2 Timothy 1.9
“God … who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.”
The grace of God is essential to everything in your life as a Christian. Here are four essential things you need to know about grace.
#2 Grace redeems you and reconciles you to God.
Jesus came to planet earth to repair our broken relationship with God. Redemption means “to buy back,” and Jesus did precisely that. Although we did nothing to deserve it, He went to the cross to pay the price for our sin. He bought us back from sin and death.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6.23)
“We are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” (Romans 3:24-25)
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2.8-9)
This means that salvation is received, not achieved. It is a gift of grace that is received by faith.
#3 Grace restores you to God’s purposes.
As important as salvation is, it is not the goal of the Christian life; it is just the beginning. Salvation restores God’s purpose into your life. Redemption returns you to the purpose for which God created you: to be a bearer of His image and an agent of His kingdom.
“All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us.” (2 Corinthians 5.18-20)
The Lord did not save you for your purposes; He saved you for His purposes.
The Lord is calling.
