The Dispensation of Grace—Mystery or Prophecy?
By Cornelius R. Stam
(Grace—Part I)
We have often insisted that while the prophets "testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow," they knew nothing of the present period of grace which lies between our Lord's suffering and His kingdom glory.
"The dispensation of the grace of God," we read in Ephesians 3, was "a mystery" only made known "by revelation" to Paul, some years after the rejected Christ had returned to heaven. In verse 5 he says that "in other ages" it was "not made known." In verse 8 he calls it "the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God." In Romans 16:25 he says it was "kept secret since the world began." In Colossians 1:26 he insists again that it was "hid from ages and from generations."
But there are still thousands of sincere believers who do not see this. They think that the prophets predicted the reign of grace as well as the reign of Christ. Thus they lose some of the joy of that great surprise of grace which God planned for sinners "before the world began" (II Timothy 1:9), but "kept secret since the world began" (Romans 16:25).
One of the Scriptures which troubles them most is I Peter 1:10: "Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you." They say that this proves conclusively that the dispensation of Grace was prophesied beforehand and was no mystery at all.
But here again we must distinguish between grace in a dispensation and the dispensation of Grace. Peter is not speaking of the reign of grace here, but of the grace that will prevail during the reign of Christ. This is clear from the 13th verse, where he exhorts his Jewish Christian brethren, "Hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Remember that like Christ on earth, Peter was a minister of "the Circumcision" (Romans 15:18; Galatians 2:7). His message to the believing Jews had the kingdom reign of Christ in view.
The prophets had clearly predicted that God would judge the world for rejecting His Son and would enthrone Christ in spite of them. He did not do this immediately, however. In matchless mercy, He deferred the judgment and offered salvation to all who would receive it as a free gift through the merits of Christ. And so, while Christ is not yet reigning, grace reigns. "That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign" (Romans 5:21).
An over-abounding grace is the outstanding characteristic of God's dealings with man in "this present evil age."
When Saul of Tarsus became the leader of an organized rebellion against Christ, God in love reached down to save him, choosing him as the very agent through whom He would proclaim grace to a lost world.
Listen to his testimony and his message:
"Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious, but...the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant" (I Timothy 1:13,14).
"Not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many" (Romans 5:15).
"But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound" (Romans 5:20).
"In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace; wherein He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence" (Ephesians 1:7,8).
"Being justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24).
"And God is able to make all grace abound unto you, that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work" (II Corinthians 9:8).
"For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God" (II Corinthians 4:15).
Do you wonder why we say that an over-abounding grace is the outstanding characteristic of God's dealings with man in "this present evil age"? Surely grace is reigning. Otherwise the thunders of God's judgment would roll and He would bring in the reign of Christ.
Though, in his first epistle, Peter told the believing Jews to "hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ," he later learned something of that greater grace which God was to manifest in deferring the judgment of the nations and the reign of Christ, and, as we shall see, he learned it from Paul.
As Israel refused to repent and Christ did not return, some began to cry "Where is the promise of His coming?" (II Peter 3:4).
Peter now answers this beautifully. He says "Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." And note, this is not a lame explanation offered today at the close of the age of Grace. This statement was made at the dawn of the age.
Peter goes on, "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count [it], slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (II Peter 3:8,9 cf. I Timothy 1:16 "all longsuffering"). So the delay must not be counted slackness on God's part, but longsuffering, and since "one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day," this delay might continue for any amount of time, even though the signs of the last days had already begun to appear (Acts 2:16,17).
How did Peter know this? He certainly didn't find it in prophecy.
Before we quote the significant closing words of his epistle let us remember Paul's word in Ephesians 3:1-3. "For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: how that by revelation He made known unto me the Mystery...."
How beautifully this harmonizes with the closing words of Peter's second epistle! He tells them not to count the delay slackness, but says "...account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you" (II Peter 3:15). No wonder he says in the closing verse "But grow in grace!"
Peter has learned why "the revelation of Jesus Christ" is being delayed. May we learn it too. God is waiting because of "His great love," because He is loathe to judge.
How long He will continue to wait we cannot tell. We can only say to the unsaved, "We then, as workers together with Him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain....Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (II Corinthians 6:1,2). And to the saved, "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15,16).
THE MEANING OF GRACE AND HOW THIS AFFECTS US
Ask the average believer what the Bible word "grace" means, and he will doubtless reply "unmerited favor."
Actually, however, grace is much more than this.
Subjectively, it is that loving attitude, or disposition, on God's part, from which all His kindness toward us flows.
Objectively, it is all the kindness that flows from His love toward us.
Thus we read in Ephesians 2:2-6 that we were "the children of disobedience" and therefore "by nature the children of wrath, even as others."
"But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us,
"Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
"And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus."
Note: This passage begins with those who were "children of disobedience" and "children of wrath" and, saving them "by grace," gives them a position in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus!
God's grace to us as sinners was great indeed, for:
"In [Christ] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His [God's] grace" (Ephesians 1:7).
But now, having given us a position in His beloved Son, God's grace goes out to us in still greater measure.
Ephesians 1:6 declares that God has "made us accepted [Lit., "engraced us"] in the Beloved." "The Beloved"! What a name for the Son of God's love!
Beholding us in Christ, God loves us and delights in us more than any father ever delighted in his son, or any grandfather in that precious grandchild.
Thus, while in Ephesians 1:7 we read that we have "redemption...the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace," in Ephesians 2:7 we see these riches of grace increased to us "exceedingly," now that we occupy a position "in the Beloved":
"That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace...."
How?
"...in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus"!
What a prospect! Through the ages of eternity God will lavish His loving kindness upon us to demonstrate to all the universe "the exceeding riches of His grace"!
