“For the Grace of God"

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,  training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.” (Titus 2:11-12 ESV)

Grace is given to us for many reasons. It is by grace that we can come to faith in Christ Jesus and receive salvation in our beliefs. Without God’s grace, we would remain deaf and blind to the gospel. We know from our understanding of the five solas that we are saved by faith alone, Sola Fide, through grace alone, Sola Gratia.

What we must also think about is that grace comes to us with other implications. Grace acts as a teacher. Through God’s grace, we can understand scripture, another of the five Solas, Sola Scriptura. It is through grace that we come to know how God wants us to live. It is through grace that the conviction of the Holy Spirit reminds us of our obligation to live a righteous life as one of God’s children when we sin we repent.

The interesting thing is that we are gifted God’s grace, which is unmerited; we receive it not because of what we have done, but because of what Christ has done for us. This unmerited grace, as Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast,” is at the root of God’s goodness. Yet not only is grace an attribute or inclination of God, but it is also the powerful force of God that allows us to change, to be molded into an image of Christ.

Grace, a word used 131 times in the ESV, holds a significant place in the teachings of the apostle Paul. In today’s verse, Paul, writing to Titus, discusses the transformative power of grace.  Christ, through His propitiation, His wrath-satisfying sacrifice to God, allowed you to be righteous before God. Through God’s grace, we are raised up to be at the same level as Christ in eternity, heirs to the kingdom. This is the power of grace, as Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:6, “Even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”

It was the grace given to the apostles, as written in the Book of Acts, which empowered them to boldly speak of the Lord before the Jerusalem Council in Acts 4. Luke wrote, “And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.” (4:33) This grace, through the Holy Spirit, empowered Peter to preach at Pentecost, where three thousand men were saved, not including women and children. It is this same grace that can empower us today, giving us the courage to boldly proclaim the gospel.

If you have come to faith in Christ, you have received the gift of God’s grace. Understand it is far more than the ability to understand the Gospel. God’s grace is part of what empowered you, changed your heart, and is the catalyst of your cleansing by the blood of the Lamb; it is also what helps us live a godly, Christ-centered life.

If you do not know Christ, seek Him now. Just ask Him into your heart to forgive your sins, and that you may have the gift of grace to believe in the one true Son of God, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the World.

Grace and Peace!