God has been pressing on me lately the nature of grace, both what it is in its essence and what the implications and outworkings of that grace in the life of a believer is. My hope is that by painting a picture with God’s Word, we will each be better able to see and savor the grace purchased by our Lord Jesus Christ. He has done for us what we could not do. He has saved us to the uttermost. He has sent the Helper, the Holy Spirit to indwell us forever – guiding us into all Truth, conforming our lives to Him for our joy. Our God has saved us and sustains us forever.
I’m a couple decades into following Jesus with my life. The first thing I will freely admit is that I’m still a jacked up sinner. I’m nowhere near where I’d like to be. If ever someone wanted confirmation of that, I’m sure those around me would be able to attest to it! For those of you pursuing Christ with your lives, hopefully that will be a comfort to you. I grew up thinking everyone else had it together, and there must be something wrong with me in church. I always felt like I was supposed to look more holy than I was. There is a reason Jesus saved His greatest rebukes for the Pharisees who professed self-righteousness – it is in direct contradiction to the gospel. If we arrive in Heaven, it will be on our knees. It is by grace we are saved, and it is by grace we are sustained. We end as we begin – totally dependant upon the grace and mercy of God.
I’ve lost count of the times when I felt distant from God either from known sin in my life or because God desired to strengthen my faith from pulling back for a while. Just as a father, who loves His son will eventually take the training wheels off the bike so that they can learn, even if that results in some pain, so our Heavenly Father weilds the fallen world and may withhold His presence to grow us in our knowledge and affection for Him. Where do we go, when this happens? It is here where an understanding of the nature of grace will grant us comfort and peace. Ephesians 1:3-6 tells us – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.” I run to this passage. Why are we holy and blameless before God? Because God chose us (sinners) in Christ before the foundation of the world to be objects of the purchased grace of Jesus by His blood. I cannot contribute to this act of love by God, and I cannot take anything away. God’s plan for grace was before the foundation of the world. We rest in Jesus or we perish.
Jesus told another parable of soils in Matthew 13:3-8 – “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
Jesus explains that each of these types represents a person who was confronted with the gospel. Over the years I have seen each of these types of persons. I’ve seen people who heard the gospel and immediately rejected it. I’ve seen people who were going through a tough time maybe and received the gospel with joy for a time, coming to church, getting involved, etc, only to quickly fade away. I’ve seen people who have been in the church for 5-10 years who decided at some point that they wanted to pursue the pleasures the world could offer and sin, rather than God – rejecting Him. And lastly, I’ve seen those who God has sustained in faithfulness.
What is different in each of these people? One people rest in the blood bought grace and mercy of Jesus and respond in love to pursue Him, and the others never truly knew God or the grace He purchased with His blood. In Luke 14:27-30, Jesus tells us to consider the cost of following Him – “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’” There are two helpful take-aways from that parable for me. The first is that following Jesus is a marathon, not a sprint. It is a long path marked by continual repentance, trusting in Christ, stepping out on faith to press forward and “take the next step”, and all the while pleading with the Lord for mercy and strength. The second is that every step of the way, God is the builder. I can help or hinder His efforts, but ultimately, He alone sustains us in the walk of faith in life we are called to. God built the foundation when He gave me the faith to believe in Jesus as my Savior, and He is now at work building me into the image of Jesus.
The last parable I’ll share was the parable of the Pharisee (righteous man) and the tax collector (sinner) – Luke 18:9-14 – “He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” The Pharisee rightly attributes his righteous works to God, but he confuses his works of righteousness with the perfect righteousness of Jesus. We are saved by Jesus alone. It is His perfect life, His righteousness that is credited to us by faith. We need His mercy. We need His righteousness, or we perish. Grace is not a work of man, but the unmerited favor of God purchased by Jesus for us when He bore the wrath of God on the cross – the penalty due our sin. If we are in Christ, covered by His grace and trusting in Him alone, then in an abundance of thankfulness and love we will follow Him, but we will never consider our efforts part of our salvation – it is not our blood, but Jesus’ that has fulfilled all righteousness for us.
This is confirmed in Romans 9.
Romans 9:16 – “it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.”
Romans 9:13 – “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Grace is not free. Christ purchased grace for us through his blood, by His death on a cross for our sin. The grace of God is the foundation of the mercy of God to us in salvation. The grace of God sustains us, despite everything in this world working against our faith in Jesus. Why do I still believe today? Why do I still press back sin in my life and press forward to follow Jesus? It is Christ in me, the Holy Spirit at work. Philippians 2:12-13 – “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Even my will to obey God and to press forward “is God who works in me, to will and to work for his good pleasure”.
I’ve tried today to paint a picture of grace, at times being repetitive for emphasis. My exhortation to all of us as sinners before a Holy God is to take refuge in the grace purchased for you by the blood of Jesus. Come back to where you began, and trust that the Lord is good, loving, and merciful. He died that we could live. Our righteousness is His righteousness freely given to us. Trust in Him, learn from Him, and press forward after Him, knowing that all the while God is at work. We will arrive at eternity’s shores because of the grace and mercy of Jesus and nothing more. Our life, though a speck in the ocean of eternity, has opportunity to preach and give glory to the holiness and love of God towards us.
Lamentations 3:22-24 – “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”
Hosea 6:1-3 – ““Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will rise us up, that we may live before him. Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.”
Grace and Peace,
Adam
Following the Way 