Bible Study

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THE IMPORTANCE OF GRACE Part 4
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Man cannot forgive HIMSELF of his sins. No WORK
done by man alone can ever remove one sin, or
gain eternal salvation. By our Sin we have dug a
whole so deep for ourselves that we cannot get
out of it by ourselves through our own efforts
WE NEED HELP
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This was the point that Paul was making in that
most famous verse. Ephesians 28 "For by grace
are ye saved through faith and that not of
yourselves it is the gift of God" It is by
God's GRACE that WE ARE SAVED.
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It is not by anything that we have done or could
do. We would not even know how to obtain access
to it if God had not revealed it through His word
the Bible.
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Paul tells us that it is the "GIFT OF GOD."
GRACE, then, is the "GIFT OF GOD." If we KNOW
what the "gift of God" is, then we shall know
- How we can obtain the BENEFITS of the GRACE OF
GOD.
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The gift of God was JESUS CHRIST. THROUGH
CHRIST, God has shown His love, favour and mercy
toward humanity. THROUGH CHRIST we have the hope
of salvation.
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We see this from the words of our Lord to the
woman at the well in Samaria. (John 410) "Jesus
answered and said unto her, If thou knew the gift
of God, and who it is that says to you, give me
to drink you would have asked of Him, and He
would have given you living water."
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Some would limit this Grace of God only to those
who were ELECTED (chosen) to salvation. Those
who are ELECTED, or the "ELECT," refers to a
doctrine that teaches that a select few were
elected to salvation before the world was created.
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This is contrary (opposite to) to the scheme
(plan) of God's redemption for humanity. God's
grace, which comes through Jesus Christ is
extended to ALL, NOT just to a select few.
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Paul taught that "the Grace of God brings
salvation" (Titus 211). We all agree with this
statement. Yet, Paul continues by saying, "hath
appeared to all men." This Grace is not
limited. It has appeared so that all men might
have an opportunity for salvation. The word
"appeared" means, "to become visible, or "to be
seen."
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How did God's Grace "appear to all men? It has
appeared through the birth, life, death, burial
and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Although the
Grace of God has appeared to all men, this does
NOT imply that all men are saved.
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It means that all possess an opportunity to take
advantage of the gift of God, which is Jesus
Christ. Our salvation comes through our faith in
Him, when we do what we need to do in order to
gain access to God's Grace.
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Paul teaches that we all have sinned and come
short of God's glory (Romans 323). As such, we
are in our sins and in need of salvation. Our
salvation can come only through Jesus Christ (cf.
1 Thessalonians 59 Acts 412).
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To receive the benefits of the Grace that God
offers, we must go to Christ. The Grace of God
has come by (or through) the RESURRECTION of
Jesus Christ.
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The fact that Jesus Christ died is significant.
But if that is ALL He did, then we are void
(have no access to) of God's Grace. It was
through the RESURRECTION of Jesus Christ that
God's Grace became effective.
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Peter says it aptly "Blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according
to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto
a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead (1 Peter 13).
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Without the death, burial and resurrection of
Jesus Christ, we ALL would be WITHOUT any HOPE or
SALVATION.
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Grace, as it relates to the death, burial and
resurrection of Christ, is a theme that Paul
develops in his letter to the Romans.
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Paul proved that all are guilty of sin, and that
by one man's disobedience sin came into this
world. In chapter five this theme is well
developed. Paul also noted that it was by one
man's obedience that all have the hope of
salvation.
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This theme is summed up in one verse. "For as by
one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so
by the obedience of one shall many be made
righteous." (Romans 519)
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Finally, in chapter six, we see that when we are
baptized into Christ, we are baptized into the
likeness of Christ's death, burial and
resurrection.
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In this act we realize the true significance of
God's Grace. Before Christ came into this world
to be our sacrifice for sins, we were dead in our
sins. Christ did not come because we were so
good or great. He came because we were sinners
and if we continued in our sin we would PERISH
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Whenever we think about the Grace of God, we must
understand this fact. This is what makes Grace
- Grace. We were dead in our sins, but through
Christ we can be made alive.
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The key is "through Christ." This helps us to
understand Paul's statement"Even when we were
dead in sins, hath quickened us together with
Christ, (by grace ye are saved)" (Ephesians 25).
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The parenthetical clause explains the idea of
Grace being through Christ. The GIFT of God is
Jesus Christ. The GRACE of God is Jesus
Christ. The Gift of the GRACE of God is FOUND
through OUR ACCEPTANCE of Jesus Christ.
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Through Christ, and His death, burial and
resurrection, we have access to the Grace of God.
Peter makes a simple, yet profound statement
about the Grace of God "Neither is there
salvation in any other for there is none other
name under heaven given among men, whereby we
must be saved." (Acts 412)