THE NATURE OF GRACE
To a young Christian who kept bemoaning his failures and lack of spiritual growth, and wondering how God could love him, a more mature believer responded substantially as follows:
"When I leave here and return to my home I will pick up my little baby girl and put her on my knee. Tired as I am, I will dandle her on my knee and, somehow, looking into that darling face and those pretty blue eyes, I will soon feel rested and refreshed.
"This is strange, in a way, for she does not love me. She doesn't even know what love is.
"She doesn't appreciate my problems and has no sympathy for me. My heart can be burdened with grief or filled with anxiety, and my mind vexed with difficult problems, but she doesn't even know or care. She just keeps gurgling and giggling at the attention I lavish upon her.
"She doesn't contribute one cent toward the needs of our family; indeed, she costs me a great deal of money and will for years to come. Yet I love that child more than I can say. There is no sacrifice I would not make for her; no good thing I would not gladly give her."
Such is the grace of God towards us, His children. It does not depend upon our faithfulness to Him or our appreciation of His love to us. He loves us with an unspeakable love and keeps lavishing upon us "the riches of His grace" simply because we are His children in Christ, the Beloved.
And strangely, is it not precisely this fact that proves to be our greatest incentive to give ourselves to Him in loving service and sacrifice!
The Unveiling and Shining Forth of Grace
(Grace—Part II)
"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men" (Titus 2:11).
THE GREATEST REVELATION OF ALL TIME
To the Apostle Paul was committed the greatest revelation of all time: "the mystery," the secret of the gospel and of God's eternal purpose (Colossians 1:25,26). To him was entrusted "the dispensation of the grace of God" (Ephesians 3:1-3). His ministry superseded that of Peter and the eleven as, upon Israel's continued rejection of Christ and His kingdom, he became the apostle to the nations (Romans 11:13). Solemn recognition was given to this fact by the leaders of the twelve (including Peter himself) as they gave to Paul and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship, acknowledging Paul's divine commission to go to the Gentiles, and agreeing thenceforth to confine their own ministry to Israel (Galatians 2:2,7,9).
In connection with this commission Paul was also the divinely appointed minister of the Church of the present dispensation, "the Body of Christ" (Colossians 1:24,25).1 No other Bible writer has one single word to say about "the Church which is [Christ's] Body." None of the other apostles mention it. Not only would we seek in vain for such phraseology in their writings, but we would seek in vain for any discussion of the subject, for they do not discuss the Church of which believers today are members. But Paul, who wrote more of the books of the Bible than any other writer, deals consistently with those truths which concern "the Church which is His Body" (Ephesians 1:19-23).
THE REVELATION LOST SIGHT OF GRACE
But this great revelation and the glorious truths associated with it have been largely lost to the professing Church.
The Church of Rome ignores the facts we have stated above, though they are clearly set forth in her own translations of the Bible. She insists that the true Church of today is a perpetuation of that which was founded by Christ while on earth; a kingdom to be established on earth, over which Peter and the eleven were appointed to be heads and rulers during His absence. And even though our Lord said nothing about a prolonged absence or of any succession of such rulers, Rome declares that her present pope is a successor to Peter and, as such, the Vicar of Christ and supreme Head of the Church on earth. Consistent with this she holds that she is laboring to fulfill the "great commission" given to Peter and the eleven, requiring water baptism for the remission of sins and claiming to possess miraculous powers.
But Protestantism, while boasting freedom from the tyranny of Rome, has by no means emerged entirely from the shadows of the dark ages. She still suffers a Roman hangover. While renouncing papal authority, she nevertheless still clings to the Roman teaching that the Church of today is a perpetuation of that to which our Lord referred in Matthew 16:16-18 and that it is God's kingdom on earth. She too seeks to carry out the "great commission" given to Peter and the eleven, though half-heartedly, for she cannot make up her mind whether water baptism is or is not necessary to the remission of sins and is also confused and disagreed as to whether or not she possesses the miraculous powers of what she calls the "great commission."
Martin Luther, under God, shook Europe to its foundations with a partial recovery of Pauline truth, but the Protestant Church has done little to further that recovery, so that rather than recognizing the distinctive character of Paul's position as our apostle, most Protestants think of him simply as one of the apostles, along with Peter and the eleven. In taking so short a step away from Rome the Protestant Church has assumed a very weak position, for if Paul is to be considered as one with the twelve, Rome can easily prove that Peter, not Paul, was appointed as their chief (See Matthew 16:19; Acts 1:15; 2:14,38; 5:29, etc.).
THE EXTENT OF PAUL'S MINISTRY
Since Christendom has strayed so far and so long from the great Pauline revelation, she has lost sight almost completely of the vastness of his ministry and influence, and the extent to which his message once became known in the world. An example of this is found in what Bible scholars have done with Titus 2:11.
It is generally—and correctly—agreed that the epiphaneia in this passage connotes a conspicuous or illustrious appearing, a shining forth, and that the phrase "all men" therefore does not signify each individual singly, but all men collectively; all mankind. But few can quite believe even that under Paul's ministry the gospel of God's grace shone forth to all mankind, that its proclamation ever became world-wide in scope. They conclude that Paul could not have meant this in Titus 2:11; that he must have meant only that the grace of God, bringing salvation for all, had appeared.
This problem seems to have troubled even the translators of this passage, for Bible translators have never been agreed as to its true meaning.
According to some translations, like Darby's New Translation, the apostle meant that the grace of God had appeared, bringing salvation for all men. According to others, like the Authorized (quoted above) he meant that the grace of God had appeared to all men, bringing salvation. Still others use guarded phraseology, even to the point of ambiguity, but most take one or the other of the above views. The majority, probably, including some of those apt to be most faithful in their renderings, conform in substance to the Authorized Version as quoted above. One cannot help feeling that were it not for the translators' doubts that Paul could have meant that the message of Grace was shining forth to all mankind, all, or nearly all, would have rendered the passage substantially like the Authorized Version. In view of these doubts it is significant that so many have rendered it like the Authorized.
