn't run without the admin folks like me, but that doesn't replace any of the actual doing that I should be out there doing. I'm not offering hope to anyone by sitting at my computer screen. Of course, it's easy for me to recognize that but it's an entirely different story when it comes to actually doing anything about it. I don't want to leave my comfort zone!
Here are some great quotes from the book. It's just a sampling of the book, and I definitely encourage you to go out and read the whole thing!
“Something critical is missing in places that care for the broken and needy if the only people there are also broken and needy. Without the presence of people…whose lives are not defined by addiction, alcoholism, crime and mental illness, there is little positive influence. Chaplains and pastors can only spread themselves so far.”
“Telling someone who is suffering deeply that he’s going to suffer more is probably a waste of breath. It’s like warning someone who is already starving that they’re about to get really hungry. But tell him of the restaurant that serves heaping meals to all who come no matter where they’re from or what they look like, and he’s more than likely to listen. I thought of Christ’s words, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John ).”
“What do you do when a good tree bears bad fruit or a bad tree bears good fruit? Look harder.
What’s your definition of a Christian? Is it broad enough to encompass the drug dealers, pimps, prostitutes, and broken people of the world? Jesus said that he came to heal the sick. Drug addicts are messed up just the same as liars are messed up, just the same as all humans are messed up. We all need Jesus. We all struggle with personal ways in which sin plays itself out in our lives.
What’s worse? To not do dope or to not love your brother? Why do we kick drug users out of the church while quietly ignoring those who aren’t dealing with other, equally destructive sins? Why do we reject the loving, self-sacrificing, giving, encouraging, Jesus-pursuing drug addict but recruit the clean, self-interested, gossiping, loveless churchgoer?
Which one do you suppose Jesus would rather share a burrito with under a bridge?”
“If we as believers choose to forget that everyone—even the shrunken soul lying in the doorway—is made in the image of God, can we say we know our Creator? If we respond to others based on their outward appearance, haven’t we entirely missed the point of the gospel?
Christ cared a lot about the simple dignities. He stopped to talk to lepers, and touch them with healing (Luke ). He prepared meals for strangers. He rescued outcasts. He wept with those who wept.”
“As CS Lewis wrote, “Christ died for men precisely because men are not worth dying for: to make them worth it.”
“To me, one of the best things about the gospel is that Jesus Christ proclaims and restores human and eternal worth for everyone who believes—regardless of what a person might look or smell like now. No matter what’s crawling through his hair. And because we follow this Christ, each of us has both the ability and the responsibility (“response-ability”) to do the same.”
