Redemption and Escape
Grace is defined as God's free and unmerited favor, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings. Grace may also be associated with the well-used acronym for God's Riches At Christ's Expense. The salvation afforded by grace is undoubtedly of high value to all believers. However, it is the beginning of the impact of grace on a believer's life. Let's delve deeper into what God's grace means to humans.
Grace is first a covering for the believer. God's grace allows for the believer's adoption into the family of God. As a child of God, the believer is now covered by the Father. It is this covering that allows us to claim such truths as "no weapon formed against us shall prosper" and "Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Through grace, a corrupted being, living in opposition to God, is transformed into a child of the Father God. The transformation is complete and final.
The grace of God is a powerful blessing in the believer’s life. It acts to both cover and to provide escape from temptation.
Let's look into another perspective of grace's covering. Paul writes, "The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase." Before there was a law, trespass was a personal judgment. No standard existed outside of individual conscience. So, the law was given as a standard by which humans could hold fellow humans to a measure of morality. The law was not implemented for God's benefit. Humans needed the standard, and they have used it to establish civilizations. With this standard, humankind was able to develop long-lasting civil continuity. However, it is not solely by the standard that human societies have thrived. Grace has been there too. In fact, it was grace in greater quantity. Paul says, "But where sin increased, grace increased all the more." It was grace that covered humankind and made community possible. Without grace, your country, state, city, and neighborhood would not exist. Do I have support for such a claim? Try Genesis 6, Genesis 11, and Genesis 19. There are countless biblical and non-biblical examples to suggest that humans are incapable of living together, without grace. Grace is that covering that binds humankind together under the love of God.
However, grace is more than a cover. It is also power. Grace does not stop at removing the penalty of sin from a believer's life. The grace of God empowers the believer to overcome trial and temptation in life. Scripture states, "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation, he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it." That passage describes grace. Grace is in both the redemption and the escape.
As a child merits favor from a parent, so does grace provide the believer with God's favor. Just as a son or daughter's actions do not warrant a parent's favor, so is God's favor unwarranted to the believer. The favor is bestowed because Father God loves His child. This is the origin of the power behind grace - a relationship with God the Father. If one believes Jesus Christ is the Son of God and calls upon Him to save them from the penalty of their sin, they become a child of God. This new relationship with the Father, no longer Creator and fallen creation, but instead, Heavenly Father and loved child, gives the child favor in the Father's eyes. That favor is called grace, and it is the seedbed for the power of God to work within and through the believer's life. So grace is a big deal.
Some suggest that the modern church has made a little too much of grace. Believing it is time to teach the need for repentance, the existence of hell, and the need to live righteous lives. I agree and believe there is enough time to preach the whole gospel. However, there is no repentance without grace. There are no righteous acts without grace. There is no escaping the ultimate penalty of sin, death, and hell without God's grace! I think that such a marvelous gift from God deserves highlighting.