{"id":1069,"date":"2020-05-26T11:19:37","date_gmt":"2020-05-26T05:34:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/?p=1069"},"modified":"2020-05-26T11:19:37","modified_gmt":"2020-05-26T05:34:37","slug":"amazing-grace-of-god-walk-in-the-newness-of-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/?p=1069","title":{"rendered":"Amazing Grace of God, Walk in the Newness of Life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Page Name:<\/strong> A Theological and Devotional\nReflection<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Rameshwar Yadav<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though the churches of Christ rely on God\u2019s Grace, many of them usually\ntake it very lightly or have wrong perception of it. It considers as a gift to enjoy\nand misuse it because the license of God\u2019s Grace is with them to get the\nforgiveness from sins. For such people, in Romans 6: 2-4. God has harshly rebuked,\n\u201cAre we do continue in sin that Grace may\nabound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? <\/em>Do you not know that\u2026we might walk in newness of life?<\/em>\u201d Thus, our frequent reading and teaching from the Word of His Grace<\/strong> must make us serious\nabout the Grace of God because God\u2019s joy is serious joy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God\u2019s Grace as a Gift<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To limit God\u2019s Grace as mere gift is abusing. Attaching His Grace only\nto martial welfare is misunderstanding. Yes, it is a gift of God but it is\nbeyond the gift. The word of His Grace (Acts 20: 32) teaches about Grace to\nlook more than it. It is not only to receive the worldly blessings but it is\nalso to build us up and give us God\u2019s inheritance. Here, Paul says, \u201cIt is more\nblessed to give than receive.\u201d Thus, to see the Grace as a receiving gift is\nthe narrow perspective. Grace teaches us to give instead of receiving. Thus,\nGod gave His Son on our behalf to bestow His grace for our salvation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His words show the greater scope of God\u2019s Greater Grace. In Ephesians\u2019 chapter\none, when God bestows His Grace upon us as sinners, it is not only limited to\nthe salvation from sins. He also blesses us with every spiritual blessing in\nthe heavenly places in Christ (V. 4). We know what has decided in heaven that\nhappens on earth. Furthermore, this blessing is for our election to make us\nholy and blameless before God. Then, in love He predestined us for adoption\nthrough Jesus Christ to the praise of his glorious Grace according to the\npurpose of God\u2019s will. Again, in Him we have redemption though Christ\u2019s blood,\nthe forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of His Lavished\nGrace. Here, God\u2019s wisdom and insight have attached to the Grace, which help us\nto know the mystery of God\u2019s will. Without His Grace, we do not understand\nGod\u2019s salvation in Christ, which was planned and declared by God before the\nfoundation of this world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Grace of God highlights our inabilities unto salvation and\nunwillingness towards the will of God. Ephesians 2: 1-10 has an analogy of \u201cthe\ndead man has made alive by God\u2019 Grace and Mercy to grant salvation from sins\nand give a new life to walk in Christ Jesus for good works\u201d. Now consider, why does God bring such analogy? Why are we\ndead in sins? Why do we need a new life?<\/em> In sins, we are dead for God. We\ncannot do anything for God. We cannot walk and follow God. God says in Genesis\n3:3, \u201cYou shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the\ngarden, neither shall you touch it, lest\nyou die<\/em>.\u201d The tones and messages of Ephesians and Genesis are same. The\nresult of sin is \u201cdeath\u201d. Further He says, \u2018For by Grace, you have been saved\nthrough faith. And this is not you doing, it is a gift of God, not result of\nworks, so no one may boast (Eph. 2: 8)\u2019. Thus, Grace of God is a gift but\nbeyond the worldly blessing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

God\u2019s Grace and its two Sides<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