THE TWELVE AND THEIR COMMISSION
Apart from Paul's statement in Titus 2:11 there is much Scriptural evidence that his message did shine forth to all the known world. Before considering this evidence, however, let us first observe that the eleven, under Peter, had previously been sent to proclaim their God-given message to all mankind. In the records of their "great commission" three different terms are used to emphasize this fact:
"Go ye therefore, and teach [make disciples of] all nations" (Matt. 28:19 cf. Luke 24:47).
"Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature [i.e., all creation]" (Mark 16:15).
The reader is asked to remember well these three terms: all nations, all the world and all creation, for we are to find them used again in connection with the ministry of Paul.
The Twelve (Matthias replacing Judas) began to carry out their world-wide mission, but never got beyond their own nation. We should always associate Acts 1:8 with Acts 8:1 in our study of the Acts, for Jerusalem, rather than turning to Messiah so that the apostles could go on with their "great commission," started a "great persecution" against the Church there, with the result that "they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles."
The twelve have often been charged with bigotry and unfaithfulness for remaining in Jerusalem at this time. In fact, however, it was rare courage and fidelity to their commission that kept them in Jerusalem while persecution raged and their very lives were in danger. They remained at Jerusalem for the same reason that the rest fled: because Jerusalem was not turning to Christ. The first part of their commission had not yet been fulfilled, therefore they were duty-bound to remain there.
The twelve did not remain at Jerusalem because they were prejudiced against the salvation of the Gentiles. There is too much scriptural evidence against this. They remained there because they had a clear understanding of the prophetic program and of their Lord's commission (See Luke 24:45; Acts 1:3; 2:4). They knew that according to covenant and prophecy the Gentiles were to be saved and blessed through redeemed Israel (Gen. 22:17,18; Isa. 60:1-3; Zech. 8:13). Our Lord had indicated no change in this program. He worked in perfect harmony with it. Even before His death He had insisted that Israel was first in God's revealed program, commanding His disciples not to go to the Gentiles or to the Samaritans but to "go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt. 10:6), and saying to a Gentile who came for help: "Let the children first be filled" (Mark 7:27). And later, in His "great commission" to the eleven, He had specifically stated that they should begin at Jerusalem (Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8).
Peter certainly indicated his desire that the "commission" under which he worked would bring about the fulfillment of the prophecies and the covenant to Abraham, when he said to the "men of Israel":
"Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
"Unto you first God, having raised up His Son Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities" (Acts 3:25,26).
And Paul, though not working under this same commission, later also bore witness that Israel had been first in God's program, when he said to the Jews at Pisidian Antioch:
"It was necessary that the Word of God should first have been spoken to you…" (Acts 13:46).
It was only when Israel persisted in rejecting Christ and His Kingdom that God began to set the nation aside, raising up Paul to go to the Gentiles with the good news of salvation "by grace," apart from the covenants and prophecies, and "through faith," apart from works. It was then that Paul went to Jerusalem "by revelation" and communicated to the leaders there that gospel which he preached among the Gentiles (Galatians 2:2). And those leaders, including Peter himself, gave to Paul and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship in official recognition of the fact that Paul had been chosen by Christ as the apostle to the nations and that they were henceforth to confine their ministry to Israel (Galatians 2:7-9).
With this official recognition of the divine purpose the apostles at Jerusalem were "loosed" from their original commission to make disciples of all nations, and Paul alone could say:
"I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office" (Romans 11:13).
Arguments are sometimes presented from church history to prove that the twelve did go to Gentile territory; that not more than one or two of them died in Palestine. But even if these arguments could be fully substantiated, this would not enter into the case, for whatever the Circumcision apostles may have done after the agreement of Galatians 2, they had no apostolic authority among the Gentiles, and after the declaration of Acts 28:28 they had no apostolic authority whatever. What any of them wrote (of the Scriptures) after that, they simply wrote by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, just as any other Bible writer.
Let us mark well, then, that Peter and the eleven, who had originally been sent to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom to "all nations," "all the world" and "all creation," never completed their mission. Indeed, had they done so that dispensation would have been brought to a close, for our Lord had said concerning the tribulation period (then imminent, but later graciously postponed):
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come" (Matt. 24:14).
If, therefore, the pouring out of the Spirit had been followed directly by the pouring out of God's wrath (both predicted in Joel 2 as quoted by Peter in Acts 2) Israel would have turned to God in repentance and the twelve would have proceeded to proclaim "the gospel of the kingdom" to all nations. That dispensation would thus have been consummated; the end would have come. But rather than send the judgment immediately, God interrupted the prophetic program and revealed His secret purpose, sending Paul forth to proclaim to all mankind "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24).
PAUL AND HIS COMMISSION
Surely no one even superficially acquainted with the Book of Acts or the Epistles of Paul will question the fact that sometime after our Lord's commission to the eleven, Paul was sent, as an apostle of Christ, to proclaim to all mankind "the gospel of the grace of God."
It is significant that the three terms employed in the so-called "great commission" to indicate its world-wide scope are also used in Paul's epistles in connection with his ministry. Only, whereas the twelve never got to "all nations," "all the world" or "all creation" with their message, Paul did with his.
In closing his epistle to the Romans the apostle says:
"Now to Him that is of power to establish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began.
"But now is made manifest, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith" (Romans 16:25,26).
And to the Colossians he writes concerning "the truth of the gospel":
"Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you…" (Colossians 1:6).
"…which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven [all creation under heaven]; whereof I Paul am made a minister" (Colossians 1:23).
