5 Comforting Characteristics of God’s Grace
As Christians, God’s grace is the main theme of our relationship with the Lord. We know that God’s grace is the reason we are able to know the Lord and eventually spend eternity with Him.
However, God’s grace doesn’t just hold one purpose; it extends far beyond salvation into every aspect of our lives. It is available to us daily and can be a source of spiritual comfort in many ways. Let’s explore five comforting characteristics about God’s grace!
1. Timely
God’s grace is always available when we need it. It’s timely and never withheld from those who will ask for and accept it. The book of Hebrews tells us that given Jesus’ enthronement as Lord, we can now approach God’s throne boldly, asking for what we need. This “boldness” refers to our joyful confidence when entering God’s presence. We can be confident because our faith lies solely in Jesus’ atoning work. His victory over sin and death is a victory for each of us!
As the Bible says, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ. But there’s more! Since Jesus has experienced trials and suffering, he is more than capable of helping us with our problems. He understands, first hand, our hardships, and pain. Therefore, we can have hope that we’ll receive grace when approaching God’s throne. Why? Because we have, as our advocate, one who shares in our humanity and knows us deeply.
Remember, God is in the business of helping, guiding, and loving his children. Providing his grace when the time is right is one way he does just that. His grace will never let you down!
Hebrews 4:16 - “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
2. Teacher of Holiness
Even as Christians, we still wrestle with our sinful nature, and knowing how to live righteously doesn’t always come naturally. In addition to being taught by scripture and led by the Holy Spirit, relying on God’s grace helps us live lives of holiness. In Titus, we read how God’s grace culminated in a special event – Christ’s appearance on the world stage! As the culmination of God’s grace, Jesus appeared not only to bring salvation but to teach us to live a new life.
This new life, however, starts with repentance. It begins with a decision to leave behind our old ways and follow God wholeheartedly. Formerly, the world’s values had shaped our life, but now a new set of godly virtues define how we live. God’s grace helps us implement these new values.
He directs and encourages us to live righteously and resist worldly temptations by reminding us of his loving and merciful nature displayed through Christ’s atoning sacrifice on our behalf. These reminders should strongly influence us to pursue a straight path, a path pleasing to the God who has given us so much.
Titus 2:11-12 “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”
3. Chain-Breaker
One of my favorite characteristics of God’s grace is that it’s a chain-breaker. God’s grace has the power to break the power of sin’s chains on our lives. Throughout Romans, we see sin personified as an aggressive power seeking to conquer our lives. However, sin is no longer our master since God’s grace has freed us. Sin’s control over us has ended because of calvary, and we now have a new Master, Jesus Christ.
Yet, this doesn’t mean sin can’t gain some control over us. It does mean, however, that it never has to be that way. Why? Because God will always give us a way to escape. As born-again believers, we are more than conquerors and can always resist the lure of sin when we turn to Christ for strength.
The old age of the law, marked by condemnation, has changed to the new age of grace, marked by redemption. In other words, the chains of our past – shame, guilt, temptation, and more have been immediately broken! We’re no longer slaves to sin or the world’s ways. We are free to live holy lives before God. Our identity is now in him, and his grace has set us free. What a comforting truth!
Romans 6:14 “For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”
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4. A Free Gift
Another wonderful truth about God’s grace is that it’s free! Specifically, our liberation from sin is a free gift from God, and his grace is the basis for that gift. While our salvation results from God’s gift of grace, we appropriate it through faith. This act of faith describes our decision to accept the saving work of God in our lives. However, it’s God who enables us to receive his abundant provision of grace. In other words, he initiates and accomplishes everything relating to our salvation.
Since we naturally deserve judgment, redemption from sin and death can come only from the Lord. It’s his gift, meaning that it’s not something we can earn by our efforts but is freely received. We sinners know we cannot merit anything from a perfect God. We only have access to him because of his kindness, love, mercy, and generosity displayed in Christ’s atoning work.
Ultimately, God is the giver of all good things, and we are the recipients. So having a Lord who is loving and merciful enough to freely give us such a priceless and underserved gift is as comforting a thought as they come!
Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
5. Sufficient
An essential trait about God’s grace is that it never runs out; it’s always enough. In second Corinthians, we read about the mysterious thorn in Paul’s side. Whatever his thorn was, it hindered his ministry. For this reason, he calls it a messenger of Satan.
However, this thorn had a beneficial purpose. It prevented him from becoming conceited and prideful. No matter how often he asked God for its removal, his plea wasn’t granted. Instead, he was given the “grace” to bear it. In other words, God’s grace was sufficient for him.
We often think we are destined to fail if we lack the virtues of strength and courage to endure life’s challenges. Yet, as good as they are, these virtues tend to push us towards self-sufficiency and away from dependency on God’s strength.
Ultimately, enduring strength lies entirely in God alone! His powerful grace is more than enough for any situation we may face. No matter what weakness or hardship we experience, his divine power is all we need. His grace will provide us with the wisdom and resources needed at the exact time to walk the path he has called us.
