Introduction
Welcome to the “What is the grace of God in the Bible” article! The grace of God is one of the most important if not the most important attribute in God for man. The nature of God is gracious. ✚Exod. 34:6, ✚Ps. 103:8, ✚Eph. 2:4–5. He is also love ✚1 John 4:8. He does not tolerate sin, for He is Holy and He is also a judge ✚Ps. 75:7, ✚Heb. 12:23. But by the grace of God a person can be saved and receive His favor. If someone sins, then God is gracious and looks at the heart. Towards the ungodly however God is strict and the sentence of damnation towards the ungodly also tells of that. I will now tell more about the grace of God.
What Is the Grace of God?
The grace of God means unmerited favor. A person receives grace, even though there would be no reason for it. He may sin, from which a sentence could follow, but the grace of God covers it so that no sentence comes. It is also the favor of God even though the person has not earned it. He may give something into life that the person has not earned and by grace the person receives it. Above all salvation is grace. No human being deserves salvation, because it does not come from works but from the grace of God ✚Eph. 2:8–9.
In the old covenant too there are many examples, where God is gracious. For example the man after God’s own heart David received grace, even though he had committed a grave sin by sleeping with Bathsheba and arranged the death of Bathsheba’s husband Uriah the Hittite. God looked at David’s repentant heart and did not take the Holy Spirit from him and arranged a prophet, who revealed David’s sin. David truly repented of the sin and received forgiveness for it by the grace of God. David was a man after God’s own heart.
God always looks at the heart. If the heart is pure, then God has mercy. The pure in heart shall see God ✚Matt. 5:8. Therefore keep your heart pure and pray, if you feel that in the heart and thoughts there is something that disturbs.
Grace Is a Gift of God
Grace is a gift of God to man. It cannot be earned ✚Eph. 2:8, ✚Rom. 5:15, ✚Rom. 6:23. The nature of God is to be gracious. When He sees a repentant person, who repents from the heart, then God brings grace. Then everything has been forgiven and a new page turns.
There are many kinds of people in the world. God however uses only few. He uses those, who have died to their lusts and desires and empties oneself of one’s own things. He uses the humble and people who have a tender conscience before God. God may give grace to former violent offenders or evildoers, like Paul was ✚1 Tim. 1:13. God however saw something else in Paul’s heart.
He changed Paul completely and gave him a new heart and a new creation ✚Ezek. 36:26, ✚2 Cor. 5:17, ✚Gal. 6:15. Paul changed from a persecutor of the church and a violent offender into a gentle and loving apostle. God ultimately decided to give him an extremely great mission to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Paul has also written the majority of the New Testament epistles.
Grace Saves Through Faith
God requires faith from a believer. God saves by grace through faith ✚Eph. 2:8–9. It is something that is not known in the world. Faith is something that God gives by grace. ✚Heb. 11:1. If one does not believe, then the life of a believer becomes difficult. Unbelief is one of the worst sins. If there is unbelief, then it affects the entire life of faith. I can say that from experience. If you therefore have unbelief, then pray immediately, that God would take it away. It is the seed of the enemy and a flaming arrow. If you believe that you will be saved and are obedient to the Lord, then you will be saved. God looks at faith!
When God has mercy, then He expects that the same sin is no longer committed. Then grace can continue. It does not mean that someone receives grace, but immediately after receiving it he cheapens the grace of God and commits the same sin again. It does not however mean that someone could not sin and ask for forgiveness again and again. If one cannot break free and repents, then there the grace of God comes forth.
Even though one sins one must have a repentant mind and truly want to get rid of it. I myself have many things where I have been under the grace of God, even though I did not get rid of the sin immediately. When I then received conviction of sin, then by the grace of God I got rid of the deliberate sin that I was committing. I do not say that I would yet be free from all sin, but I strive to live in repentance continually. God did not abandon me because I sinned, but He saw that at some point I would break free from it. Because of the atoning work and blood of Jesus there is atonement for sins. John said that even if someone sins, we have an advocate Jesus Christ, who is righteous ✚1 John 2:1.
Grace Does Not Give Permission to Sin (My Own Experience)
Even though a person is under grace, it still does not give permission for deliberate sin. ✚Rom. 6:1–2, ✚Heb. 10:26. One must die to sin and the flesh belongs on the cross. For me it did not happen immediately. I suffered for a long time from many sins and my walk of faith was not according to the will of God. Only after many years, when I prayed and others prayed on my behalf, a change happened. It happened quickly and I myself wondered what happened. God had mercy and I was able to repent of many sins that I was committing. One fruit of that is these websites. Humanly speaking I would not necessarily want to make spiritual websites and spend so much time on it. However by the grace of God writing has become meaningful. Although I started the sites by my own will, I experienced in the Spirit that God was pleased that I write and now I feel an urging to continue and write often.
