I think the grace of God is one of the hardest things for any person to fully wrap their head around. At this time, I would say it is most likely impossible to fathom it fully for its depth and complexity. This doesn’t seem to keep us all from trying though. So I thought it might be an interesting adventure and study to start to put together the scriptures that seem to express some aspect of grace.

As a little side note, I find a Concordance to be an invaluable resource for Bible study as it gives you the specific original greek or hebrew word in the very sentence you are reading.  Often, there are more than one greek or hebrew word, with different definitions that are all translated to one single english word.  Hence, there is much that can be lost and confused in the translation.  But a Concordance helps fill in some of those gaps.

To start, I thought it would be good to have the definition of the actual word grace.

Here is the Strong’s Concordance definition for the Greek Word grace (in the KJV, this is the same greek word every time it is translated into English)

(5485)

ca>riv, — khar’-ece; from (5463) (cai>rw); graciousness (as

gratifying

), of manner or act (abstract or concrete; literal,figurative or spiritual; especially the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life; including gratitude): —  acceptable, benefit, favour, gift, grace (-ious), joy, liberality, pleasure, thank (-s, -worthy).

Where the confusion has come in is that one of the Hebrew (I say one as in Hebrew there is more than original Hebrew Word that is translated as grace into English) definitions “the unmerited favour of God” has been adopted and used throughout the Bible both Old and New Testament wise.   There is no doubt that part of grace includes unmerited favour as the scriptures themselves spell this out.   But we must faithfully apply the actual meaning of the greek word to understand the word grace when we see it in the New Testament in the context of the scriptures in which it is found.

Two scriptures to start:

Philippians 2:12-16 (AMP)

^“12 Therefore, my dear ones, as you have always obeyed [my suggestions], so now, not only [with the enthusiasm you would show] in my presence but much more because I am absent, work out (cultivate, carry out to the goal, and fully complete) your own salvation with reverence and awe and trembling (self-distrust, with serious caution, tenderness of conscience, watchfulness against temptation, timidly shrinking from whatever might offend God and discredit the name of Christ).

¹³ [Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction anddelight.

¹⁴ Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining [against God] and questioning and doubting [among yourselves],

¹⁵ That you may show yourselves to be blameless and guileless, innocent and uncontaminated, children of God without blemish (faultless, unrebukable) in the midst of a crooked and wicked generation [spiritually perverted and perverse], among whom you are seen as bright lights (stars or beacons shining out clearly) in the [dark] world,

¹⁶ Holding out [to it] and offering [to all men] the Word of Life, so that in the day of Christ I may have something of which exultantly to rejoice and glory in that I did not run my race in vain or spend my labor to no purpose.”

Ephesians 2:8-10 (NLT)

^“8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. ⁹ Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. ¹⁰ For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

For me, what jumped out was that the purpose of our redemption and outpouring of His grace is so that we can do “the good things He planned for us long ago”.  This is reflected in the Philippians verse “at work in you (energizing and creating in you the power and desire) both to will and to work for HIS GOOD PLEASURE and SATISFACTION and DELIGHT”   It seems to me that God doesn’t do these things so that we can have a better self-focussed life but rather to equip us and prepare in every single area for serving and living with a God-centred, God serving life.

Have you ever heard someone ask “which came first, the chicken or the egg?”?  I don’t  when or where I heard this but somehow I know it is just one of those questions floating out there that people say there is no sure answer to.   The Bible says that God made the birds with the ability to reproduce (Genesis 1) so for me the issue is settled.   The Bird came first and then laid the egg.

I believe that salvation comes first, as a free gift as Ephesians 2 spells out.   And that grace comes part and parcel, but that it in part specifically given to us so that we will have the desire, power and ability to do what pleases God and no longer live for ourselves and OUR good pleasure.  Something to think about hey?