God's grace is a wonderful gift to humankind. Grace is God's love freely offered to us. We do not do anything to "earn" it. Take a moment and reflect upon how you have experienced God's grace in your life. Jot some notes down, if you like, before reading the next paragraph.
Did you know that John Wesley believed that God provides us with three kinds of grace? He believed in:
1. prevenient (preparing) grace
2. accepting (justifying) grace
3. sustaining (sanctifying) grace
God's prevenient grace is with us from birth, preparing us for new life in Christ. "Prevenient" means "comes before." Wesley did not believe that humanity was totally "depraved" but rather God places a little spark of divine grace within us which enables us to recognize and accept God's justifying grace. Preparing grace is "free in all for all," as Wesley used to say.
Today some call God's justifying grace "conversion" or being "born again." When we experience God's justifying grace, we come into that new life in Christ. Wesley believed that people have freedom of choice. We are free to accept or reject God's justifying grace. Wesley emphasized "Free Grace" saying:
The grace or love of God, whence cometh our salvation, is FREE IN ALL, and FREE FOR ALL.... It is free in all to whom it is given. It does not depend on any power or merit in man; no, not in any degree, neither in whole, nor in part. It does not in anywise depend either on the good works or righteousness of the receiver; not on anything he has done, or anything he is. It does not depend on his endeavors. It does not depend on his good tempers, or good desires, or good purposes and intentions; for all these flow from the free grace of God; they are the streams only, not the fountain. They are the fruits of free grace, and not the root. They are not the cause, but the effects of it.
Wesley believed that, after we have accepted God's grace, we are to move on in God's sustaining grace toward perfection.Wesley believed the people could "fall from grace" or "backslide." We cannot just sit on our laurels, so to speak, and claim God's salvation and then do nothing. We are to participate in the what Wesley called "the means of grace" and to continue to grow in Christian life.
Some Christians tend to focus on God's justifying grace, but Wesley asserted that the Christian walk does not stop with acceptance of new life in Christ. Wesley said in his sermon, "On Repentance of Believers":
It is generally supposed, that repentance and faith are only the gate of religion; that they are necessary only at the beginning of our Christian course, when we are setting out in the way to the kingdom.... And this is undoubtedly true, that there is a repentance and a faith, which are, more especially, necessary at the beginning: a repentance, which is a conviction of our utter sinfulness, and guiltiness, and helplessness.... But, notwithstanding this, there is also a repentance and a faith (taking the words in another sense, a sense not quite the same, nor yet entirely different) which are requisite after we have "believed the gospel;" yea, and in every subsequent stage of our Christian course, or we cannot "run the race which is set before us." And this repentance and faith are full as necessary, in order to our continuance and growth in grace, as the former faith and repentance were, in order to our entering into the kingdom of God.
God's Grace
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God's Grace
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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all of grace
the grace activity of God in Jesus Christ effects the justification of the believer. We are "justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Jesus Christ" (Rom. 3:24). We are "justified by His grace" (Titus 3:7). Justification must not be considered as only a legal or forensic declaration of righteousness which God has "put on the heavenly books" to explain our "position" in Christ. A Biblical understanding of justification must always convey the ongoing activity of God's righteousness in the Christian by His grace.
Protestant theology in general has tended to develop an event-centered concept of grace, tying grace either to the objective event of redemptive grace, or to the subjective event of conversion grace, saving grace or justifying grace. Limiting grace to an historical event or to an existential event of decision-making creates a static concept of grace. To tie grace particularly to a space/time event is to miss the continuous dynamic of God's grace activity in the living Lord Jesus. We must avoid this event-centered concept of grace that casts God's action primarily into a past-tense perspective. Joe Carson Smith notes this tendency,
"There is an unfortunate tendency to focus upon grace as a 'threshold factor' in the Christian life, limiting the concept of grace to our doctrine of conversion. ...Most of the New Testament passages about grace do not deal with grace as a threshold factor in salvation. Rather, God's grace is presented as pervasive in the life of a Christian."69
The Christian lives day by day by the grace of God. The entire sanctification process whereby God's holy character is manifested in our behavior is enacted by God's grace. This is why Paul encourages Christians to "continue in the grace of God" (Acts 13:43). "The grace of God has appeared,...instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age" (Titus 2:11,12). We progressively "grow in grace" (II Peter 3:18) as we continue to allow God's grace activity to function in our behavior.
God's grace is the basis of our Christian identity: "I am what I am by the grace of God" (I Cor. 15:10). God's grace is the basis of our standing: "this grace in which we stand" (Rom. 5:2). God's grace is the basis of our behavior: "in the grace of God we have conducted ourselves in the world" (II Cor. 1:12). God's grace is the basis of our living: by the "abundance of grace we reign in life through Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:17) by the "grace of life" (I Peter 3:7). God's grace is the basis of righteousness expressed in our behavior: "grace might reign through righteousness" (Rom. 5:21).
God's grace is the basis of holiness: "He called us with a holy calling...according to His purpose and grace" (II Tim. 1:9). God's grace is the basis of our strength for living: "Be strong in the grace that is in Jesus Christ" (II Tim. 2:1) for "it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace" (Heb. 13:9). God's grace is the basis of our speech: "Let your speech always be with grace" (Col. 4:6).
