By Shirley Rosemarie Evans
Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? ... Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.
Romans 6:1-2, 14
For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.
Titus 2:11-14
When God placed man in the Garden of Eden, He provided everything freely for man to enjoy with one exception. We were not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But man, disobeyed God choosing to believe Satan’s lies. They rebelled against God. Somehow, they doubted God’s goodness and thought that they knew best. The punishment was handed out-Death was pronounced on all mankind and we became separated from a holy God. But God, who is a loving kind and compassionate Father extended grace to man. He sent His son, Jesus, to die in our place.
He died to set us free from sin. We could never live a life worthy of God’s goodness, or His holiness by our own efforts. So, Jesus lived a life without sin on our behalf. By sacrificing himself for us on the cross, he took the punishment for all mankind for all time. He died so that we could be set free from the power of the enemy releasing us to live victoriously.
He died so that we do not have to experience an eternity in hell, rather we have the promise of life everlasting with our Father in the kingdom which is yet to come. He died as a demonstration of the unmatched and unequalled power of God’s grace. Grace that transforms lives. In Him, we are brand new creations, old things are passed away and all things are made new.
This is grace. We have been redeemed and set free, free to live as God intended in the very beginning, as His image bearers reflecting the character of God as revealed in His son Jesus throughout the earth. Simply put, grace is a benevolent Father saving us from ourselves and delivering us from everything that would want to hold us hostage. Grace is not cheap but to quote the well-known acronym it is God's Riches At Christ’s Expense.
We have received grace so what now? Do we continue to live reckless and rebellious lives as we did before we accepted Christ? As the apostle Paul says, “Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Rather we live in full surrender to the will and the way of God, we declare that we are not in control, we yield control to Christ, we belong to God and through the power of His Holy Spirit we live as children of the light. Yes, we fall, we make mistakes and when we do, we know that we will find grace to help us and restore us to the right relationship as we confess our faults and repent. We do not ascribe to the teachings of hyper-grace which says we can live carelessly without the need for ongoing repentance. This approach cheapens grace and its awesome power to change us and position us in the kingdom of light.
Grace equips us to live right so that we are indeed the royal priesthood and the holy nation that scripture declares us to be.
Ask: Why would Paul need to ask the question “Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace?”
Seek: Are you cheapening the grace you have received, is there any area of unrepentant sin in your life?
Knock: Take a moment to reflect on this:
For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds. (Titus 2:11-14).
Thank God for His grace and rededicate yourself to Him to live a life marked by wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God.
(Upper Photo by Nghia Le on Unsplash)
(Inner Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash)
