It’s hard for people to receive when they are convinced that they must achieve.

God’s Word declares toward the Christian that God is on our side. The apostle Paul, in his writings to the Church at Rome, asks, “. . . if God is for us, who can be against us?” Another translation says, “. . . if God is on our side like this, how can we lose?” (Romans 8:31 Message Bible).

Paul goes on to write, “Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing . . . None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing – nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable – absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way Jesus has embraced us” (Romans 8:35,37-39 Message Bible).
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When God speaks to you to do something, He also gives you the grace to perform it.

More and more as I talk with people, and Christian people in particular, I’m reminded how widespread the need is for people to understand the grace of God. The sinner needs to be confronted with it as a basis for salvation, while believers need to be reminded of it as the means toward spiritual maturity.

Let me quote something to you from the Message Bible along these lines. Paul, speaking to the Galatians in view of certain Judiazers’ attempts to encourage them to take up the law as a means of justification says, “Answer this question: Does the God who lavishly provides you with His own presence, His Holy Spirit, working things in your lives you could never do for yourselves, does He do these things because of your strenuous moral striving or because you trust Him to do them in you?” (Galatians 3:5 Message Bible).
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All miracles, when they occur, are the provisions of God’s grace.

In May of 1995, one of my staff members began to experience tremendous discomfort and pain in his body. Several months passed until finally, in October, he saw a specialist and was diagnosed with Paget’s disease. Paget’s is a very rare disease of the bone affecting how the bone rebuilds itself. The metabolism of the bone is actually accelerated resulting in an abnormal thickening of the bone usually at the base or frontal part of the skull. It does affect other parts of the body and in John’s case, its effects were seen in his skull, one of his shoulders, his hips and legs.

While seldom fatal, the result is limited movement with great pain. As of today, there is no known medical cure for Paget’s disease. The best hope for those who are affected by Paget’s is a chemical remission through the use of some very exotic and expensive forms of medication. Immediately, the church began to pray.
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God’s love is an “in your face” act of grace.

Let’s say that someone came to your door, out of work and hungry and offered to do some odd jobs around the house for you in exchange for some groceries or just a little money to buy some. You say no to their kind offer but invite them to come in and to make themselves comfortable in your living room while you go to the kitchen to get a couple of sacks and fill them with things from the pantry.

Because you did not require that person to work for wages or earn their right to your food, your act of kindness would be considered by biblical standards an act of grace. You showed grace and he received grace.
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Mephibosheth humbled himself and upon doing so, the intended grace became the accepted grace.

We left off talking about a young man by the name of Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan and grandson to King Saul. You’ll recall that Mephibosheth had been in hiding in Lodebar from David and was in fear for his life. But, because of a covenant that David held with Jonathan and a desire to restore all that belonged to his descendants by covenant, Mephibosheth was sought out, apprehended and delivered to David’s house. Mephibosheth didn’t know that David desired to bless him and so feared the worst.
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Grace is undeserved favor; not favor returned.

The word grace, as it is used in the Old Testament, denotes a free and spontaneous willingness to bestow good on him that is destitute of it, either in a way of kindness or a way of compassion. This word excludes all idea of merit or desert in the object of free favor. In other words, grace is not a reciprocal response toward someone who might be deserving of it. It is not a provoked response. Again, it is undeserved favor; not a favor returned.
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Grace is not a reciprocal response toward someone who might be deserving. It is unmerited favor; not a favor returned.

There was a special woman by the name of Joann Harbert who lived next door to my wife and I while we were living and ministering in west Texas some years ago. I guess it must have been back in the mid 70’s. Cindi and I were both very young and very “green” in the ministry; like most, mature in some ways and very immature in others. We were very much in love with God and felt at the time that we were right where God wanted us.
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God’s work on our behalf is complete and we are left only to say thank you.

The first time the word grace is mentioned in the scripture it is connected with Noah and Noah finding grace in the sight of the Lord. But the manifestations of His grace can be seen from the earliest recorded acts of creation itself. In fact, the first five days of the first week recorded in the Bible were provisionary acts of God’s grace. Man was created on the sixth day and opened his eyes to a world, presented to him as a gift, and filled with God’s goodness. By God’s design, man’s first moments were spent taking in the riches of His grace – something he could take absolutely no credit for! None of the splendor he was made to behold was a result of his efforts.

Furthermore, I believe to emphasize the importance of the grace he had been shown, man was made to rest with God, who was resting from His finished work on the seventh day. Man opened his eyes to this incredible display of grace and was immediately made to rest in it. God insisted on it.
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Goodness influences us to change, mercy affords us the opportunity to change and grace empowers us to change.

We’ve been attempting to lay a good foundation for what grace is. But first, let me review a couple of things with you.
First, we talked about grace being the unmerited favor of God and how we can consider grace as God’s riches provided for us at Christ’s expense. You can’t earn grace through good works. If you could, then what you got wouldn’t be grace. Grace can only be received and that by faith. We are saved, the word of God says, by grace through faith, not of works lest any man should boast. We are not saved by grace or faith alone but by grace through the avenue of faith. Grace should be thought of as God making His move toward mankind and faith as mankind’s move, if you will, toward God. I’m sure you’ve heard someone say something like, “We can move God’s hand if we only have faith.”
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Whatever the fear, whatever the frustration, whatever the inadequacy or weak tendency toward sin, there is grace to overcome.

I have some excerpts of a letter from a Christian woman who found herself, not all too long ago, in a life threatening situation at home – and having to flee along with her children for safety.

Again, these are only portions of the letter and I have taken certain liberties as I share this with you to further protect her and her children. In the end, she experienced a great victory and we want to preserve that as well.
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