Daily life with Jesus by Grahame Howard: The Act of Grace

Friday 27 March 2020

The Act of Grace

"My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness."
2 Corinthians 12:9. NKJV

Just what is grace? Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us: 'For by grace you have been saved, through faith and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast'. Again in 2 Peter 3:18, we read: 'but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.'

Grace is an Ancient Greek word meaning Charis, which at that time meant giving pleasure and awakening joy. It also meant giving help, unselfish attitudes and unmerited favour - an undeserved act of kindness.
Aristotle defined grace as:

'Helpfulness towards someone in need, not in return for anything, nor that the helper may get anything; but for the sake of the person who is helped.'
Enduring Word David Guzik

This is what God did for us when Jesus died in our place. He gave us grace - totally undeserved and unmerited favour so that you and I could have a place with Him, in Heaven when our life comes to an end, and until then, that we could walk with Him on a daily basis.

This is why it is written in Hebrews:

'Let us therefore come boldly to the Throne of Grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.'
Hebrews 4:16. NKJV

We can have the confidence to approach the Throne of God whenever we have a need. That is such a privilege. Try approaching Her Majesty the Queen's throne whenever you have a need and you would soon see what the inside of the Tower of London is like. But God's throne is always open to His children, through His grace.

God has given us this grace and He wants us to show this grace to others that we meet, who have a need. We may not want to. We may think they don't deserve it but let's be grateful that God didn't think that way about us. He gave us undeserved and unmerited favour. Therefore, we should show others this too. This is why Peter said that we should grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus. (2 Peter 3:18)

Today, there is someone out there, who needs some grace. They may not deserve it in the eyes of the world, but God would give it to them anyway. Also, someone may have hurt and upset you badly. Why not show them the grace of God instead of feeling bad about what they may have done or said.
Everybody needs some grace.