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This Week’s Devotional Topic
ALL ABOUT GRACE
You have probably already heard the acronym for GRACE. God’s riches at Christ’s expense. Think about that for a few moments. We have access to God’s riches. As the song says, He owns the cattle on a thousand hills and the wealth in every mine. And that’s just the tip of the ice berg and that phrase lists only the physical riches. We also, more importantly, become adopted into His family, a child of THE KING and “joint heirs with Christ”, God’s own son. And the last three words of that acronym refer to the fact that we have ALL that we could ever imagine from God’s hands because of what Jesus Christ accomplished through His death, burial and resurrection. Christ sacrificed all He had up to and including his own life on the cross, the death of a cross! So, as we refer to “grace” in our devotional, think on these things….God’s riches at Christ’s expense.
We can stand here today in and only by the reality of God’s grace.
Romans 3:23,24 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: KJV
Romans 5:1,2 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. KJV
Ephesians 2:8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. NLT
Psalms 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. KJV
Just before God caused the flood, we see that He looked at Noah with special favor.
Genesis 6:7,8 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. KJV
It was clear that the characteristic of Grace was part of who Jesus is. He is the epitome of grace.
Luke 2:39,40 And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth. And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. KJV
John 1:14,16,17 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
Grace was and is a character trait of His followers. We should show grace toward all around us.
Acts 4:33 And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. ESV
Acts 6:8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. ESV
Acts 13:43 And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God. ESV
Our lives should be all about grace. As we meditate on God’s word and His Spirit fills our hearts and minds with grace, it will naturally permeate our lives and we will be gracious to others.
This week’s Scripture:
Romans 3:23,24; 5:1,2; Ephesians 2:8,9; Psalms 84:11; Genesis 6:7,8; Luke 2:39,40; John 1:14,16,17; Acts 4:33; 6:8 and Acts 13:43
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