Grace is often defined as "unmerited favour." Scholars who looked into its definitions based on Greek and Hebrew words found that there's more to it than that.
Grace Defined
According to scholars, one word used to describe grace in the Old Testament was "chesed," which speaks of "deliverance from enemies, affliction, or adversity." The word also denotes "enablement, daily guidance, forgiveness, and preservation."
Another word used for grace, this time in the New Testament, is "charis," which focuses on God's provision for our salvation. Of course, we all know that this talks about God sending His only begotten Son Jesus Christ to be the propitiation for our sins (see 1 John 2:2).
Knowing these, we could simply say that grace means "God loved us who don't deserve His love."
His love paved the way for our salvation, deliverance, provision, freedom, protection, hope, and everything we need.
Yet we don't deserve any of that goodness.
Grace Restores Our Broken Lives
This brings me to what I want to share with you, dear reader. God's grace allows us to live joyful, free, and meaningful lives, even if we don't deserve it.
How?
Isaiah 59:2 says, "Your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear."
Our sins separated us from Him. Right from the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, all men have been imputed with sin, and this sin has separated all of us from God, who is the Giver of all good gifts.
Psalm 130:3 tells us of the gravity of our sins, and how God sees it: "If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?"
God's holiness cannot allow sin to go unpunished. He will surely dole out punishment for all sin.
God, however, wants us to be forgiven and be saved. That's why He did what only He can do.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." (John 3:16-17).
Through Christ, we can all be forgiven and saved. Both 2 Corinthians 5:19 and Ephesians 2:8 tell us that God was the one doing the work of salvation, not us:
"For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them."
"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God."
What's our part there? To receive His gift through repentance.
"Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away" (Acts 3:19).
Just Come to Jesus
Friend, no matter how broken, how irreparable, how deep you are in your troubles, there's hope for you, for all of us. There's nothing we can do to save ourselves, gain lasting peace, and ensure a security that lasts for eternity. God wants to give us all that. But we can only receive it when we humbly come to Him in repentance.
God already did His part by sending His only begotten Son. Jesus already fulfilled His part by dying for you on the cross to save you from your sins and condemnation. It's your time to do your part: to repent and wholly come to Him. He's waiting for you and will bring you back to Him if you will let Him.
