Nothing Greater than Grace
Point of Grace, a contemporary Christian singing group, has a fantastic song on their “No Changin’ Us” album entitled “There is Nothing Greater than Grace.” For those of us that profess to be followers of Jesus Christ we know we have been saved by grace and grace alone. However, I think all too often we fail to keep “grace” ever present in our minds and lives. The chorus of this beautiful song says “There is no valley, there is no darkness, there is no sorrow greater than the grace of Jesus. There is no moment, there is no distance, there is no heartbreak He can’t see you through. So before you think that you’re too lost to save, remember there is nothing greater than grace.”1
We know that God tells us “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast.”2 The incredible thing about God’s grace is it is always there no matter what we face, who turns against us, or how many times we may fail. It is great to know that the Lord tells us “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”3 God’s grace is sufficient so how do we demonstrate grace in our daily lives?
God has His own GPS system and through His grace we should depend on it in our daily walk with Him. The Lord tells us “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.”4 Unfortunately, all too often men behave much like the next verse that says “Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. Many are the woes of the wicked.”5
Sometimes we as men think that somehow it makes us “more of a man” if we have to be bridled and controlled yet we know that the only thing God wants for us is the very best. David tells us “You, O LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.”6 God’s GPS will keep us in His light if we will just follow. David goes on to say “As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him.”7 His grace allows us to take refuge in Him regardless of whether life is good or not so good. His ways are perfect and His grace allows us to share in His perfection.
God’s grace allows us to call out to Him in our times of need and He carries our sorrows and burdens. The Prophet Isaiah says “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows,”8 in reference to his description of Jesus Christ. While men sometimes question where God is in their times of trouble, God’s Word clearly tells us that He is available and willing to respond in our times of need. “The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.”9
The bigger problem for men is we fail to recognize the impact of God’s grace when things are going well in our lives. Even in our good times we must recognize our Heavenly Father’s grace is ever present in our lives. Paul tells us “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”10 It is God who meets our needs and God’s men must be aware of Satan’s attempt to persuade us that we have become self-sufficient and no longer have a need for God’s grace. You can just hear him whispering “just look at what you have accomplished, you don’t need God, you did this on your own.” God’s men must heed the words in 1 Peter when it tells us “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.”11
God’s men must not live in ignorance but immerse themselves in the Word of God and prepare their minds for action. Unfortunately men often excuse their lack of self-control because of God’s design of a man. That is another of Satan’s lies and God’s men must train themselves to exercise self-control in order for them to overcome the evil desires that exist in the world around us. It seems that we are most vulnerable to surrendering to these evil desires when things are going well in our lives rather than when they are not going so well. It is when we recognize that this is one of those moments in life that scripture describes as a true weakness and we can rely upon our Heavenly Father’s strength in these moments that we can experience the fullness of His grace.
In closing, let me remind you of a very strong message from the book of Jude. It says “Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints. For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.”12
There is nothing that can save a person except the wonderful gift of grace provided by the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. There are those among us that are taking the gospel and distorting its truth to become a self-serving reason to live life as the world lives. These men justify their behavior, often immoral behavior, by misusing grace and they destroy the work of Jesus Christ which was done on our behalf. These men distort the scripture written in Romans that states “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?”13 They are using convoluted logic to justify a life of sin so that God’s grace can be demonstrated in a greater way.
Interestingly enough when you go to the next verse in Romans it says “By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?”14 By no means does grace give us the license to sin! Salvation is based on grace and grace alone … PERIOD! However, what comes after accepting Jesus Christ as our personal savior is not about salvation but about discipleship. We are to die to sin and take up the cause of Christ as disciples of Christ. We are to be servants of the gospel and it applies to every walk of life and every aspect of our life. This is not about earning our salvation but it is about being Jesus’disciple. Avoid anyone that is preaching grace as a license to sin or at the other end of the spectrum is adding things in addition to grace to be saved.
God’s grace is sufficient and nothing is greater than grace. Amen!
1 Point of Grace, “No Changin’ Us Album”, There is Nothing Greater Than Grace
2 Ephesians 2:8 & 9 (All Scripture us in this article is taken from the 1984 NIV translation of the Holy Bible unless otherwise noted)
3 2 Corinthians 12:9
4 Psalm 32:8
5 Psalm 32:9 & 10
6 Psalm 18:28
7 Psalm 18:30
8 Isaiah 53:4a
9 Psalm 145:18
10 Philippians 4:19
11 1 Peter 1:13 & 14
12 Jude 1:3-5
13 Romans 6:1
14 Romans 6:2