The Gospel of the Grace of God

18) When they arrived he declared, “You know that from the day I set foot in the province of Asia until now 19) I have done the Lord’s work humbly and with many tears. I have endured the trials that came to me from the plots of the Jews. 20) I never shrank back from telling you what you needed to hear, either publicly or in your homes. 21) I have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike—the necessity of repenting from sin and turning to God, and of having faith in our Lord Jesus. 22) “And now I am bound by the Spirit[a] to go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what awaits me, 23) except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. 24) But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.  ~ Acts 20: 18-24


The apostle Paul was consumed by a passion that was even greater than his desire for life or the dread of suffering. He had a ministry to fulfill and a message of salvation to deliver. His words in Acts 20:24 help us understand the foundational concept involved in our salvation. Paul called it "the gospel of the grace of God."

We're saved simply because the Lord is gracious. He knew we could never be good enough to bridge the gap between our sin and His holiness. That's why you will never hear of "the gospel of the Law of God." That would not be good news at all! Can you imagine singing, "Amazing law, how fearful the sound, that saved a wretch like me"? We could never fulfill the requirements, especially the way Jesus enlarged the meaning of the law in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7). But grace--that's totally different. It has nothing to do with our worthiness or good performance, but is solely based on God's unmerited favor towards us.

What's most amazing is that the avenue for our salvation is through faith alone. The grace that God extends in saving us is His gift, and not anything we can add to by our works (Eph. 2:8-9). Otherwise, we'd have to clean up our lives in order to be saved, and that would nullify grace.

Praise the Lord for His wonderful plan of salvation. Christ paid our sin debt with His death, and all we have to do is believe it. Even after salvation, God’s grace keeps flowing. We never have to worry that we aren't good enough and will fall out of favor. His grace is forever.

(Via Charles Stanley)


Be Blessed!
 
Dawn