WHY GRACE MATTERS

Our indepth study into grace was necessary for us to understand the battle between the two extremes of  Christian thought. While there are varying shades of thought between the two extremes, they usually fall into one of two categories. The Kingdom of God suffers because the message we want to present is muddled by human interpretation. Once we accept one view or another, we can rarely tolerate people who embrace the other view.  Literalism, Calvinism, Armenianism, fundamentalists, protestants, and Catholics have all broke upon ONE word, GRACE.  As I told you when we began this study, I am not a theologian, nor do I consider myself studied enough to teach this beyond what I read in the Word.  I always pray that when I read the Word, I will be given insight by the power of the Holy Spirit to teach you true and right.  It isn’t important for me to be a scriptural bulldog, unwilling to let go of whatever spiritual bone I might dig up.  It is important for me to present the Kingdom correctly. 

Next week, we are going to rejoin the original study about the Kingdom of God. We’ll spend some time looking at human kingdoms, human societies, and the carnal view of things first.  WHY?  Because we live in this earthly vale.  The problem as Christians, is that our perspective, and therefore, our way of life within that perspective is skewed to our world view.  The AWAKENING, is happening now, and if we are trapped within a rigid perspective, we’ll be worse off than the spiritual leaders of Christ’s day.  When the Grace Awakening occurs, we don’t want to be looking for the old things, while the new things pass us by.  Grace was, is, and will ever be the founding principal of the Kingdom of God. 

EXAMPLE TIME: As an American citizen, I am guaranteed freedom.  Liberty was the founding principal of our nation. We established liberty as the bedrock of all our laws, and privileges. Our laws established the limits of our liberty, while at the same time we trust in those laws to ensure the expression of our liberties. Our laws are a double-edged sword that protects us, and limits us at the same time. The only way we can lose our freedom, is to either commit crimes against society, or to surrender them to others.  As we’ve become a global society, American’s have surrendered many of their ‘rights’ in exchange for safety, and security.  What we hold dear to ourselves is the last thing we will relinquish as the ‘socialization’ of our government continues.  It is my personal belief that as the march of years continue, freedom will be exchanged for safety.  It is inevitable. Where once we were born to enjoy liberty, we will one day be satisfied with just being ‘safe.’  Eventually, liberty, and freedom will become distant concepts.

In the same way our nation was founded upon the principal of liberty, the Kingdom of God was, and still is established upon the principal of Grace. The laws of the Old Covenant, as well as the Spirit of the New Covenant have Grace as the guiding principal of the Kingdom.  AS I said earlier, Grace is more powerful than liberty.  It is God’s grace that gives us liberty.  Where once we were slaves to our sinful nature, we are now at liberty to live the divine nature.  Only grace gives us the power to do that.  When we exchange the power of grace for the false security of the law, we become worse than the Pharisees.  If we go to the other extreme of denying the power of grace to change our natures, we risk becoming as carnal as the Sadducees.  Trying to appease the carnal kingdoms of this world is exactly what the scribes and teachers were doing when they handed Christ over to Pilate. It didn’t work. Trust me, the kingdoms of this world will only grant you liberty in as long as it doesn’t rob others of what they seek to possess.  This concept is easily seen in totalitarian forms of government, but is just as active within ‘democratic’ forms of government.  We’ve seen plenty of examples within the Middle-East of what happens to people who are in disagreement with the majority, or even the leader of a nation.  The dissenter’s liberties are taken from them without a moment’s notice. There is no true liberty outside of God’s grace.  We are seeing that in our own nation, today.  The very government that is supposed to protect our rights is challenging every right given to us in our Constitution.  This is all being done in the name of peace, and safety.  Sound familiar? 

Grace, on the other hand, is something that gives us liberty even when we are bound, or imprisoned by the kingdoms of this world.  The power of grace transcends this physical world, and moves things in the Kingdom of God.  Grace’s expression, is liberty, true liberty of spirit. Spiritual liberty is what Christ came to bring to us. When you read the passage from Luke 4:17-21 it becomes clear that liberty is the heart of grace.  What does grace do?  It brings hope to the poor, it releases the captive, it gives sight to the blind, and releases the oppressed.  LOOK specifically at verse 19.  “to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”  God’s blessing, and favor have come, and his favor is more than the salvation of our soul.  This promise was made to Isaiah in chapter 61.  God’s promise of grace has always existed.  God’s favor, His good will toward men has always existed, and will never end.  His Kingdom, is given by birthright, not by naturalization. Grace then becomes the expression of those who choose to live out their true citizenship.  This is why these last few weeks matter.  This is why we’ve spent so much time studying grace.  Grace is the underpinning of the Kingdom, just as liberty is the underpinning of our nation.  Anything that robs another believer of his or her liberty in Christ, is not grace. That is why we have to be so careful in our walk with Christ. Grace is the divine nature expressed through the Godhead, as well as those who are born again.  Sadly, the church has lost its way on the issue of grace, because we’ve exchanged our grace for the safety, and security of laws, by-laws, constitutions, declarations of faith, and governments.  Pastors became possessors,  Apostles became appointers, Prophets became profiteers, teachers became taunters, and Evangelists became legalists.  We enshrined our thinking above God’s grace.  It has taken thousands of years to do it, but the path to safety has returned us to the same spot Adam found himself in. We’re afraid to be clothed with God’s righteousness, so we use the fig leaf of human doctrine to cancel the power of God’s grace.  Instead of being without shame as Christ intends us to be, we are continually checking to make sure our nakedness isn’t showing. It is high time for the Church to wake up, and make herself ready for the groom. 

You can be sure, the awakening is going to happen, the Church must wake up!   How can we convince a world to embrace the grace, when we ourselves aren’t convinced of the liberty wherein we now live.  How can we convince people of the divine goodness of God, if the divine nature isn’t found in us.  The divine nature lifts us beyond our human desires, and enables us to live a life of faith, moral excellence, divine knowledge, self-control, endurance, godliness, brotherly affection, and a love for EVERYONE.  We could never do this through the carnal nature.  Don’t get me wrong, the carnal nature is capable of doing ‘good’ things, even following the law, until it becomes puffed up.  The default attitude of the carnal nature is pride.  So, what looks good on the outside is actually filthy on the inside.  The problem with pride, is that it is the beginning of all sin.  It denies everyone of their liberty, even the one who is bound up in it.  Grace immediately challenges the carnal nature.  You see, when Christ spoke in Luke 4 about HIS anointing, He made a list of the things that the carnal nature does.  The carnal nature clothes itself in bad news, it enslaves, it blinds, and it oppresses.  As you will see in the next few weeks, this is the power of the kingdoms of this world.  When we advance the Kingdom of God, we are bringing liberty to those who don’t even know they are wretched, poor, blind, captive, and oppressed.  We must be busy like Christ, destroying the strongholds of darkness, and tearing them down.  We are leading people into the Kingdom of light, through the leading of the Holy Spirit. That is why we are ambassadors for Christ, we are representing a better Kingdom. Even if the evil one should try to jail us, persecute us, beat us, and shut our mouths, he will fail because his kingdoms are already defeated.  As we saw in Russia, and we are seeing in China, it is impossible to destroy God’s grace. Leaders will fail, oppressors will fail, and false teachers will fail.  The governments of this world will eventually bow before the true creator of all things, and they will acknowledge the grace of God. The power of God’s grace will ensure His Word goes out into all the world to save, heal, and deliver.  We only have to be willing to be the agents of His grace.