Grace

Grace is a very pleasant word. It gives us a feeling that everything is ok, no matter what stupid or even evil things we have done. And that is right. There is nothing that we could ever do that is too big or too bad for God’s grace to cover it.

I appreciate the fact that God’s grace also has another side. It doesn’t only have the power to cover my past. It also has the power to change my present and future. It is a powerful tool in God’s hands to make me a more holy, Christ-like person.

When I receive God’s grace (pardon for my past sins), this grace also has the power to help me resist the temptation to do those sins again.

For many years I believed that the law was my best tool to be victorious in temptation, but it never helped me to live a holy life. Again and again, I found myself falling into the enemy’s traps.

Paul had the same experience. ‘For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering’ (Romans 8:3).

God’s grace can be extremely powerful in your life, but only when you choose to receive it and apply it. When you confess sin, God has promised to forgive you (1 John 1:9). But you need to make a choice to receive His forgiveness, and apply grace by choosing to forgive yourself for what God has already forgiven you for. By doing so, grace can begin to have an impact, not only on your past, but also on your present and future. It is helping you to say “no” to ungodliness.

The law is a perfect description of what is right and wrong, but it doesn’t have the power to help us choose to do what is right. But God’s grace through Jesus Christ has that power.

So, when you receive God’s grace for your sins today, allow that grace to be a tool to help you in your process of becoming more like Christ.