Grace defined – (several factors involved): Grace is all that God is free to do for mankind because of Christ – His cross sacrifice.
FACTORS:
- God is free to express His love toward us because of Christ and what Christ accomplished on the cross.
- The important thing in divine love is character, NOT sentimentality.
- God loves us because of who and what Christ is, NOT who and what we are.
- Grace is the plan and work of God on behalf of man, therefore grace begins at the cross. So, come to the cross.
- God is free to give to us because of the cross.
- Grace depends on the essence or character of God.
- Legalism is man’s ‘abilities’ and works intruding into God’s plan.
- The good-works production of humanity destroys grace; grace and works are mutually exclusive.
- Grace is Absolute.
- Grace rejects the energy of the flesh (any and all of our efforts).
- We become sinful at birth (by the imputed sin nature), so we can bring nothing to the cross for salvation. God brings everything to the cross. The cross is the neutral zone between God and humanity (the meeting place).
- The greatest thing God can do for humanity is to make humanity like His Son. This occurs through our diligent and relentless study of the Word, and through application of what we have learned, processed, and memorized to the details of life.
- The first Adam lost the victory through The Fall (original sin). The Last Adam (Christ) won the victory through the cross (Colossians 2:14; Hebrews 2:14).
- Through the cross, God’s grace found a way to take humanity, created inferior to angels, and make us superior to angels by faith in Christ. Believer’s are in union with Christ, therefore superior to angels.
- God is always waiting to pour out His grace on every believer (Isaiah 30:18-19). We receive this grace through obedience to God and His Word and by walking daily with the Spirit, in fellowship with the Lord.
- Salvation is all grace because Christ did all the work necessary for humanity’s salvation, therefore salvation is a gift presented to mankind by God the Father, through God the Son, and revealed by God the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:8-9).
- The principles of grace are found in many passages: Psalms 103:8-12; Romans 3:23-24; 4:4; 5:20; Ephesians 2:8-9; Hebrews 2:9.
- Nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:35).
Religion is anti-God and anti-grace. Walk away from religion; walk away from meaningless ritual and all of humanity’s added “rules.” God spelled everything out for us quite clearly. We need only study, digest, memorize, and apply God’s Word to our lives and circumstances, daily.
You feed your body daily, so must you also feed and nourish your soul daily. Doing so fulfills God’s mandate to us to study and grow in the Word. Let’s get busy doing so.
Find a Bible-teaching church and attend. It is the pastor’s duty to God to bring his flock to spiritual maturity, and this can only be done through diligent study by both pastor and congregation. The importance of teaching and studying God’s Holy Word cannot be overstated.
Happy Studying!