Various arguments may be advanced to prove that "the gospel of the grace of God" did not actually reach "all the world" or "all creation," and we do not deny that to those addressed "all the world" would doubtless mean all the known world, and "all creation" would likewise mean all the creation as they knew it. But the point is that whatever these three phrases mean in the so-called "great commission," they must also mean in these statements by Paul, for the terms are exactly identical in the original.
We have seen how the twelve did not get their message to "all nations," "all the world" or "all creation," because, on the one hand Israel rejected it and on the other hand God had a secret purpose to unfold. But Paul, to whom this secret purpose was revealed, says he did get his message to "all nations," "all the world" and "all creation."
Whereas the twelve never got beyond their own nation in carrying out their commission, it is written of Paul that during his stay at Ephesus "all they which dwelt in Asia [Minor] heard the word of the Lord Jesus" (Acts 19:10). To the Romans he writes: "from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ" (Romans 15:19), and speaks of his plans to go to Spain (15:24), plans which may well have been accomplished between his two imprisonments. Even of his helpers it was said: "These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also" (Acts 17:6). And to the Romans again he says: "your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world" (Romans 1:8).
With regard to this last statement it is argued by some that since Paul had not even been to Rome by then, it must be that believers from the Jerusalem Church got as far as Rome under their "great commission."
We do not accept this as valid, for while indeed there were "strangers from Rome" present at Pentecost, there is no indication that there was any substantial number of these, or that those present were even converted, much less that they started a church at Rome. Thus those to whom Paul wrote at Rome could scarcely have been converts of the Circumcision believers at Jerusalem. They had doubtless been won to Christ through those whom Paul had reached with "the gospel of the grace of God."
This leads us to recognize another important fact. We have seen from Matthew 24:14 that if the twelve had gotten their message to all the world "the end" of that dispensation would have come. This proves at the same time that Paul was not laboring to fulfill the "great commission" to the eleven and that he did not preach the same gospel as they, for then "the end" would have come in his day, since he says that his message had gone to "all the world."
What is Grace?
(Grace Part III)
To the guilty far and wide God is offering "the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace" (Ephesians 1:7).
What a wonderful message to proclaim! What a privilege to be able to tell sinners that "God was in Christ [at Calvary], reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation" (II Corinthians 5:19). How glorious to whisper into the ears of the condemned that they may be "justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus!" (Romans 3:24).
Do you believe these facts and rejoice in them?
This message was fully proclaimed by Paul, the apostle of grace, but was practically lost again for many centuries. Legalism, ritualism and superstition almost wholly obscured the wonderful message of salvation by grace, through faith alone. Thank God, it is being recovered again today. As the days grow darker the light of His Word shines brighter and men of God all over the world are rising to proclaim once more the mystery revealed to Paul—God's purpose of grace for a lost, ruined world. Once again this blessed truth is commanding widespread attention.
Those who proclaim the gospel of the grace of God in its fulness may, of course, expect to have dealings with Satan, for Satan hates grace. He is bitterly opposed to the recovery of the mystery. See how relentlessly he opposed and persecuted the one to whom God first revealed it! But if Paul could "suffer trouble as an evil doer, even unto bonds" (II Timothy 2:9)—if he could willingly lay down his very life for the proclamation of this glorious message, surely we too should be willing to partake of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God (II Timothy 1:8).
It must not be supposed, however, that Satan always opposes the truth in the same way. If he cannot succeed as a roaring lion he will appear as an angel of light. He will suggest that surely a God of love would not condemn even Christ rejectors forever. Indeed, he will contend that sinners are not entirely responsible, for does not Ephesians 1:11 tell us that God "worketh all things after the counsel of His own will?" Therefore, it is argued, He will save them all.
A humble but balanced believer once said to me, "If Satan can't keep you from accepting the message of grace, he'll try to push you clear through!"
This is exactly what he is doing today. As the grace movement grows all over the world, Satan would supplant God's gracious offer of reconciliation (II Corinthians 5:20), with the unscriptural teaching of universal reconciliation—the delusion that all, without exception, will be saved. "This," he says, "is grace—wonderful grace."
But universal reconciliation would most assuredly NOT be grace. Indeed, it is Satan's attempt to overthrow the whole doctrine of salvation by grace. This is done, not by denying the Scriptures, but by perverting them.
THE NATURE OF GRACE
There are two significant phrases in Ephesians 2 which shed clear light upon the character, the nature, of grace. They are found in Verses 2 and 3, which speak of the unsaved as "children of disobedience" and "children of wrath."
Meditate for a moment on these phrases: "children of DISOBEDIENCE"—"children of WRATH."
It is against this dark, black background that we read further,
"But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us,
"Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved),
"And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
"That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:4-7).
According to these plain Scriptures grace is God's mercy and kindness to the undeserving.
THE SIN QUESTION
We can hardly appreciate the meaning of grace unless we recognize the guilt of man and the wrath of God upon sin.
Because Ephesians 1:11 states that God "worketh all things after the counsel of His own will" it is supposed by some that there may be some excuse of the sinner. This verse and others like it are frequently used to relieve man of his responsibility before God.
The Universal Reconciliationists use this as a basis for their arguments that all will be saved. They argue that man is simply manipulated by God, though they are careful to avoid stating it so plainly. The free will of man is called a "phantom" since everything, even sin, is the outworking of God's will. Sin, they say, was brought in by God so that we might know the joy of salvation. And, it is argued, since sin had its origin with God it is only just that He should save all men from it.
But if this is true, then—God is the only sinner in the universe! Then all the vile, horrible sins that blot the pages of history and the more monstrous ones which even base historians could not record for very shame—all these outrages have been acts of God, who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will.
Furthermore, why should He charge me with sin when all the cruelty and injustice, all the adultery and unfaithfulness, all the envy and murder came not from my heart, but from His? How unjust to condemn me when all these things are the products of His will and I have no will in the matter!
