All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others
Working by the Grace of God, Part 1
1 Corinthians 15:9-10: “For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”
The truth that God operates in and through our lives by grace is not easy to accept by those who are unwilling to accept the truth of the total bankruptcy of human resources in fallen humanity in the operation of the Kingdom of God. The grace of God is all we need, and it makes futile even the best of our human efforts, to accomplish anything in the realm of the Kingdom of God.
In His sovereignty and wisdom God has chosen to relate with us by grace not only in our salvation but in our service in His Kingdom. “And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace” (Romans 11:6). As humiliating at this may be to our humanity and ego, it highlights our need to depend on God in whatever we do and to give the glory for every accomplishment in our lives to God, to whom it is due.
Some may see submitting to the grace of God as making oneself unproductive and setting aside one’s initiative. Their resulting viewpoint is that the truth of the grace of God needs to be balanced with some measure of self-help. And so, this has given rise to a sort of gospel which is laced with human psychology and promotion of human talents. It is like Noah trying to modify God’s design of the ark to suit his human reasoning of what will work. But would Noah’s own design have worked better than God’s in the global deluge? Certainly not!
However, far from leaving us unproductive the grace of God provides the opportunity for us to excel beyond human capabilities. We do not have to fail or fall due to our human infirmities when we allow God by grace to work in us “both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). For where sin and infirmities abound, the grace of God much more abounds (Romans 5:20). In other words, through grace God transcends the faults and weaknesses of His ministers and motivates and activates them with His own power to serve effectively in His Kingdom.
If we focus on our human potentials we inevitably see weaknesses, infirmities, and limitations. This is the reality of our fallen human nature. It is said the best of men are still just men at their best. And once our human factor remains the central factor in our endeavours the reality of failure and fault still haunts us. That is why it should be comforting to us to know that God is not making us better human beings or improving our humanity. God makes each one of us whom He saves by His grace a new creation in Christ. This new creation is a creature of grace because it is created by the grace of God and designed to exist in total dependence on God. Paul testifies: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).
And so, grace gives us the amazing opportunity to give place to God, to allow the excellence of the power of God to transcend our humanity in dealing with the challenges that confront us. Grace unleashes the mighty power of God in us to do the work of God. And so, working by the grace of God always results in excellence. By relying completely on God we allow God to operate in the excellence of His power in our weak frail humanity.
Paul puts it this way in Corinthians 4:7: "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us."
The truth that God operates in and through our lives by grace is not easy to accept by those who are unwilling to accept the truth of the total bankruptcy of human resources in fallen humanity in the operation of the Kingdom of God. The grace of God is all we need, and it makes futile even the best of our human efforts, to accomplish anything in the realm of the Kingdom of God.
In His sovereignty and wisdom God has chosen to relate with us by grace not only in our salvation but in our service in His Kingdom. “And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace” (Romans 11:6). As humiliating at this may be to our humanity and ego, it highlights our need to depend on God in whatever we do and to give the glory for every accomplishment in our lives to God, to whom it is due.
Some may see submitting to the grace of God as making oneself unproductive and setting aside one’s initiative. Their resulting viewpoint is that the truth of the grace of God needs to be balanced with some measure of self-help. And so, this has given rise to a sort of gospel which is laced with human psychology and promotion of human talents. It is like Noah trying to modify God’s design of the ark to suit his human reasoning of what will work. But would Noah’s own design have worked better than God’s in the global deluge? Certainly not!
However, far from leaving us unproductive the grace of God provides the opportunity for us to excel beyond human capabilities. We do not have to fail or fall due to our human infirmities when we allow God by grace to work in us “both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). For where sin and infirmities abound, the grace of God much more abounds (Romans 5:20). In other words, through grace God transcends the faults and weaknesses of His ministers and motivates and activates them with His own power to serve effectively in His Kingdom.
If we focus on our human potentials we inevitably see weaknesses, infirmities, and limitations. This is the reality of our fallen human nature. It is said the best of men are still just men at their best. And once our human factor remains the central factor in our endeavours the reality of failure and fault still haunts us. That is why it should be comforting to us to know that God is not making us better human beings or improving our humanity. God makes each one of us whom He saves by His grace a new creation in Christ. This new creation is a creature of grace because it is created by the grace of God and designed to exist in total dependence on God. Paul testifies: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).
And so, grace gives us the amazing opportunity to give place to God, to allow the excellence of the power of God to transcend our humanity in dealing with the challenges that confront us. Grace unleashes the mighty power of God in us to do the work of God. And so, working by the grace of God always results in excellence. By relying completely on God we allow God to operate in the excellence of His power in our weak frail humanity.
Paul puts it this way in Corinthians 4:7: "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us."
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by ALCEDES JONES on
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great point and so true thank for posting it
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Permalink Reply by PoiemaDei on
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Charles, I like your experience. You found confidence in Christ, despite your lack of self-confidence, by acknowledging your total helplessness before God. This is so contrary to the world's philosophy and psychology of dealing with the lack of self-confidence. They tell us we need to boost our ego producing more and more bloated egos with frustration, of course. Thank God that in His way we can accept our sense of self-inferiority, all the criticisms and fear that have brought it about, and go to God, as we are or perceive we are, and humble ourselves before His throne of grace and find grace which meets us where we are and lifts us up to face the challenges that confront with the confidence and ability that come from God.
Thanks for your contribution, my friend. -
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Permalink Reply by David Velasquez on
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We are indeed nothing without God and we are call to do the impossible over and over again throughout scripture, to love our enemies, to control the tongue etc...
All those things we can only accomplish by dying to self and letting God be manifested in us.
I love this:
In other words, through grace God transcends the faults and weaknesses of His ministers and motivates and activates them with His own power to serve effectively in His Kingdom.
Amen - great article - thanks for sharing bro! -
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Indeed, david. Our salvation is a work of human impossibility. When Jesus mentioned to the disciples how almost impossible it was for a rich man to enter the Kingdom, they were astonished and hopeless. If riches were an inidication of enviable human resources and achievement and yet it was not easy for a rich man to be saved, then who of lesser mortals could? Jesus' answer was plain and simple, what is impossible to man is possible with God. Our salvation including our subsequent walk in God's rigtheousness was never meant to be a human endeavour but a work of God in us and through us. Depending on the grace of God may mean the humiliation of our humanity but it certainly brings us triumph and glory through the power of God.
Thanks for your contribution, my friend. -
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This post reminded me of :
2 Corinthians 12:9 (New International Version)
9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. -
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