Grace: What It Isn’t, What It Is (7)

He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. 1 Thessalonians 5.24

Grace with us
The epistles of Paul begin and end in the same place – grace. 1 Thessalonians is typical of Paul’s other writings: “Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (1Thess. 1.1); “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen” (1 Thess. 5.28). Each of his letters unfolds from and toward and by the grace of God. Each letter is thus composed in the form of an inclusio, which is a literary device emphasizing a primary idea by opening with it and circling back to it at the end.

And in the case of Paul’s epistles, grace is that primary idea.

We can see that this is true of all Scripture as well. It begins in a garden where grace abounds in all its goodness (Gen. 1, 2); and it ends in a new heaven and new earth, where the Tree of Life bears the fruit of grace and goodness for the renewing of all things (Rev. 21, 22). Paul’s epistles – as messages of grace – are thus a microcosm of the entire Bible.

In his epistles Paul remindshis readers of the grace of God, of His amazing and wonderful disposition to look upon us kindly and with our good in mind. His letters are also a means of God’s communicatingHis grace to His people, so that they may always know how much He loves and has loved them.

But Paul has more than this in mind for the grace of God. His desire – reflecting God’s own – is that the grace of God should be with those who have come to know that grace in Jesus Christ. And the reason this is so important is that grace with us enables and empowers us to realize the fullness of God’s gracious intentions for us.

For grace is not only a divine disposition and divine communication, but it is divine power to accomplish the good and glorious purposes of God.

Called to the Kingdom and glory of God
In 1 Thessalonians 2.12, Paul makes the astonishing claim that God has called us to His Kingdom and glory. God rules in His Kingdom, a vast and all-encompassing spiritual domain, with Jesus Christ at His right hand (Ps. 110). And He rules in glory and unto His glory, doing everything in every corner of creation to declare His glory (Ps. 19.1-4).

God has called all who believe in Jesus Christ to enter His Kingdom and His glory (Col. 1.13), and to take up the good works by which they may glorify Him and make His glory known in the world in everything they do (Eph. 2.10; 1 Cor. 10.31; Hab. 2.14). How can this possibly be? How can puny, fallible, material creatures such as we, enter a spiritual domain, where Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords, is furthering His dominion of righteousness, peace and joy on earth as it is in heaven? How is it possible for sinful, spiteful, selfish people to become citizens and ambassadors in this new Kingdom of our risen and exalted Lord? And how can we enter His glory and not be crushed by the weight and annihilated by the radiance of it?

Only by grace. By the grace of God, He sends His Spirit – Who is the operative power of His Kingdom – to dwell in our hearts, reorient our thinking, and empower us act in ways that line up with the pleasure of God (Ezek. 36.26, 27; Phil. 2.13). The Spirit begins a work in us that brings us into the presence of God’s grace and glory – in His Word, in creation, and in our Lord Jesus Christ – where we see God as He is, and are enfolded by His all-transforming grace. And then the Spirit uses that gracious encounter with glory to fit us – even if only slightly – to live more consistently for the glory of God in every area of our lives. The grace of God, working by His Word and Spirit, empowers us to fulfill our calling to the Kingdom and glory of God, making our bodies vessels of grace and truth by our words and deeds.

This is the divine power of grace withus, at work inus, from glory to glory.

Grace that enables and empowers
We might be inclined to ask, “But to what does this apply”? The short answer is, “All things”.

Jesus is making all things new (Rev. 21.5). By His life, death, resurrection, and ascension, Jesus has reconciled the entire creation back to God (2 Cor. 5.18, 19). Jesus has purchased the creation out of its captivity to sin, and now He is in the process of developing it according to the original good purpose of God (Gen. 1.31). He has established His Kingdom on earth as a reflection of the holiness, righteousness, peace, and joy that exists in heaven; and He is advancing that Kingdom through the Church, which is the sign and outpost of the Kingdom, and the Lord’s new garden. He has enlisted us, as He did Paul and the other apostles, as both the materials of His new creation and the builders of what He has designed (cf. 1 Pet. 2.4, 5; 1 Cor. 3.9-11). He is the great Architect and Prototype of faith; as we consider Him, bask in His Word, and live toward His promises and glory, He fulfills His glorious recreating project in and through us, and fills the world increasingly with Himself.

God has called us to His Kingdom and glory so that His rule and honor may be established and maintained over all the earth – in every life, through all culture, in every society and community, throughout the creation, by every means, in every situation, at all times, for the benefit of people and the creation and the glory of God. 

And all this is the work of God’s grace, Who by the power of His Word and Spirit, makes all things new in and through and for His Church (Eph. 1.19-23).

God, Who has called you to His Kingdom and glory, will faithfully be at work in you to enable you to realize the righteousness, peace, and joy of His calling. His grace is sufficient, and it will be with you. But you must present yourself, in the Spirit of God, before His glory – in His Word and in Jesus Christ – and wait in faith and prayer for the power of grace to make all things new in you.

For God’s grace cannot fail to accomplish His purposes.

For reflection
1. Why do we need to have the grace of God present with us? Isn’t it enough to know God looks upon us graciously, and tells us so? Explain.

2. How does grace work in a believer to make all things new? How do you experience this?

3. Why can we liken the Church to the Lord’s new garden? What is the role of grace in this?

Next Steps – Transformation: How many ways can you see that grace has been at work in your life since you came to know Jesus? Offer these back to God with thanksgiving, and commit yourself to growing in His grace each day (2 Pet. 3.18).

The Fall Term at The Ailbe Seminary is now open for registrations. Men, visit our website and watch this brief video, then choose one of three available courses to study from September to December. All courses are free of charge, and we’ll provide a Reader to work with you through your studies.

This study is Part 1 of a series entitled “Grace for Your Time of Need.” You can download the seven lessons in this study by clicking here.

Grace flows from our relationship with Jesus Christ. The better we know Him, the more His grace will do its work in us. Our book, To Know Him, can help you in drawing closer to Jesus and increasing in Him. Order your copy by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.