It is something that I received by the grace of God. If you therefore feel that you could start some spiritual work then start! Whether it be evangelizing, teaching, healing the sick or writing or something else. God is pleased when someone does His work. However one needs the grace of God to be able to do it in the Holy Spirit, so that the work does not come from the person himself, but from something that God gives.
Parables and Examples of Grace
The grace of the prodigal son: In this example ✚Luke 15:11–32 Jesus tells of a man, who left the Father and went to commit sin and left the Father to his own. Based on this a believer can return, even if he would leave God and go to commit sin in the world. This is one of the most comforting Bible passages about the grace of God. Many believers have gone away from the Father and wonder whether they can still return. According to this Bible passage one can return! Therefore do not give up, if you have gone away from the Father but return!
The woman caught in adultery ✚John 8:1–11 – grace instead of judgment: At this point the new covenant had not yet come. They were living in the old covenant and Jesus was told that the woman must be stoned, because she has committed adultery. Jesus however said otherwise. He had mercy on the woman and told her not to sin anymore. This is a comforting passage for those who have committed adultery. Jesus can give grace, when that sin is no longer committed.
The workers of the vineyard – grace is not earned ✚Matt. 20:1–16. At this point it is spoken of when workers did different amounts of work, but all received the same pay. It is a parable of the grace of salvation. Even though someone would have worked longer and more, the pay can be the same. Someone can be saved at the last moments in life and still receive salvation, even though someone has been in the faith for 40 years and done many works of faith.
Trust in the Grace of God
The most important thing is to trust in the grace of God. Even if you sin, you have an advocate, Jesus Christ, who is righteous. However do not commit deliberate sin and if you do, then have a repentant mind. At some point God will set free, if you are a sheep of Jesus. Never give up! God is extremely gracious towards His own. He always looks at the heart and has mercy on those who fear God and have a repentant mind, if they sin.
Summary
The nature of God is to be gracious. In both the old and the new covenant there are examples of the grace of God. David received grace, even though he committed a grave sin. So also Paul, who was a violent offender and here are just a couple of examples. However do not commit deliberate sin and if you do then have a repentant mind and ask forgiveness for sins. At some point God can set free! Grace is not meant to be exploited. Through grace a person is saved and is set free from the power of sin. God is gracious!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the grace of God in the Bible? The grace of God means unmerited favor. A person receives by grace something, that he has not earned. Above all salvation is grace – no one deserves salvation, because it does not come from works but from the grace of God through faith (✚Eph. 2:8–9).
Can the grace of God be earned? No. Grace is a gift of God, which cannot be earned in any way (✚Eph. 2:8, ✚Rom. 5:15, ✚Rom. 6:23). If grace were earned, it would no longer be grace (✚Rom. 11:6). The nature of God is to be gracious and He gives grace to the repentant person.
Does grace give permission to sin? No. Even though a person is under grace, it does not give permission for deliberate sin (✚Rom. 6:1–2, ✚Heb. 10:26). The grace of God is meant to set free from sin, not to be exploited. When God has mercy, He expects that the same sin is no longer committed.
What happens if a believer sins? If a believer sins, then he has an advocate, Jesus Christ, who is righteous (✚1 John 2:1). The most important thing is to have a repentant mind and ask forgiveness for sins. Because of the atoning work and blood of Jesus there is atonement for sins.
Can a believer lose the grace of God? If a person turns the grace of God into sensuality and commits deliberate sin without repenting, he can end up outside of grace (✚Jude 1:4, ✚Gal. 5:4). However the parable of the prodigal son shows that one who has left the Father can return back and receive grace (✚Luke 15:11–32).
How do the grace of God and the law relate to each other? A believer is not under the law but under grace (✚Rom. 6:14). The law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ (✚John 1:17). If righteousness came from the law, then Christ would have died in vain (✚Gal. 2:21).
How can I receive the grace of God? God saves by grace through faith (✚Eph. 2:8–9). You must repent, be born again and believe in Jesus Christ. God looks at faith and the repentant heart. The pure in heart shall see God (✚Matt. 5:8).
Thank you for reading to the end!
Hi!
I am the founder and administrator of this website. I am a born-again Christian and have been in the faith for over 10 years. I write all the articles myself by hand, with the help of the Holy Spirit, for the glory of God.
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