What Grace is Not.

A few days ago I wrote on Grace and today I want to continue on the same subject by sharing my thoughts on what Grace is Not.

First of all Grace is never given out of fear. You show grace by living in fear in your relationship with God and your brother or sister because "perfect love always cast out fear". We should love in grace and not fear.

Grace is not a licence to sin. Romans 6:1-2 says "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Our lives in hid with Christ in God, so we should honor God at all times in our word, thoughts, deeds. We are bought with a price so we need to cherish the fact that we should no longer be a slave to what we have been delivered from.

Grace is not a licence to live a life thinking that all that is necessary is just to have faith in Christ and let him do all the work. Faith without works is dead. Phil. 2:12 says "work out your salvation with fear and trembling" Christ also said in Luke 13.24: "Strive to enter through the narrow gate". The Christian life is a race and everyone should strive to finish strong even the Apostle Paul in 2 Tim 4:7 said "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith". Even watching the modern day athletes, no one gets a medal without striving for it, so how do you think the Kingdom of God is different?


Having faith is good but it has to be backed up with righteous living, you can't believe God and still continue in your sin, your faith needs to be backed up with action on your part. 2 Tim: 2:19 "Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity". As I always say, you can't be in the mud and want to help someone else out of the mud, get out of the mud so you can help that person.

Grace is not selfish, but it's given without expecting something in return. Christ's instruction on this is found in Matt. 6:2 "Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their rewards". I see alot of our so called celebrities doing charitable deeds and they have all the paparazzis, camera men, t.v stations following them when they do these things and I just feel they have already gotten their rewards from men, no need expecting anything from God. When you share whatever the Lord gives you in secret, He that sees in secret will reward you openly.

Even though God has granted us His grace is not a guarrantee that an individual will be in the first resurrection and in the kingdom of God which still brings me to the aspect of continuing in grace, it's a continuous thing, not just a sporadic gesture when we feel like it, extending grace is representing God in all areas of our lives, everyday and in every way, not allowing bitterness or anything that will make us fall short of the grace of God. We need to be watchful because the enemy of our soul, the devil is not sleeping or slacking off, he is in a hurry and desperate in this end time to get as many souls as possible to be with him in Hell, so we need to be on guard at all times. 2 Tim. 4:5 "But watch thou in all things endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry".

A word is enough for the wise.