God's grace is the basis of our sufficiency: "My grace is sufficient for you" ((II Cor. 12:9). "God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed" (II Cor. 9:8). God's grace is the basis of dealing with the trials, tribulations and hardships of life: "grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16). "You have suffered for a little while...the God of all grace...will perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you" (I Peter 5:10).
God's grace is the basis of all Christian ministry: "serve one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God" (I Peter 4:10). God's grace is the basis for everything in the Christian life.
Even unto the future God's grace is the operative, that because God is eternal and His grace continues forever. "Fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (I Peter 1:13).
God's grace is as broad as God Himself, His every expression. Grace must not be limited to redemptive grace or regenerative grace or conversion grace or justifying grace. When grace is defined predominantly by the benefits bestowed by God in Christ rather than by the dynamic Being of God in Christ, it degenerates into a "fix-it" commodity, rather than the ever-present and continuous dynamic of God's activity expressing His character.
The grace activity of God always maintains consistency with the character of God. God never acts "out of character." The character of Christ will be evidenced by the "fruit of the Spirit" which is "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" (Gal. 5:22,23).
Christianity is the grace of God. The gospel is the message of the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Paul thus refers to it as "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24) and the "word of His grace" (Acts 14:3; 20:32). Writing to the Colossians, Paul refers to the "word of truth, the gospel" and their having "understood the grace of God in truth" (Col. 1:5,6). Grace is what distinguishes Christianity from all man-made religions as the activity of God in Christ functions within humanity. It is imperative that we maintain a Christocentric understanding of grace.
Protestant theology in general has tended to develop an event-centered concept of grace, tying grace either to the objective event of redemptive grace, or to the subjective event of conversion grace, saving grace or justifying grace. Limiting grace to an historical event or to an existential event of decision-making creates a static concept of grace. To tie grace particularly to a space/time event is to miss the continuous dynamic of God's grace activity in the living Lord Jesus. We must avoid this event-centered concept of grace that casts God's action primarily into a past-tense perspective. Joe Carson Smith notes this tendency,
"There is an unfortunate tendency to focus upon grace as a 'threshold factor' in the Christian life, limiting the concept of grace to our doctrine of conversion. ...Most of the New Testament passages about grace do not deal with grace as a threshold factor in salvation. Rather, God's grace is presented as pervasive in the life of a Christian."69
The Christian lives day by day by the grace of God. The entire sanctification process whereby God's holy character is manifested in our behavior is enacted by God's grace. This is why Paul encourages Christians to "continue in the grace of God" (Acts 13:43). "The grace of God has appeared,...instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age" (Titus 2:11,12). We progressively "grow in grace" (II Peter 3:18) as we continue to allow God's grace activity to function in our behavior.
God's grace is the basis of our Christian identity: "I am what I am by the grace of God" (I Cor. 15:10). God's grace is the basis of our standing: "this grace in which we stand" (Rom. 5:2). God's grace is the basis of our behavior: "in the grace of God we have conducted ourselves in the world" (II Cor. 1:12). God's grace is the basis of our living: by the "abundance of grace we reign in life through Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:17) by the "grace of life" (I Peter 3:7). God's grace is the basis of righteousness expressed in our behavior: "grace might reign through righteousness" (Rom. 5:21).
God's grace is the basis of holiness: "He called us with a holy calling...according to His purpose and grace" (II Tim. 1:9). God's grace is the basis of our strength for living: "Be strong in the grace that is in Jesus Christ" (II Tim. 2:1) for "it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace" (Heb. 13:9). God's grace is the basis of our speech: "Let your speech always be with grace" (Col. 4:6).
God's grace is the basis of our sufficiency: "My grace is sufficient for you" ((II Cor. 12:9). "God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed" (II Cor. 9:8). God's grace is the basis of dealing with the trials, tribulations and hardships of life: "grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16). "You have suffered for a little while...the God of all grace...will perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you" (I Peter 5:10).
God's grace is the basis of all Christian ministry: "serve one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God" (I Peter 4:10). God's grace is the basis for everything in the Christian life.
Even unto the future God's grace is the operative, that because God is eternal and His grace continues forever. "Fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (I Peter 1:13).
God's grace is as broad as God Himself, His every expression. Grace must not be limited to redemptive grace or regenerative grace or conversion grace or justifying grace. When grace is defined predominantly by the benefits bestowed by God in Christ rather than by the dynamic Being of God in Christ, it degenerates into a "fix-it" commodity, rather than the ever-present and continuous dynamic of God's activity expressing His character.
The grace activity of God always maintains consistency with the character of God. God never acts "out of character." The character of Christ will be evidenced by the "fruit of the Spirit" which is "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" (Gal. 5:22,23).
Christianity is the grace of God. The gospel is the message of the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Paul thus refers to it as "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24) and the "word of His grace" (Acts 14:3; 20:32). Writing to the Colossians, Paul refers to the "word of truth, the gospel" and their having "understood the grace of God in truth" (Col. 1:5,6). Grace is what distinguishes Christianity from all man-made religions as the activity of God in Christ functions within humanity. It is imperative that we maintain a Christocentric understanding of grace.
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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