TODAY’S WORD FOR THURSDAY DECEMBER 3, 2015.
GRACE
Mercy; clemency and pardon; freely given unmerited favor; God’s free and unmerited favor to sinful humanity.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9.
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning, great is Your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, therefore I hope in Him. The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul that seeks Him. Lamentations 3:22-25.
Most people have trouble giving a good definition of grace from a biblical perspective. This is because they do not understand that true grace from a biblical perspective is the clemency and pardon that God offers us to save us from our sins. It is given freely to us even though it is unmerited; if we will admit that we are sinners. Simply stated, grace is God’s unmerited favor. God sent His Son to die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins and we can be saved from our sinful nature by GOD’S GRACE!
There is no sin that God by His grace has not forgiven. In church we have often sung the song, “Grace, grace, God’s grace, grace that is greater than all our sins.” This says it all.
Salvation is given to us by grace, because God loves us, and not by any works that we may do. There is absolutely nothing we can do to earn our salvation. It is God’s gift to us.
There is a wonderful example of God’s grace given us in John 5:1-18. This is an account of a sick man at the pool of Bethesda near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem. Hundreds of sick people, blind, crippled, and paralyzed sat and lay by this pool because they thought that when the water stirred, the first sick person that got in the pool would be healed.
The man had been an invalid and was by this pool for 38 years. When Jesus saw this man by the pool, and He knew how long he had been lying by the pool, He said to him, “Do you want to get well?” The man responded saying that when the water is stirred I do not have anyone to put me in the pool and by the time I get in, somebody else is already in the pool.
Jesus responded and said, “Get up, take your bedroll and start walking.” The man was healed on the spot. He picked up his bedroll and walked away.
Usually Jesus healed people in response to faith. In this case the man did not know who Jesus was nor did he ask Jesus for help. His healing was unmerited but because of Jesus mercy on him he was healed by grace. Later Jesus saw him walking in the temple and said to him.” See, you are well again. Stop sinning.” The man only saw his physical need but God saw his need to be spiritually healed. God not only healed him physically but gave him, by grace, eternal life.
Our memory verse for this week is found in Psalm 33:1.
Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise Him.
Thank You that You have saved me by Your grace. Help me to learn by the experiences that we read in Your Word as to how to share our faith with those who do not know You as Lord and Savior and have never received God’s grace.
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