GRACE IN UNFAMILIAR TIMES

by Aug 27, 2020Now Matters, Unfamiliar Times0 comments

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Yes, God is more than ready to overwhelm you with every form of grace, so that you will have more than enough of everything – every moment and in every way.  II Corinthians 9:8 

The Conversion of Paul

On the road to Damascus, grace hit Saul of Tarsus harder than anything had ever hit him. God’s presence knocked him off his horse physically, but it was God’s grace that re-charted his life. God confronted Saul’s rage and murderous hatred against the first century believers. God sees any attack against His believers as an attack against Himself. Thus, in Acts 7:4 (KJV) God confronts Saul: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”

Saul had been caught up in the Pharisee’s web of religious legalism. Their authority and control were threatened by the expansion of believers in Jesus as the Messiah. Their jealousy grew into a raging anger with murderous consequences. Saul had been their number one zealot! Their hatred became his hatred. That hatred was reflected through every fiber of his being. His innocent victims fled for their lives or suffered death.

“Who are you Lord?” was Saul’s reply to Jesus’ question. During his next three days, everything would change. Saul would surrender to Jesus as Lord and Savior. His conversion accelerated the movement of the Christian faith. He became an unstoppable force. Saul, whose name became Paul, lived totally under the influence of God’s grace. The motivation of his heart spun daily from the influence of God’s grace on his heart and its reflection in his life.

God’s grace is transformational. We need to see ourselves from Grace’s point of view. Conversion changes how we see ourselves. In both of Peter’s letters, he opens verse two with a prayer that grace and peace be multiplied. Have you ever needed grace to be multiplied to you?

Note the following revelations about grace from the Apostle Paul:

The promise depends on faith so that it can be experienced as a grace gift.   Romans 4:16

Now we are held in the grip of grace.    Romans 5:17

For it was only through this wonderful grace that we believed in him. Nothing we did could ever earn this salvation, for it was the gracious gift from God that brought us to Christ. Ephesians 2:8

For if you publicly declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will experience salvation. The heart that believes in him receives the gift of the righteousness of God – and then the mouth confesses, resulting in salvation.   Romans 10:9b-10

Please know that God is passionately invested in you becoming someone you could never become without His direction and intervention. Gene

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Pin It on Pinterest

Shares