Such conclusions are most shocking to the spiritual mind. Who could trust in such a God?—a God who actually conceives and produces the vilest sins in His creatures so that they may learn to praise Him for delivering them from them!
We are well aware that Universalist literature does not state the matter so plainly but let no Universalist deny that this is the inevitable conclusion, if not the obvious interpretation of their teachings.
Thank God, not all who accept Universal Reconciliation do so intelligently, but we warn sincere believers lest they fall for this perversion of the Scriptures and so dishonor God. It is an old heresy which Satan has revived in an attempt to shift the blame of sin from the creature to the Creator. It is Modernism in another cloak. It is called grace, but it is surely not the grace of God as taught in the Bible, for grace is God's mercy and kindness to the guilty—the blameworthy.
MAN RESPONSIBLE
Who would have thought that a wonderful teaching that everyone will be saved could make God the only sinner in the universe? Yet that is the inescapable conclusion at which a sincere Universalist must arrive. Such heresies come from trying to subject divine revelation to human reason.
It is argued that if God works all things after the counsel of His own will it must necessarily follow that man does not have a free will of His own. But that is placing reason above revelation. They forget that, as someone has said, "The opposite of one truth is not necessarily an untruth. It may be another truth."
To the contention that the term "free will of man" is not found in the Bible, we reply that neither is the term "sovereign will of God" found in the Bible, but both doctrines are clearly taught there, and it is the part of faith to bow before that blessed Book. Reason with men out of the Scriptures as Paul did (Acts 17:2), but do not try to reduce the Scriptures to human reason or you will rob your message of all its vitality.
How can we reconcile, in our little minds, the humanity of Christ with His deity, or the human and divine in the Bible, or the fact that God is three Persons yet indivisibly One, or the constant change in creation with its fixed changelessness? We cannot explain or perhaps even understand these paradoxes, yet they are facts, and strangely, these opposites are like the negative and positive currents in electricity. They make the Book throb with life and power. But try to explain one or the other of these opposites away and the Book is no longer the living and powerful Word of God.
Of course we believe Ephesians 1:11. God is working all things after the counsel of His own will. But to use this verse to deny the free will of man would be as unscriptural as to use Mark 3:35 to deny the sovereign will of God. There the Lord Himself said, "For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother."
If man is not free to exercise his will, obviously he cannot be charged with disobedience, for even in his sin he is obeying God's will. If the maker of a machine presses a button and sets it in operation, that machine, having no will of its own, obeys its maker's will. The shuttles which fly backward obey him as well as the shuttles which fly forward. If the machine fails him that is his fault. It cannot disobey him for it has no will of its own.
If this is man's position, what does God mean by "children of disobedience," and what reason would He have to be angry with man? Why should the unsaved be called "children of wrath?"
But man has a free will. He is responsible. He has been disobedient. Lest any should deny this God gave the law "that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God" (Romans 3:19).
Ephesians 1:11 should be read in connection with Psalms 76:10, "Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain." Man's will is free but God's will is sovereign. In the final analysis His will is done. Even a wise employer will use the blunders and wrongs of his employees to advantage. Will not God?
CHILDREN OF DISOBEDIENCE AND CHILDREN OF WRATH
There is an important fact here which has generally been overlooked. The word children implies parents. Even when it is not used concerning blood relatives it still implies parents.
Those who speak of God bringing sin and death into the world should remember that Romans 5:12 says that "by ONE MAN sin entered into the world and death by sin." Now, Paul prays that believers might have the spiritual perception to appreciate and appropriate their oneness with Christ. That fact, though blessedly true, is not easy for us in our present condition to grasp. But there is one truth which should be very easy for us to grasp—our oneness, as human beings, with Adam. As a human being I am as much a part of Adam as my finger is of my body. I am branch of Adam. I came from him. I was in him. When he sinned I sinned. When he fell, I fell. I have not just sinned in the last few years. I have not just recently become guilty. I sinned in Adam. I am part of Adam. I was born guilty (not unfortunate, but guilty). My sinful nature is not an accident, something that recently came into being—it is the nature of Adam.
Thank God, it is a wonderful fact that "I am crucified with Christ." I have been baptized into His death and resurrection. "If any man be in Christ he is a new creature" (II Corinthians 5:17). But "the flesh" is part of Adam and has the sentence of death upon it.
Some years ago, speaking of a poor drunkard, a friend said to me, "But how can you blame him? Just look at his parents," "Yes," I said, "But you should have known their parents!" Of course, I was merely trying to point out the fact that it all goes back to one man. But that does not relieve man of his responsibility and guilt; it establishes and emphasizes it. If in Christ I am a new creation, a member of His flesh and of His bones (Ephesians 5:30), then it is even more apparent that in myself I am a member of Adam, of his flesh and of his bones. My sin and guilt dates back to Adam.
BABES AND GROWN-UPS
But there is another remarkable fact which we ought to notice—a fact which does not appear on the surface of these verses in Ephesians 2. The word for children in Verse 2 is different from that used in Verse 3. The word for children in Verse 3 is "teknon" which means simply "born one." We have no word for it in the English, but the Scotch have a word—it is "bairn." Now God says in Verse 3 that we were by nature the "bairns of wrath." But the word in Verse 2 is "huios" which means a "grown son." This immediately suggests understanding and responsibility. Note that this word is used in reference to man's disobedience. Where human disobedience is concerned men are called "grown sons." God will leave us no excuse. He says "You knew what you were doing." "You were disobedient." "You are responsible."
Have you ever noticed the construction of Romans 5:12? "By one man sin entered into the world and death by sin and so,"—So what? We would expect it to go on "And so death passed upon all men by one man's sin." But it ends quite differently: "And so death passed upon all men for that [because] all have sinned." After telling us that by one man sin entered into the world, he places the guilt directly upon the children as well as the parent because all have sinned! Do you see it? They all sinned in him. They all sinned out of him. Collectively and individually all are sinners. There is no escape! We regret that some Universal Reconciliationists have tampered with this verse to make it fit their theories.
