God's Grace is Enough

Parker

Parker

Member
Remember the old Christian saying "There but for the grace of God go I"? I wasn't able to find its origin but it's meaning is quite clear. It's a statement of humility and gratitude that acknowledges one’s own struggle with sin and the need for God’s grace.

I think when we say, “There but for the grace of God go I,” we are expressing thanks for “the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us” and at the same time confessing how easy is it is for us to allow sin to destroy our lives.

The good news is Grace Happens. As Paul explained it, “The free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many” Romans 5:15

Grace happens, and it acts. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God” Ephesians 2:8

Such grace can come only from God. It is the gift unsought, unmerited, unlimited. For no matter what we have done, no matter the depth of our transgression, the darkness of our hearts—grace overrules them all. God pursues us relentlessly, He will not give us up, and once He has captured us, He won’t let us go.
 
Most of us are aware that it is by grace that we are saved, but I wonder how many people truly understand the power of God's grace. Everything we receive from God must come by grace through faith. But all knowledge of faith must be built on a clear understanding of grace, because even faith comes to us by grace, as a gift.

When you understand grace, you can walk in faith and receive God's blessings. God's grace isn't complicated or confusing. It is simple, and that's why many people miss it. There is nothing more powerful than grace.

Everything in the Bible, salvation, the infilling of the Holy Spirit, fellowship with God and all victory in our daily lives, is based on it. Without grace, we are nothing, we have nothing, we can do nothing.

A good idea for today would be,not to just hear about grace, but understand that everything in our lives depends not on our merits or abilities or works, but on God's willingness to use His infinite power to meet our needs. This is grace. Focus on that truth today, and watch your faith grow.
 
civic said:
Do you see any difference with this thread ?

Thanks !

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I do but I would like to do a more in-depth study on the topic of Grace. So you're OP will certainly help in that. I just came up with the thought of studying Grace this morning and I'll get back to you with what I'm learning. Bonhoeffer, he's one of my favorite Christian authors. He definitely picked up the cross and followed Jesus.
 
Parker said:
I do but I would like to do a more in-depth study on the topic of Grace. So you're OP will certainly help in that. I just came up with the thought of studying Grace this morning and I'll get back to you with what I'm learning. Bonhoeffer, he's one of my favorite Christian authors. He definitely picked up the cross and followed Jesus.
Click to expand...
Enjoy your study and please share with us what you learn. God's Grace is too dazzling, too bright, for it is powered by the holy heart of God. Trying to comprehend it in whole is like staring directly into one thousand suns.

We must understand grace, at least to the best of our ability; we must understand mercy. And we must be clear on how the two ideas intersect.
 
Parker said:
Remember the old Christian saying "There but for the grace of God go I"? I wasn't able to find its origin but it's meaning is quite clear. It's a statement of humility and gratitude that acknowledges one’s own struggle with sin and the need for God’s grace.

I think when we say, “There but for the grace of God go I,” we are expressing thanks for “the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us” and at the same time confessing how easy is it is for us to allow sin to destroy our lives.

The good news is Grace Happens. As Paul explained it, “The free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many” Romans 5:15

Grace happens, and it acts. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God” Ephesians 2:8

Such grace can come only from God. It is the gift unsought, unmerited, unlimited. For no matter what we have done, no matter the depth of our transgression, the darkness of our hearts—grace overrules them all. God pursues us relentlessly, He will not give us up, and once He has captured us, He won’t let us go.
Click to expand...
For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:17
My theory is that we’ve settled for wimpy grace. It politely occupies a phrase in a hymn, fits nicely on a church sign. Never causes trouble or demands a response. When asked, “Do you believe in grace?” who could say no?

Have you been changed by grace? Shaped by grace? Strengthened by grace? Softened by grace? God’s grace has a drenching about it. A wildness about it. A white-water, riptide, turn-you-upside-downness about it. Grace comes after you.

I think God's grace rewires us. From insecure to God secure. From regret-riddled to better-because-of-it. From afraid-to-die to ready-to-fly. Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off. To believe we can actually be transformed into Christ's image.

 
God's grace was enough fot the thief on the cross.

As Jesus is dying on the cross, his focus shifts from the masses before him to the man beside him.

We don’t know much about this thief. We can only speculate about what his life might have been like before that fateful day. There is no historical data from which we can draw. Even oral tradition doesn’t tell us much. We don’t know his name or where he was from. We don’t know if he had much of a family. Maybe he was a vile criminal who had committed heinous crimes. Maybe not. Maybe he had just had a run of bad luck. Wrong place, wrong time. We don’t know.

We read about this prisoner in the Gospel of Luke, but Matthew also mentions him in passing: “The robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on [Jesus]” (Matt. 27:44 NIV 1984). Apparently, both of the men with whom Jesus was crucified mocked and ridiculed him at first. But one changed his mind. Certainly he had heard the talk about this carpenter turned king. Perhaps a cellmate had been in the crowd when Jesus took just fives loaves and two fish and fed thousands. Maybe the blind beggar from whom he had stolen coins was, one day, no longer there by the road. Word on the street was that Jesus had restored his sight. He had likely heard of Jesus before, but now he was seeing Jesus up close in the most desperate and revealing hours of his life.

What he saw and heard changed him from the inside out. He would have been close enough to hear some of the words Jesus spoke from the cross. He probably even heard all seven of the final statements of Jesus.

My guess is that what changed his mind and softened his heart toward Jesus the most was the prayer Jesus prayed for his accusers and executioners. He didn’t pray for their destruction. I picture ten thousand angels with swords drawn, waiting for Jesus to say the word. They were ready to put an end to the injustice and abuse. But he heard Jesus simply pray, “Father, forgive them.” And this man, the thief, might have wondered to himself, Maybe it’s not too late for me to be forgiven.

Jesus did not pray for the wrath of God to fall on the resentful Jewish officials, the bloodthirsty crowd, or the calloused Roman soldiers. He prayed that God would forgive them. My guess is something happened in the heart of the thief when he heard those words, causing him to do something that Peter failed to do, something Pilate refused to do, something Jesus’s own disciples were afraid to do.
He stood up for Jesus.

In the moment when Jesus felt forsaken, even by his heavenly Father, a common criminal came to his defense. Even as the thief on the opposite cross was hurling insults at Jesus, this criminal declared, “We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong” (Luke 23:41). What was he saying? He was saying, “I’m wrong—I have sinned—I have fallen short.” As his life ebbed away, he was repentant and broken. And he confessed he believed Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior, the promised King. He appealed, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom” (v. 42).

And Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise” (v. 43).

We know less about this thief than any of those who were present at the crucifixion, but we likely have more in common with him than any of the others, because, like the thief, we have received the promise of salvation but we did absolutely nothing to deserve it. He could only come to Jesus completely dependent, humble, and broken. He had no other option. But it turns out this is exactly how God wants us to come to him. Like the thief, we must own our sinfulness.

The first three chapters of Romans make it clear we all have sinned. We can deny it. We can defend it. We can justify it. We can rationalize it. We can minimize it. But unless and until we follow this thief’s example and accept responsibility for our sin, we can’t be saved from it.
The Bible holds up a mirror and confronts us with the reality of our sin. Romans 3:23 teaches:

Everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. (NLT)

So, who does “everyone” include? Well, everyone includes you and everyone includes me.


Kyle Idleman, Grace from the Cross
 

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