Grace Defined Part Two ~ The Power of His Might
“For by grace you have been saved …for good works”
(Ephesians 2:8, 10 ESV partial)
“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord,
so walk in him: “
(Colossians 2:6 ESV)
“Your work for Christ must be Christ’s work in you,
Or else it will be good for nothing.”
~ C H Spurgeon ~
What does it mean to “walk in Grace?”
What does it mean to “walk by Faith?”
To understand these practical spiritual truths we need to take the time to define Grace and Faith as the Bible describes them. In this chapter we will define Grace as it pertains to the life of the believer after salvation. In the next chapter we will define Faith and explore the principle that Grace works through Faith.
In Colossians 2:6 quoted above we are told that we are to walk in Christ Jesus in the same way that we received Him as described in the previous chapters. The work of God’s Grace in our lives does not end with Salvation. Rather, that is where it begins.
In Chapter One we defined the work of Grace in salvation as:
The Power of God, worked in us by the Spirit of God, unto Salvation, a New Birth and a New Creature.
Now let’s see what the Bible has to say about the work of Grace in our lives as believers and come to a working definition of Grace as we move forward in our walk with God.
As children of God we are encouraged to,
“be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” (Ephesians 6:10 KJV)
To Timothy Paul wrote,
“… my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim 2:1 KJV)
Notice that to be “strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” is to “be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” We are not told to be strong in our own strength or power, but rather in His strength and power.
In Zachariah 4:6 the Lord tells the prophet,
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit.”
And through Ezekiel He said, “And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes…” (Ezekiel 36:27a ESV)
And to Jeremiah He said,
“Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD…”(Jeremiah 9:23-24 ESV partial)
From chapter one, you may recall how the Holy Spirit is referred to as “The Spirit of Grace” in both the books of Zechariah and Hebrews.
From these scriptures we see that our walk and work as a Christian is not by our might, but by His Grace.
It is not by our power, but by His Grace.
It is not by our wisdom, but by His Grace.
It is not by our riches, but by His Grace.
It is His Spirit of Grace that causes us to walk in His statutes and keep His judgments. Not our might, nor our power, nor our wisdom, nor our riches, but by His Spirit.
As the apostle Paul explained to the Corinthians,
“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them (the other apostles), though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. “ (1 Corinthians 15:10 ESV)
So it was not Paul who labored, but the Spirit of Grace in him.
Paul also wrote,
“And because of him (God) you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31 ESV)
“Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” (2 Corinthians 3:4-5 ESV)
It is not our power or wisdom when we serve God acceptably, but Christ’s power and wisdom working through us by that same Spirit of Grace. So that to Jesus goes all the glory and praise, for apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5). Indeed, all of our sufficiency is of God because we are not sufficient in and of ourselves to do the work that God is calling each of us to do. In other words, the Christian life isn’t difficult, it is impossible apart from God’s Grace.
Just how Christ’s power and wisdom work through us shall be the subject of the rest of this book.
Perhaps Grace in the life of the believer is best summed up in Jesus’ statement to Paul during a very difficult time in Paul’s life.
“But he (Jesus) said to me (Paul), “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV)
Jesus equated, “My grace” with “my power.” In some versions this reads, “my strength”.
Paul equated Jesus’ Grace with “the power of Christ.”
From these two statements we see that:
Jesus’ Grace is the same as Jesus’ Power (or Strength) which is the same as the Power of Christ.
When I first came to understand this, it was a revelation. The same power of God that created the heavens and the earth and that raised Christ from the dead is available to work in us and through us by His Spirit of Grace!
Wow!
In regards to our Christian experience after salvation, I define Grace as follows:
Grace is: the Power of God, given to us by the Spirit of God, to do the Will of God.
Please take a moment to meditate on Paul’s prayers for the church at Ephesus:
“… that you may know…what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,” (Ephesians 1:18-20 ESV Partial)
“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith–that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:14-21 KJV)
Previous: Chapter Two – Robes of Righteousness and the Wilderness Permit
Next: Chapter Four – Grace operates through Faith – Faith Defined
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As we continue to walk in the paths of righteousness, hand in hand with Jesus our Shepard, He shows us that He is the God of our salvation and He helps us for the glory of His name.
He leads me. Jesus does not point me to the paths of righteousness, or just give me instructions on how to find them, but He leads me Himself. He takes each of us by the hand and says, “Follow me.” He does not leave us to walk these paths alone, but says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Heb 13:5) and “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” (Matt 28:20) He leads us in the paths of righteousness to the Father. No one comes to the Father except Jesus leads them. (John 14:6)