Is it not a fact that when it comes to disobedience, we are grown sons? We knew what we were doing. God emphasizes this fact, for we must see our guilt before He can reveal His grace.
Romans 5:12 reminds us that in all essential particulars the fall of Adam has been re-enacted in every human life. We show that we are from Adam because we are all individual Adams. Just as in Adam's case there was the violation of the known will of God. This violation wrought to separate us from God. Then came the vain attempt at self-justification! This is why Ephesians 2:2 calls unbelievers "grown sons of disobedience."
Undiluted Wrath and Undiluted Grace
(Grace—Part IV)
In the new evangelicalism that has become so popular in Christendom, two vital elements are lacking: 1) a consistent emphasis on God's wrath against sin, and 2) the conviction of sin that follows such an emphasis. This is important, since it is doubtful that anyone was ever saved who was not first convicted of his sin and his need of a Savior.
JUDGMENT TO COME
"And as he [Paul] reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled..." (Acts 24:25).
Judgment to come is declared in Scripture to be one of the "first principles" of its doctrine (Hebrews 6:1,2). In our day, however, this fact is held in general disregard and often made light of. Worldly performers sing and joke about "the Judgment Day." Many humorous motion pictures and plays have been written about it. Few men tremble as Felix did, at the thought of judgment to come, probably because few men preach it as Paul did.
Too many Christians even, failing to understand Paul's great message of grace, think of God only as a Being of infinite love, who gave His Son to die for man, forgetting that it was His infinite justice that demanded so terrible a price for sin, and that the lake of fire is but the expression of God's hatred of sin, and His righteous indignation at man's rejection of His love and grace. Christians are also prone to put the mildest possible construction upon those passages which deal with the coming judgment of the believer's conduct and service, as though this were nothing more than a joyous handing out of rewards at the close of life's race.
But this is all wishful thinking. The Governor Felix was at least more realistic in his thinking—as Paul was in his preaching. Acts 24:24 tells how Felix called Paul before him and "heard him concerning the faith in Christ." Had Paul been one of our modern neo-evangelicals he would have told Felix how wonderful Jesus is, how willing to solve our problems, how ready to forgive our sins, if only we are willing to "make our commitment" to Him! But Paul told the governor nothing of the kind. Rather, as we have seen above, "he reasoned of righteousness, temperance [self-control], and judgment to come," and "Felix trembled." Felix's sudden adjournment of the hearing does not alter the fact that Paul's approach was the right, the Scriptural approach in this instance.
This writer had a similar experience some years ago in the city of Milwaukee. As I sat in a barber's chair, the barber used such foul language and used the Lord's name so profanely, that I finally stopped him in the midst of his work and asked: "Aren't you afraid to be talking like this? Don't you know that God's Word says: `The Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain'?" At this he cursed and said: "I'm my own God."
I replied: "Some God! If you don't die suddenly or soon through some accident or disease, one thing is certain: You will get old, and shrivel up, and die. Then they will dig a hole in the ground and bury your body in it. God's Word says that `it is appointed unto men once to die,' and you know that this much of the Bible is true. But do you know what the rest of that verse says?" "What?" he snapped. "Well, it's found in Hebrews 9:27, and this is how it reads: `It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.' You may hope that this is not true, but you can't be sure, can you? All you can do, if you let yourself think about it, is wonder and worry. And you should worry, for the Bible is full of this. It says again and again that `every one of us shall give account of himself to God.'"
Strangely and suddenly this man's bravado was all gone. His chin began to quiver. His voice faltered. And then, of course, I had the great pleasure of breathing into his ears the wonderful gospel of the wonderful grace of God.
GOD'S WRATH REVEALED
Before men can truly appreciate the grace of God they must recognize the wrath of God.
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold [Lit., restrain, or suppress] the truth in unrighteousness" (Romans 1:18).
Just a casual look at the facts will confirm to us this declaration from God's Word. His wrath against ungodliness (spiritual wrong) and unrighteousness (moral wrong) is revealed in many ways. Not only does God's Word say that His anger is kindled against sin, but He visits it, even here and now, with trouble and misery, sorrow and death. Moreover the conscience, when awakened, can so trouble the sinner as to make him completely miserable though no one but he and God know about his sins. So unbearably wretched have some men become about their hidden sins that they have been driven to confess them even though faced with long imprisonment or death.
But God's wrath against sin is most clearly and solemnly revealed at Calvary's Cross and in the "lake of fire."
At Calvary a just and holy God unsheathed His sword and smote even His own beloved Son, as He took our sins upon Himself. The Cross was at the same time, however, the crowning demonstration of God's mercy and love to sinners, and those who reject or ignore this love will suffer the sorrows of "the second death," the "lake of fire."
Regarding the essential nature of the lake of fire, Dr. Joseph A. Seiss has said: "What that `lake of fire' is, I cannot tell, I do not know, and I pray I may never find out." One thing, however, is clear. It is an expression of divine anger over love spurned. Here those who have rejected God's gracious payment for sin will have to pay the price themselves—and take an eternity to do it.
GOD'S WRATH INFINITE
We are aware of the fact that many people, even many religious leaders, reject the Bible doctrine of everlasting punishment, but their arguments are not valid.
First they fail to recognize the infinite character of sin. If I smite a stranger unprovoked I have committed a grave sin. If I smite a friend, my sin is much more grievous. If I smite my brother, still more so; if my mother, it is multiplied again; if the ruler of my nation, it is multiplied still further and I stand guilty of unspeakable wrongdoing. Yet the stranger, my friend, my brother, my mother, and the ruler of my country are all themselves poor, finite, sinful, dying creatures. It immediately becomes evident, then, that sin against a holy and infinite God takes on infinite proportions, and warrants an infinite penalty.
