Grace is defined as God’s unmerited favor.  We see right away that grace is not something that can be earned.  It is unmerited or undeserved.  The first time we read of grace in the Bible is in Genesis 6:8, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”  What did Noah do to earn God’s grace?  By the very definition of the word, we must realize that Noah did NOTHING to gain God’s grace.  Grace CANNOT be earned.  It was according to the Lord’s holy sovereignty that He poured out His grace on Noah to build an ark before the Lord destroyed the earth with a flood.  SAVING GRACE!

Let’s read Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”  We see here that God is gracious towards us and saves us through faith in His dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.  According to His immeasurable grace, the Lord refuses no one who comes to Him by faith.  The Lord Jesus tells us in John 6:37, “…him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”  Just as the ocean refuses no river, the Lord refuses no one who comes to Him by faith.  MARVELOUS GRACE!

We read of the Lord Jesus in John 1:14, “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.”  The eternal God took on flesh and blood and dwelt on the earth for around 33 years.  He was full of grace.  He was full of truth.  Grace and truth are inseparable partners.  The Lord Jesus preached the truth of man’s sinfulness, but He also extended grace to those sinful people who put their faith in Him.  Righteous people do not need salvation.  Sinners need salvation.  We are all sinners according to Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” and we know that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” (1 Timothy 1:15).  NEEDED GRACE!

Romans 3:24 tells us we are “…justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”  It is the grace of God that caused Him to send His Son into the world to become the sacrifice for our sins.  It is through His shed blood that we are redeemed.  We read in 1 Peter 1:18-19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”  It’s not that we deserve grace, indeed we deserve only God’s wrath, but His grace has been extended to all simply because God loves us and He is gracious towards us.  2 Corinthians 8:9 says, “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”  FREE GRACE!

2 Corinthians 9:8 says, “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.”  We need the grace of God to be saved, but we also need the grace of God to live the Christian life…and God is able to make all grace abound toward you.  When the Apostle Paul prayed concerning an infirmity he was suffering from, the Lord responded by saying, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9).  He was telling Paul (and us) that all we need is His grace to live.  ALL SUFFICIENT GRACE!

Titus 3:7, “That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”  It is the grace of God that has justified all believers.  It has made us His heirs.  Romans 8:17 says, “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”  It is the grace of God that justifies us, makes us heirs, and gives us eternal life.  AMAZING GRACE!

What is grace?  For such a small word, it means so much!  (342.4)