Dear Church,
As we continue our series on the five 'solas' of the Reformation, we move to "Sola Gratia" or GRACE ALONE.
The apostle Paul declared,
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all peopleTitus 2:11
What exactly is grace?
Grace (χαρις [karis] in Greek) is God's favor, his kindness towards the undeserving. In simple language, grace is a gift we don't deserve.
Praise God! The theme of grace, is the theme of the entire Scriptures. Throughout the Bible, we learn of the God of grace, who is on a mission of grace (see Ephesians 1:4-8). His plan: to reconcile rebel sinners to himself, by granting salvation as a free gift for the undeserving. And He does this by giving HIMSELF so that in Him we might have life.
So what does we mean, when we say Salvation is by Grace Alone, and why was that a big deal during the time of the Reformation?
It might surprise some of you to know that the Roman Catholic Church has always taught it is impossible for sinful mankind to be saved apart from God's grace. At the Council of Trent, the Roman Catholic Church affirmed the following statement:
“If anyone says that man can be justified before God by his own works, whether done by his own natural powers or by the teaching of the Law, without divine grace through Jesus Christ, let him be anathema” (Session 6; can. 1)
However, while the Roman Catholic Church teaches that we need grace, they do not teach that grace is all we need for salvation. Their view of salvation is that man has “the ability and the obligation to cooperate with God in securing his own salvation.” (Cited from Faith and Good Works - Catholicism.org)
Basically, God gives us grace, but it is up to us to remain in that grace and secure our salvation.
What if you mess up?
In Roman Catholic Doctrine, those who commit sin must repent and receive grace from God, through the sacraments of the church (like confession to a priest). In addition, works of penance may be required. If you commit a mortal sin and die without repentance you will be damned (Note: a mortal sin is defined as a grave matter forbidden by God, committed with full knowledge, done with deliberate consent. For more on this, seeMortal Sin: The Basics | Catholic Answers Magazine). The consequences of committing a venial or "lesser" sin are less severe, but nonetheless you must go to the priest to receive grace through the sacraments. Without the proper penance and sacraments you will likely spend time in purgatory before you can enter heaven.
This view of salvation places a terrible burden upon people's souls. No one can have assurance, because they must always maintain their status as righteous.
Is this view of salvation by grace really what the Bible teaches? NO it is not.
To understand what the word of God says about salvation by grace, let's look at Ephesians 2:1-10 (pause now to grab your Bible and read).
Notice, in verse 1-3, the description of mankind.
Does the text say, "Mankind needs a helping hand," or "mankind is sick and needs some medicine to get better?" No!
What does the text say???
"You were dead!" Dead in your trespasses and sins. According to the Bible, we are all living corpses without the grace of God.
The text goes on: "We were... following the course of this world... living according to the passions of our flesh... by NATURE children of wrath."
Here is a quote from "Reasonable Theology,"
In verse 3, we see that the apostle Paul is speaking of all mankind. He portrays the whole world as one large cemetery, and the cause of death inscribed on each tombstone is the same: dead through “trespasses and sins."
However, hard we try to justify ourselves, this is how God sees the world... He says, "ALL have fallen short of the glory and goodness of God… No one is good except God alone." Therefore we are only saved, according to Ephesians 2:4-5, because God is rich in mercy. We are saved because of the great love he has for us. We are saved because EVEN WHILE WE WERE DEAD... he made us alive together with Christ.
"BY Grace you have been saved" (2:5b).
Not by grace, plus merit, or plus works, or plus anything. We were dead. But God has made us alive, because of his grace, a gift for the ill-deserving (for not only do we not deserve kindness, we actually deserve wrath, see Ephesians 2:3).
Grace + anything does not equal grace. For grace is FREE. Grace is a gift.
"This is NOT your own doing, it is the gift of God, NOT the result of works that no one may boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
We are saved by Grace alone, for grace would not be grace if we had to add to grace. This is hard for us to accept. We naturally want to DO something.
Martin Luther once said, “If God were willing to sell His grace, we would accept it more quickly than when He offers it for nothing.”
BUT we must resist such thinking, remembering we were dead, we were helpless, we were enemies of God, when he reached out to save us.
What a freeing reminder! You don't need to bribe God with anything. What could you possibly give that would repay God for your rebellion? If we could pay God for grace, we would not need grace. But we cannot pay him, better yet we do not need to pay him. The free gift of God is Eternal Life through Jesus Christ our Lord(Romans 6:23).
Not only is it Grace which saves us, but it is Grace which keeps us. The LORD told the Apostle Paul, "my grace is sufficient for you,” my grace is enough even in your weakness.
I began with a quote from Paul’s letter to Titus. The verse continues… "The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, TRAINING us to renounce godliness and worldly passions, and to live self-control, upright and godly lives in the present age." This passage teaches us that God in his grace doesn't just give us a ticket to eternal life, his grace teaches us. His grace enables us to live a new life. Grace changes a person.
John Newton understood the importance of God's grace from beginning to end.
He wrote,
"Twas grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home"
Our salvation is secure in God's grace.
In fact, he has saved us (Eph. 2:7) that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of HIS GRACE in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
God continues to save, he continues to protect and keep us all to the "praise of the glory of his grace" (See Eph. 1:14).
Application to life
Today grace is often acknowledged, yet easily forgotten in our day to day lives.
Sinclair Ferguson commented,
"we sing about “amazing grace” and speak of “amazing grace,” but far too often it has ceased to amaze us... perhaps we would be more honest to sing of ‘accustomed grace.'"
Have you become accustomed to God's grace?
O that we would always remember,
"I was dead in sin, BUT by the grace of God I am alive in Christ."
God's free gift of life through his son truly is amazing!
Grace to You,
Matt
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