Previously I made a post called “Grace On Display Through Creation” which caused one commenter to question “our” role in receiving grace. For some time now I just was not entirely sure how to respond or even if I needed to respond. I’m still not sure about the latter, but while reading from the same book today (yes I am a very slow reader) I had a thought and have decided to throw it into cyber space.
Grace must exist before repentance or it cannot cover even the deepest desire for forgiveness. Without grace first salvation would be by works through personal effort instead of by grace through faith alone. Paul says it best in Ephesians 2:8 when he says “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God” (NASB). Notice it is a “gift of God”. If you do something for it first, it cannot be a gift but instead becomes a reward or even worse, a payment for services rendered.
Finally, without grace there can be no true repentance for it is through the undeserved gift of grace that we want to repent and receive forgiveness. It is through His grace that we can truly serve Christ and only through His grace that we can show grace towards others.
