Saved by Grace
By Charles Wages
"But now the righteousness of
God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and
upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned,
and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through
the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."
The above Scripture is from the book
of Romans, chapter 3. Special emphasis is given to verse 24 which states:
"Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in
Christ Jesus."
I would like to bring to your
attention, that the grace of God has been acclaimed, or announced, in the Word.
Now grace simply is God doing something for us that we cannot do for ourselves.
Some have spoken of it as the "unmerited favor" of God to fallen
mankind. But we cannot define it, because it is of God, and God cannot be
defined. We can only express it in our own words, our own hearts, and our own
feelings.
However, we sincerely do believe
that God's grace has allowed us to be saved. Therefore, we could never have
become Christians apart from the grace of God. (None of us are worthy to be
saved.) Because God so loved us that He gave His only begotten Son, He has
acclaimed through Him His grace. We are saved by grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus. If it were not for the grace of God, there would not
be a person go to heaven. We must emphasize again, no one from Adam to this
present time, except the Lord himself, is worthy or good enough to go to
heaven. Too many times people try to justify themselves by their good works or
by their own intelligence. But we must understand that all are of fallen Adam
and apart from the grace of God could never be saved from sin and enter into
heaven's glory. Now that grace has been acclaimed in Jesus Christ. The Bible
says in John 1:17: "The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came
by Jesus Christ." The Lord Jesus Christ is full of the grace of God, and
He manifested that grace to its fullness when He laid down His life on the
Cross of Calvary for the sins of the whole world. "Christ died for our
sins, according to the scripture. He was buried and he arose again the third
day, according to the scripture." He has ascended back into the glory and
through Him redemption is offered to all who will trust His grace. So we can
speak of grace being acclaimed in the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
In the book of Romans, chapter 5, we
read in verses 20 and 21 these statements:
"Moreover the law entered, that
the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:
That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through
righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord."
You can easily see that the Apostle
Paul is emphasizing the abounding grace of God. Not only has God's grace been
acclaimed in Jesus Christ, but God's grace abounds in Jesus Christ. Now we are
sinners by nature and practice, but the grace of God overabounds our sins. In
other words, though our lives might be sinful, yet the grace of God overflows
or overabounds all sin. Now this must be attributed to the grace of God. How
else can we account for the fact that the vilest, poorest, most miserable
sinner can be saved from the degradation of sin and raised into the highest
life of God's creation. This is what God can do for anyone who trusts Him. So
anyone can be saved by grace, but no one will be saved apart from the grace of
God. No one can say "I have done it myself," "I am good
enough," "I have given enough," or "I've labored enough to
enter heaven."
It should be known that everyone has
access to God's grace because in the book of Romans, chapter 5 and verses 1 and
2 it is stated:
"Therefore being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom also we
have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of
the glory of God."
Not only has this grace been
acclaimed, not only is it an abounding grace, but it is an accessible grace.
That is, it is open to all. And you know even after we have been saved by grace
we need to be taught by the grace of God. "For the grace of God that
bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that denying
ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly
in this present world." As we continuously need this grace, it is open,
accessible to all who will come to Christ.
And it should be said that God's
grace is an applied grace. "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." This grace of God can be applied to anyone's heart when
they simply give up of their own effort, and say, "Yes, Jesus, come into
my heart, I need to be saved by Thy grace." You see, there are a lot of
people today who are trusting in their religion, whatever kind it might be. It
might be the mystical kind of the East, it might be the new kinds of the West, it
might be the old traditional kind of Western Europe. It doesn't make any
difference what kind, religion will not save. Religion might satisfy the flesh
and give a false peace of mind or lulling of mind by Satan, but not salvation.
It will not bring forgiveness of sins, nor a new life. This wonderful complete
salvation only comes through the finished work of Jesus Christ and as His work
is applied to the heart by God's grace. Yes, for by grace are you saved, and it
is this grace that keeps us, even until the day of redemption.
It should be understood also, that
in God's great plan for the age, that we live in the "dispensation of the
grace of God." As we study the Bible, we realize that in the Old Testament
there was a strict adherence to the law of Moses. God gave the law of Moses to
the people of Israel in order for them to be governed properly. It governed
their social life, their religious life, and their governmental or political
life. When Jesus Christ came he said "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth
shall set you free," yet, today many people are still struggling under the
Old Testament economy. Many religions today are based partly or wholly upon an
Old Testament concept of the law. But you see, Jesus Christ came to fulfill the
law, and He did. And now, through His grace, we are saved apart from the law of
Moses. We must also understand that we do not live under the Old Testament
economy, but live in a new age, the dispensation of the grace of God. The
Apostle Paul tells us in the book of Ephesians, chapter 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; (as I wrote afore in few words,
whereby when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
which in other ages (or past dispensations) was not made known unto the sons of
men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit."
Later on the Word reveals that today
God is calling out His Church, the Body of Christ. Those who receive Jesus
Christ as personal Saviour are baptized by the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 12);
raised into a newness of life (Romans 6); and added to the Church which is the
Body of Christ (Ephesians 1 and Colossians 1). We are sealed until the day of
redemption and waiting for God to come for His purchased possession (I
Thessalonians 4). This dispensation of the grace of God will culminate when
Christ comes in the air to catch His Church into glory. This is the hope of
every believer. Yes, we are living today, not under the law, not under
innocence, promise, human government—we are living under the dispensation of
the grace of God. This is the age in which Christ is saving men by grace, apart
from their works, adding them by the baptism of the Holy Spirit into the Church
which is the Body of Christ, and there to wait until the redemption of the Body
of Christ into glory. This is the truth of the Scripture given through the
Apostle Paul to the Church of this age. This is the mystery spoken of in the
book of Ephesians, chapter 3. Therefore, we are now saved by grace, we are kept
by grace, we are taught by grace, and we will be taken into glory by the grace
of God.
We can always be sure that God loves
us, and that His grace is always available and sufficient. We have seen that
this grace has been acclaimed, that it abounds, that it is accessible, and that
it can be applied to the heart and life of anyone who will trust Christ. The
Scripture says: "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."
"Marvelous,
infinite, matchless grace,
Freely
bestowed on all who believe;
You
that are longing to see His face,
Will
you this moment His grace receive
The Preserved and Living Word of God
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