But second, those who deny eternal punishment fail to recognize the infinite character of God. Strangely, unbelievers are glad to acknowledge that God is infinite in everything except in His wrath against sin. They know He must be infinite in wisdom and power. All one needs is a microscope and a telescope to see that. Generally they also readily agree that He is infinite in love and mercy. But if this is so, must we not conclude that He is infinite and that therefore He must be infinite in every respect and in all His attributes: in wisdom and power, in love and mercy and grace—and in His wrath against sin?
If God's grace is beyond our finite comprehension, does it not logically follow that this must be equally so with respect to His wrath? Is it not altogether fitting that as we stand amazed at God's grace, so we should stand aghast at His wrath? Should we revel in His infinite mercy and love, but tone down His wrath to fit our finite notions? Should we rejoice that "God is love," but ignore the fact that "our God is a consuming fire"? (See I John 4:16; Hebrews 12:29).
Does some reader object that in writing thus we are departing from our God-given calling to preach grace? We reply that it is impossible to truly proclaim the grace of God apart from the wrath of God. It is Paul, the apostle of grace who, commenting on a list of sins, warns:
"Let no man deceive you with vain words, for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience" (Ephesians 5:6).
This he repeats in Colossians 3:6 and elsewhere, while in Romans 2:5 he declares that those who are hard and impenitent as to sin "treasure up to themselves wrath against the day of wrath."
GOD'S WRATH UNDILUTED
But God's wrath against sin is not only revealed every day, and at the Cross and in the lake of fire; it will also be revealed historically in His dealings with men here on earth. This coming time of God's wrath will mark the end of the day of man, described in Daniel 2:31-43, and the beginning of "the day of the Lord," so often referred to in prophecy, and will follow soon after the close of the present "dispensation of the grace of God."
First God will allow man, with his "clever solutions," to bring his own troubles to a head, as it were. Man will have his Antichrist (see John 5:43; II Thessalonians 2:3-12) and seemingly all will go well, until it becomes evident what he has done to them. Then God will begin to intervene directly. Both the prophet Daniel and our Lord described this period of time as one of unprecedented trouble.
"And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time" (Daniel 12:1).
"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be" (Matthew 24:21).
These are only two of many Scripture passages on this subject which indicate that the coming "great tribulation" will mark the total collapse of civilization. As we consider the present world-wide spirit of lawlessness and rebellion, and the unbelievably fast pace at which great nations are falling before the forces of evil—as we consider all this, does it not appear that the world is even now racing recklessly toward this very time when God, in His wrath, will finally intervene?
It is the Book of the Revelation, principally, that describes, often by signs and symbols, this dreadful day of God's wrath. If anything is clear, as we study this book, it is the fact that God does not take sin lightly, especially presumptuous sin. He does not give sin a slap on the wrist, so to speak. Rather, those who have lived on in sin, resisting God's love and grace, will then have to suffer His undiluted wrath here on earth, long before they are called to appear at the "Great White Throne."
"Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved," says II Thessalonians 2:10, they will be given over to Antichrist, who will deceive them with "power and signs and lying wonders," and they will "believe a lie,"
"That they all might be damned [Lit., judged] who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (II Thessalonians 2:12).
Let us see what we find as to this when we turn to the Book of the Revelation.
In Revelation 6:15-17, which describes the conditions existing more than one thousand years before the judgment of the "Great White Throne" (See Rev. 20:6-12), we read these terrible words:
"And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every freeman, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
"And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
"For the great day of His wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?"
This phrase, "the wrath of the Lamb," is most significant. Our Lord died as a lamb for our sins, but He arose again and, "rejected of men," ascended to the Father's right hand, where the Father welcomed Him with these words:
"Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool" (Psalma 110:1 cf. Acts 2:32-38).
For nearly 2,000 years now the Son has remained a voluntary Exile, sending His ambassadors forth in grace to offer reconciliation to His enemies.1 But this will not go on forever. One day, who knows how soon, our Lord will recall His ambassadors and the day of grace will be brought to a close. Then, not many years after, He will be "revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ" (II Thessalonians 1:7,8).
It is solemnly significant in Revelation 6:15-17 that even as men see this event approaching they will cry to the rocks and mountains to "fall on them" and hide them from "the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb."
Fearful as all this is to contemplate, it is but a foretaste of the sufferings that the worshippers of Antichrist will have to endure. In Revelation 14:10 we read of every such worshipper:
"The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation."
In that day it will be clear to all that it is not enough merely to be religious, or to "have faith in something or someone," as we are so often told. Indeed, in Revelation Chapters 16-18 we find God dealing with Babylon, the headquarters of the great ecumenical Church that will emerge after the true Church has been taken to glory. This Church will be composed largely of professed, but apostate "Christians," who never knew Christ and will then be red-ripe for the worship of Antichrist. Our Lord calls this Church, not "the Bride," but "the harlot" and "the mother of harlots," and in Revelation 16:19 we read:
"And great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath."
It makes one shudder to read the full account of the fall of Babylon, and to see how God will force the leaders and constituents of this false Church of the future to drink the cup of His wrath.
Let us not suppose, then, that it is enough to belong to some church. The true Church, which will be caught away before this awful time of wrath, is made up solely of those who have been reconciled to God through faith in Christ as their personal Savior from sin.
Finally, in Revelation 19:11-15, we have the actual return of Christ to earth. The symbolism is most expressive.
