The Ministry of Grace

                 We know that a man is saved by grace through faith and not by works. Grace is a supernatural force of God, it affects a change wherever it is applied. One minute you’re a child of wrath and the next minute you’re a child of God. Grace is truly amazing and readily available to those who are humble enough to request it. But what happens with grace after you’re born-again, does it expire or does it change?

2 Peter 3:18 But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord   Jesus Christ.

We are instructed to grow or increase with the very grace that gave us our sonship. Grace is not just for salvation, it goes far beyond that. Peter was a rough ole fisherman. He had a bit of an attitude. One day, some men disrespected Jesus and Peter called fire from Heaven down upon them. When they came to arrest Jesus, Peter tried to kill one of the arresting officers. He cut off one of his ears. But  grace began to work in Peter and eventually he became a martyr for the cause of Christ. Peter tells us to grow in grace because it worked for him.

1 Corinthians 15:9 I am the least of the Apostles and I’m not worthy to be called Apostle because I wasted the church of God. VS. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am.

Paul testifies and says he did nothing to earn the title of Apostle. It was God’s grace working in him that affected a change. Grace will mold you into the person God wants you to be if you are willing. Paul was a terrorist on his way to Damascus to arrest Christians. Along the way, he died and when he entered the city he was a new man. That’s amazing grace. Grace never stops working in us as long as we are willing to allow it.

James 4:5 Do you think that the Scripture says in vain that our spirit in us lusts to envy? VS. 6 But God gives more grace.

All humans have lusts. They are added to us depending on how we were raised. The devil targets those lusts. They are our weakness. If we want to deal with them, God gives us grace which is more powerful than any temptation. Peter had a lust to be a bully. Paul had a lust to protect Judaism from the Christians. But when grace came they became a completely new men. The church couldn’t believe Paul could change and they were afraid of him even after his conversion.

 James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

When we submit to God we acknowledge that we can’t succeed without His divine intervention. There are things we cannot overcome without His help. The hardest person for the devil to deal with is a humble man. It’s like a kid who gets bullied and he runs home to dad, dad teaches him how to fight and sends him back. This is the ministry of grace.