Understanding Grace (Part 2)

SIMPLY AMAZING!

2 Cor. 10: 9-10 (GNB) But his answer was: "My grace is all you need, for my power is greatest when you are weak." I am most happy, then, to be proud of my weaknesses, in order to feel the protection of Christ's power over me. I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Rom.5:20 (AMP)…But where sin increased and abounded, grace (God's unmerited favor) has surpassed it and increased the more and super abounded...

Grace is the ‘unmerited’, ‘unearned’ and 'undeserved' favour of God. It is the gift of God to us when we accepted Christ as our Lord. The operation of the grace of God keeps us wondering. It is simply amazing!

Let’s look at the operation of Grace from three standpoints:

1 .The Grace of God makes up for our sins:

Grace made God accept us in spite of all our sins when we received Christ. The same Grace still makes up for all our trespasses up until now. Whenever we miss it and turn to God for forgiveness, Grace reconciles us with God, catches up with us right from where we stopped and keeps propelling us forward towards God's purpose for our lives as if nothing happened! The operation of the grace of God is simply incredible!

2. The Grace of God makes up for our inadequacies:

Apart from making up for our trespasses, the Grace of God also makes up for our weaknesses, infirmities and inadequacies; and above that, Grace pushes us forward as if our inadequacies don't even exist! In fact, Grace mostly makes us perform much better than we would have if the frailty were not there!

That is why the apostle said in our scripture for today, "…when I'm weak, then I'm strong! "

The word of God also says, "… where sin abounds grace surpassed it and increased the more and super abounded".

Like wise, where infirmities, weaknesses and inadequacies abound, grace also overtakes them, surpasses them and increased the more and super abounds!

As we’ve seen, it’s the grace of God that makes His ‘weakness’ stronger than man!

Where natural ability ends…

Judges 6:13-17 (KJV) And Gideon said unto him… if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us... And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? Behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. And he said unto him, If now I have found GRACE in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me.

1Cor. 15:9-10 (KJV) For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the GRACE of God I am what I am: and his GRACE which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the GRACE of God which was with me.

Is there anyone who has a seemingly insurmountable task- a larger than life obligation to deliver but can't find the strength or ability required?

There are times in life when we feel so incompetent and unfit to give our deliverables at home, at work, in church or in our communities. We feel so ill-equipped to do what we must necessarily do, or what we believe God would have us do.

That is the time we need to draw Grace from God and this leads to the third point on the operations of Grace.

3. The Grace of God gives Ability:

Gideon was from the weakest and poorest clan in Israel. Moreover, he was the least recognized and most despised member of his family. The task before Him was enormous and judging from his physical circumstances, there was no way he would have accomplished it.

When he found and touched the GRACE of God however, He did not only defeat the Midianites, he conquered them quite easily- smiting them as just one man!

Similarly, the Apostle Paul was the least of all the apostles. He never met Jesus in person, never interacted with Him, never sat under His earthly ministration. Moreover, He had a terribly bad record of being a persecutor and murderer of those who knew the Lord.

Yet when he got to know the Lord, and got in contact with His Grace, he outperformed all the remaining apostles combined, authored about two thirds of the epistles and evangelized the entire world as it were.

This is why the grace of God is often referred to as 'Divine Enablement'. The grace of God enables. It gives ability beyond our age, experience or exposure- ability beyond our human ability or comprehension!

Have you said ‘NO’ to your boss, mentor, spouse, kids, or even God, due to inability recently? Please receive Grace and Divine Enablement today and go back to take up that same challenge. And His divine ability will overtake your human (in)ability and put you over cheaply in Jesus name.

Please remember that the Grace of God is an overflow of God's abundance just because He is God. Grace is not something we have to ‘qualify’ for. It is very free and available to as many as will receive. Just because He's God. It's ours to receive- ours for the asking.

Have you missed God lately? Then it’s time to return to Him for forgiveness and receive Grace to carry on.

Are you weak or weary? Do you have infirmities or inadequacies? Now is the time to turn to God for the grace to carry on in spite of your frailty.

It is freely yours today for the asking!