The Two-Fold Nature of God’s Grace
“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, [e]ven when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) [a]nd hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: [t]hat in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Eph 2:4-7). Oh, how great is the grace of God! Thanks be to God that He has extended His grace to all men, that we may come to know Him and spend eternity in fellowship with Him! It is by the grace of God that we live, move, and have our being, and it is by the grace of God that we are saved. Unfortunately, many misuse and abuse the idea of God’s matchless grace. There are those who would have us to believe that we are saved by grace only. However, those who claim such do not practice what they preach. There are two sides of this proverbial “coin” that must be considered. After all, we are imperfect human beings dealing with a perfect and holy God.
From the divine aspect, God’s grace is sufficient for all people. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the cross allows all people the opportunity to be saved (Jn 3:16). There is no sin too great, no sinner so vile, that the blood of Christ cannot cleanse (Heb 7:25). God desires that all men be saved (1 Tim 2:4), and that no man perish (2 Pet 3:9). If man is saved by grace alone, it is no longer merely God’s desire that all men be saved, but an irrevocable and unalterable fact that all men will be saved! However, the Bible nowhere teaches that man is saved by grace alone. It is Biblical fact that the grace of God is sufficient to cover the sins of the entire world, but, because of the human element, such will not be the case.
From the human perspective, God’s grace is only efficient for some. All men have the opportunity to be freed from sin by the blood of Christ, but not all will choose to seize this opportunity. The truth of the matter is that the majority will reject the offer of pardon extended by God, opting rather to walk the pathway of vice and wickedness which leads to eternal punishment in hell (Mt 7:13,14). God’s grace is a free gift that awaits all those who will accept this gift on God’s terms (Eph 2:8-10). It is utterly foolish to think that man is trying to earn salvation when he complies with God’s terms of acceptance. When one obeys the gospel, culminating in his baptism into Christ, God’s grace is accessed by an active, obedient faith (Rom 5:2), by which this believer is justified, freed from the shackles of sin through the blood of Christ. He has not merited salvation. He has merely done that which was his duty to do (Lk 17:10).
It is hard to fathom the magnitude of God’s grace. The Bible does teach us that if everyone in the world were to obey the gospel, God’s grace is sufficient to cover the sins of everyone in the world. Despite this fact, very few will avail themselves of this opportunity. God’s grace is truly sufficient for all, but sadly it is only efficient for some.
-Patrick Morrison
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