“But by the grace of God I am what I am.” (1 Corinthians 15:10). The Apostle Paul made this statement and he certainly knew exactly what he was talking about. Paul said of himself “For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” (1 Corinthians 15:9). Realizing his unworthiness because of what he had done, he declared: “But by the grace of God I am what I am.” On another occasion he said, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.” (1 Timothy 1:15). Paul was being very sincere.
The word grace has various shades of meanings. For example, “Your Grace” to address Catholic bishops, and also members of the Royal family. We say grace when we give God thanks for our meals. Grace is also a person’s name. However, when it comes to God, grace is completely different. Grace is an attribute of God. And God deals with us in grace.
Grace is the free unmerited favor of God that is manifested in the salvation of sinful mankind. The Bible describes grace as “the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us.” (Titus 3:4,5). And grace is in contrast to the law. “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17). Therefore, the law is connected with Moses while Grace is connected with Jesus and faith. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8).
“For by grace you have been saved through faith” means God has freely given to us a gift that we do not deserve by sending His Son Jesus Christ to die on the Cross. It must be clearly understood that God does not save anyone because of who we are or what we do. No one can earn his or her salvation. Salvation is by grace alone and through faith alone. And “Not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:9).
“If our salvation were dependent upon our actions—if we could be redeemed by doing good works, keeping the commandments, and refraining from sin—we would always be in danger of losing it whenever we stumbled. However, because salvation is a gift given to us freely—and not in exchange for anything we can do—it is completely secure. Our salvation therefore magnifies the awesome love and grace of God alone, since He blesses us not because of our merit but because of His goodness.” (Dr Charles Stanley, Life Principles Bible, p. 1415).
Being saved by grace alone and through faith alone makes our salvation eternally secure. Jesus Christ procured our salvation through His shed blood and death on the Cross. This was entirely God’s way for guilty, hopeless, and helpless sinners to be saved. If salvation could be achieved by good works then it means that “Christ died for no purpose.” (Galatians 2:21).
The believer is made a heavenly person, because of God’s amazing grace. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people (Titus 2:11). Because of His grace, God is able to forgive man irrespective of the extent of his sins. The believer is forgiven, preserved, and sustained by God’s grace. And can now stand accepted in the place that only Jesus Christ could claim.
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now I’m found,
Was blind, but now I see.
(John Newton 1725-1807)
Because God is holy, righteous, just, and faithful to His children, you and I can remain absolutely confident that God will neither leave us nor forsake us. He has pledged His word. Paul was very confident of this when he told the Philippians “I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
(Philippians 1:6).
When we stumble or stray, our God of infinite grace is able to “create in us a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit.” We can recall King David’s confession as recorded in Psalm 51:9,10,12. David prayed, “Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit.”
David’s confession reveals the extent of God grace—it is just not for today and tomorrow alone, but for every day of our lives. You and I will sin from time to time because of human nature. Therefore, we have the divine assurance that if we confess our sins, God will forgive us. John writes, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8,9).
In the thirteen letters written by Paul, he included the word grace in the greetings of each; usually, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father.” This seems to show the significance of God’s grace in Paul’s life.
When Paul pleaded with the Lord to remove his thorn in the flesh, the Lord said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9). And this was Paul’s response, “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Cor. 12:9).
Paul appreciated the sufficiency of God’s grace. A matchless grace is available to all who believe. Amen.