The Greek word for grace means beauty or favor. The Hebrew words mean beauty or pleasure. And the common phrase used, especially in the Old Testament, is to find grace or favor in the eyes of someone.
The grace of God is the way that God looks at us. He looks at us with favor. He sees us in a different way from the people on whom he does not bestow his grace.
This was illustrated by the example of Noah. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord or found favor in the eyes of the Lord. God looked on Noah in a different way from all the other men of his generation, and as a result, Noah’s destiny was totally different. All the other people perished. Noah was saved. because God had looked upon him with grace or with favor.
So that’s the basic concept of grace. It’s the way God looks upon us, and because of His looking upon us, things happen in our lives that wouldn’t happen for any other reason. Our destiny is changed. It becomes good and prosperous instead of evil and sad.
We need to understand the distinction between grace and works. There’s an intellectual content to what I’m teaching. You must apply your mind. There’s an intellectual aspect to this truth, and there’s a spiritual aspect. But if you apply your mind, if you’ll give careful attention to what I’m going to be teaching, then out of your intellectual appreciation will come spiritual enrichment.
We have to use our minds to understand these distinctions that the New Testament makes. Probably the key passage for this distinction between grace and works is Ephesians chapter 2 verses 8 and 9 where Paul says, for it is by grace you have been saved through faith And this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.
There are two positive statements, one negative, but they all go together. The two positive statements are by grace, through faith. Always keep those two together.
Grace always comes through faith. And grace always excludes works. If it’s by grace, then it is not by works, not by what we’ve done, we can’t work for it, we can’t earn it, we can’t deserve it, we must receive it by faith.
There is always this contrast, all through the New Testament. Grace and works are two mutually exclusive alternatives.
This is stated very clearly by Paul in Romans 11 verse 6. And if by grace, then it is no longer by works. If it were, grace would be no longer grace.
In other words, if you can earn it, then it’s not by grace. If it’s by grace, you cannot earn it. Just keep that continually in mind. Anything that comes by grace cannot be earned.
Now, the contrast between grace and works points us to two mutually exclusive roots to achieve righteousness with God.
One is the law, the other is Christ. The law demands works. Christ offers grace. Again, we must choose.
This is brought out in the passage in John chapter 1, where John introduces Jesus as the eternal Word of God made flesh. Verse 17, For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
There are two alternative presentations. The law, which was given through Moses. Grace and also truth, which came through Jesus Christ.
Now, to be justified by the law, to achieve righteousness by the law, we must observe the whole law all the time. This is very, very important. Most people don’t see this. The law given through Moses was a single comprehensive system. It was all given at one time, it all stood together, and Moses continually warned the Israelites, you cannot add to it. You cannot take away from it. You’ve got to keep the whole law all the time.
This is brought out in the New Testament in the Epistle of James, where James says in Chapter 2, verses 10 and 11, For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point, he is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, do not commit adultery also said, do not murder. If you do not commit adultery but you do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
If you keep 99% of the law and just fail in 1%, you’ve broken the whole law, because it’s a complete, indivisible unit.
And then in Galatians chapter 3, verse 10, Paul brings this out also. For he says, all who rely on observing the law are under a curse. For it is written, and it’s written in the law itself, he’s quoting from the law, cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the book of the law.
Notice 3 important phrases there:
1-Everyone
2-continue
3-everything.
Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the book of the law.
In other words, if you’re going to be made righteous by keeping the law, you must do everything the law says all the time. You cannot keep the whole law ninety-nine percent of the time and just 1% of the time not keep it and say, well, that 1% doesn’t matter. The 1% of the time you don’t keep the law invalidates all the time that you have been keeping the law.
You cannot keep 99% of the law all the time and just break 1% of the law and say that 1% doesn’t matter. I’ve kept all the 99%.
The scripture says, no, you’ve got to keep the whole law all the time. And if you rely on achieving righteousness by keeping the law, but you break it at any one point at any time, then you are under the curse, because the law itself pronounces A curse.
They could not come under the law except by accepting that curse upon themselves. Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the book of the law.
So, we have to keep the whole law all the time, or it is of no avail to us in achieving righteousness with God.
The next fact we must face is that no one has ever succeeded in keeping the whole law all the time except one person, and that was Jesus Christ.
So, Paul says in Romans 3.20, By the works of the law, no flesh, no human being will be justified in God’s sight, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.
The law does give us something very important. It’s not righteousness, it’s the awareness of sin. The law can give us the awareness of sin, but we are not able to achieve righteousness by keeping the law.
So, there’s only one way left. If the law is ruled out, then the only way to achieve righteousness, to be in God’s favor, is through Christ. And Paul goes on in Romans 3.21-24, But now, apart from the law, The righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe.
Notice, this is through faith, it’s by grace, it’s not by works. For there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile, between Catholic and Protestant, between one nationality and another. We’re all alike in one point. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
If you don’t accept that, you are arguing with Almighty God because it’s God in His own Word who says, All have sinned. He says it in the Old Testament; He says it in the New Testament. It applies to Jew; it applies to Christian.
All have sinned, fall short of the glory of God. Therefore, we cannot be justified, we cannot achieve righteousness by keeping the law because we’ve broken it.
So, the only alternative now follows, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.
We are not going to achieve righteousness by keeping the law. We’ve all failed. We must accept the only alternative, which is God’s grace, which comes to us freely. We don’t earn it, we receive it by believing, and it comes to us in Christ Jesus.
And so, Paul sums it up in Romans 10:4, the relationship between Christ and the law as a means to righteousness.
Verse 4, For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. Once you believe in Christ, then you no longer can pursue the law as a means to achieving righteousness with God.
The law is still a part of the eternal word of God. It’s still a marvelous demonstration of God’s justice and God’s standards. It’s still a part of the total culture and history of God’s people Israel.
Christ has not abolished the law in any sense of that, but as a means to achieving righteousness with God.
When Jesus died on the cross, bearing the sins and the guilt, of those who were under the law and those who were not, he nailed the law to the cross. He nailed both the ceremonial and the moral aspects of the law to the cross.
The children of Israel in the Old Covenant could not keep the moral aspects of the law, but they could keep the ceremonial. When they sinned, they had to bring a sacrifice and confess their sin over the animal and then the animal died in their place, and they were forgiven.
So, most Christians do not realize that we are not under moral law. There are no moral standards for the Christian.
We are under grace; Christianity is not about doing better. It is about allowing another Spirit, another person to live through us. And as we become aware of Christ in us and learn how to yield to His Spirit, Jesus will live through us and far exceed the moral law.
By Jesus’ death on the cross, He finally ended the law as an acceptable means for achieving righteousness with God.
And as Paul says, we are all shut up to God’s grace and mercy. We have no other alternative left. It’s grace, or nothing.
Let me close this message with the words with which the apostles regularly closed their epistles. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.