The Grace of God
Many times when we teach on the plan of salvation we quote John 3:16. This passage is cited as a proof text that one must believe that Jesus is the Son of God. While this is correct, we miss a great opportunity to teach about the grace of God by focusing in on a single aspect of the verse. If not for the grace of God, salvation would not be possible for anyone. Grace has been defined as unmerited favor. No one can earn salvation; instead it is made available to us by the goodness of God. To further illustrate this point, please consider another passage where we often stop short in our teaching. In First Corinthians 15 the apostle Paul presents us with a great lesson on the resurrection. He begins his lesson by teaching about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:” (First Corinthians 15:1-4) The facts of the death, burial and resurrection are key in the lesson Paul is teaching. Some in Corinth were denying that there was a resurrection and Paul states that the whole basis of salvation depends on there being a resurrection. For this reason Paul continues and provides proof of the resurrection. “And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.” (First Corinthians 15:5-8) Paul proves the resurrection to be a fact by citing that there are witnesses to it. Cephas, the apostles, more than five hundred brethren (many of whom are still living) and Paul himself witnessed the resurrection! Any who would deny need only seek out the witnesses of the facts! Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead! Oftentimes we culminate the lesson at this point and by doing so we lose an opportunity to teach about the grace of God. Notice what Paul says next, “For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” (First Corinthians 15:9-10) Paul says in verse eight that he was born out of due time. In verse nine he says that he is the least of the apostles because of his persecution of the church. But the apostle Paul is what he is by the grace of God! First and foremost, he is a Christian. Second, he is an apostle. Paul never let the fact that he persecuted the church get in his way of being obedient to the will of God nor did he let it stand in the way of his work in the kingdom. We, like the apostle Paul, are what we are today by the grace of God. Not a single person can say they are a Christian except for the grace of God. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:” (Ephesians 2:8) God demonstrated His love for us in sending His only begotten Son to die for our sins. (John 3:16) Not a single human being, other than the Son of God, could have been the sacrifice that would have satisfied the justice of God. It is by his blood that we are washed from our sins (Romans 6:1-4, Acts 22:16). Anyone who is a Christian is what they are by the grace of God! -Pete Ward Comments are closed.
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