This time He does not come "meek and lowly," and "sitting on an ass's colt." Rather He appears on "a white horse," to "judge and make war"2 (Ver. 11), and the armies of heaven follow Him (Ver. 14). This time He does not go submissively to Calvary. Rather He returns from Calvary with "a vesture dipped [drenched] in blood" (Ver. 13). This time He does not go about in compassion, preaching good news and healing the sick and afflicted. Rather His eyes are "as a flame of fire," and on His head are "many crowns" (Ver. 12).
"And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations; and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of almighty God" (Ver. 15).
Thus, as the Mosaic dispensation demonstrated historically the total depravity of man and his utter inability to obey God's law, and as the Pauline dispensation demonstrated historically the infinite grace of God to sinners, so the day of God's wrath, coming before the kingdom reign of Christ, will demonstrate historically that God does not tolerate sin. His wrath against sin is not diluted by leniency, tolerance or indulgence. Men are either "justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24) or they must suffer the just consequences of their sins.
WHAT THE GOSPEL IS
The foregoing should help us to understand more fully what the gospel of the grace of God is. It is not a promise that God will be lenient with our sins, or that He will forgive if we are deeply sorry for our sins, or if we repent, or pray, or pay, or say, or do anything whatsoever to make amends for our wrongdoing. It is rather the good news that the infinite penalty for our sins has been paid by Christ at Calvary. In Romans 1:16 the Apostle Paul declares:
"I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth...."
We believers have experienced the blessed truth of this statement, but why is the gospel "the power of God unto salvation"? Wherein lies its mighty power to save? The answer to this question is found in the next verse:
"For therein is the righteousness of God revealed..." (Ver. 17).
You say: "I thought that the love of God was revealed in the gospel," and you are right. For this the apostle expresses his gratitude again and again. But what made him so amazed about the gospel is the fact that it tells how Christ died to pay the just penalty for our sins, and therein is the righteousness of God revealed. He could now, "at this time," declare "His righteousness," as well as His love, in dealing with sin, "that He might be just, and the Justifier of him that believeth in Jesus" (Romans 3:26). And to these words he appropriately adds: "Where is boasting then? It is excluded" (Ver. 27).
This is why the apostle was so careful "lest the Cross of Christ should be made of none effect" by "wisdom of words" or by the addition of a religious work once required for salvation (See I Corinthians 1:17).
"For the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved it is the power of God" (Ver. 18).
It is because the Cross demonstrates the righteousness of God in dealing with sin, that the apostle declares:
"God forbid that I should glory [boast], save in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Galatians 6:14).
Paul had nothing to boast of3—except what our blessed Lord had accomplished at the Cross in dealing justly and completely with the sin question. This is why he calls his message "the preaching of the Cross" (I Corinthians 1:18,23).
As we follow Paul in this, thank God, we too can tell the vilest sinner with profound pride: "The sin question has been justly and fully dealt with by the death of Christ at Calvary. All that remains for you to do is to acknowledge Him as your Lord and Savior, accepting eternal life as `the free gift of God.'"
GOD'S GRACE INFINITE
We have already seen that God is infinite in all His attributes, simply because He is infinite. Thus His grace too is infinite in character, scope and extent. This is why Paul's epistles have so much to say about God's lavish dealings with believers, whether from among the chosen race or from among the Gentiles whom He had previously "given up" (Romans 1:24,26,28).
"For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon Him.
"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:12,13).
Thus we read in Ephesians 1:7 that even now, in this present life, we may rejoice that,
"We have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace."
And in Ephesians 2:7 the apostle looks forward into the distant future and declares that it is God's purpose:
"That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus."
It must always be remembered that this present "dispensation of the grace of God" is not mentioned in the prophetic Scriptures. In Ephesians 3 the apostle distinctly states that it was a "mystery" (Vers. 2,3), which "in other ages was not made known" (Ver. 5) and that it was first revealed to him, the chief of sinners saved by grace.
This is why he exults in Verse 8 of the same chapter:
"Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ."
This too, is why he refers in Colossians 1:26,27 to "the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to His saints" and declares that,
"God would make known [to His saints, Ver. 26] what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you [Gentiles] the hope of glory."
How unspeakably sad that so few of God's people have any real conception of this "mystery" and its "riches of glory," when God emphatically declares that He would have us understand it!
GOD'S GRACE UNDILUTED
But as God's grace in dealing with sin is infinite in scope and extent, it is also undiluted and must, in the nature of the case, remain so. It cannot be mixed or watered down with religion or works. Acknowledging our utter depravity and unworthiness, we must accept salvation as the gift of God's grace alone, and not try to pay Him for it. The apostle is very emphatic about this in Romans 4:5, where he does not merely say that justification is not to him that worketh, but that it is "to him that worketh not."
"To him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness."
This means that to be saved we must stop trying. We must come to the end of ourselves and trust in Him alone to take care of the whole matter for us. This is brought out again and again in the epistles of Paul.
As God still lingers in mercy, we pray that He will convict His saints of the importance of proclaiming the pure, powerful "gospel of the grace of God," as it is found in His Word, rightly divided. Also, we urge those who have not yet accepted salvation by grace, through faith in Christ, to do so without delay. We close this article with a few passages from the Word itself, praying that the Spirit will apply them to each heart. Note as you read, that God's grace is never mixed with human merit or religion or works. It is always presented to us pure and undiluted.
"If by grace, then it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work" (Romans 11:6).
"I do not frustrate the grace of God, for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead [has died] in vain" (Galatians 2:21).
"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and [His own] grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began" (II Timothy 1:9).
Finally, in Ephesians 2 the apostle, by the Spirit, sums it all up beautifully. Making it clear that we were the "full grown sons" [Gr., huios] of disobedience,4 and therefore "the children [Gr., teknon, born ones] of wrath, even as others" (Vers. 2,3) he goes on to say:
"But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us,
"Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ (by grace ye are saved),
"And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
"That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
"For by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
"Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:4-9).
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