God\u2019s Grace has two sides. One side is for His people and another side\nis for His enemies. In other words, the Doctrine of the Grace includes Doctrine\nof Election and Doctrine of Reprobation. Many of us may know bit about Doctrine\nof Election. But we might hate this teaching because we are thinking that how a\ngood and loving God can choose one and reject another. It means we do not have\nthe right understanding of it. Regarding it, our learning is only a half. But half-truth is no truth<\/em>. To see the\nbeauty of it, we must know it fully. But about the doctrine of Reprobation, most\nof them have not even heard. It is because the doctrine of Election is\npresented in the distorted form. In other words, there is a blasphemy about the\ndoctrine of Election. This wrong teaching has created the wrong notions among\nthem. Thus, they are not ready to hear about it, then what about learning of\nit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

God\u2019s grace for as Election<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This doctrine is soul comforting for the people of God and ministers of\nGod because God has done everything to save us. In other words, the salvation\nbelongs to the Lord. If the salvation bases on someone\u2019s ability and works, then\nnone will get the salvation. Let us learn what God words writes about the\nsinners. We are: sinners<\/em> (Gen. 8:21,\nPs 51:5; 58:3), spiritually dead (dead in\nsin<\/em> \u2013 Eph. 2:1,5; Col. 2:13), spiritually\nblind <\/em>(2 Cor. 4:3-4; 1 John 2:11; 2 Cor.3:14; John 12:40), by nature objects of wrath<\/em> (Gen 8:21;\nps. 51:5, Mat.7:21; Eph.2:3; Rom. 9:22), spiritually\ndeaf <\/em>(Mk. 8:18; John 10:27), unable\nto understand & believe<\/em> (Eph. 4:18; 1 Cor. 2:14; John 8:43-45; John\n5:44; 10:26), incapable of change<\/em>\n(Isa. 44:20; Jer.13:23;17:9; John 3:6), unwilling\nand unable to come & believe<\/em> (John 6:37, 44-45; 65; John 10:26-27; John\n12:37-41; Rom. 2:10-21), unworthy of\nanything (no right at all<\/em> \u2013 Job 40:4; Gen.18:27; Isa.64:6; Luke 17:10; 1\nCor. 4:7; Rom. 11:35-36; Job 35:7-8), hard\nhearted (stone hearts<\/em>– Rom. 2:5; Ezek. 36:26), hostile toward God<\/em> (Rom. 8:7-8), slave to in (not free-will, but enslaved will<\/em>– John 8:34; Rom.7:14;\n8:7-8; Gal. 4:24-25).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These passages indicates our conditions in sins. We are dead and not\neven free. Many of us have a wrong notion of freedom. It is very worldly. Let\nme explain it through an analogy of shopping. Why they cannot buy everything?\nIt is because they lack the means. None has money to buy the entire world or\nuniverse. Even all billionaires come together still they cannot buy everything\nof this world. Their means or money are limited. So they are thinking about the\nworld things. They can select one thing, which needed. But in term of\nsalvation, this method of selecting one and rejection another will not work.\nEveryone needs salvation. The worth of one soul is more than this world. In\nsin, God counts this world as nothing. Thus, free will does not relate to man\nbut God. None is free because everyone has limitation but God. God is free from\nall limitations. The limited freedom is\nnot equal to freedom.<\/em> To attach something to freedom or to detach something\nfrom freedom make freedom no freedom. Therefore, the doctrine of choice or\nfreewill or selection is of God. It is not related to man. God has all rights\nto save us for everlasting bliss or to send us hell for everlasting torment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God\u2019s Grace for Elimination (Reprobation)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The principle of election is helpful to explain the principle of\nreprobation. For example, there are the representatives of many parties in\nelection. But we can cast one vote though we love more than one candidates. We\nhave right for one vote. To cast one vote or use voting right, we choose one\nand reject others. Similarly, God chooses some. He leaves others. In other\nwords, He did not select them. It is His right. He exercises His sovereign choice.\nThen, is He unjust? As a man we can exercise our right and still we are good.\nIn the case of God, how can we blame Him? How can we say that He is unjust?\nTherefore, applying one doctrine, another principle automatically comes into\neffect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

God\u2019s Grace abused by many of us. We have taken it very lightly. It is a\ngift of God to us. Yes, it is. But it is not only a gift to acquire material\nthings. It is beyond of it. It is an unmerited favour of God, which bestowed\nupon us unto our salvation. None deserves it. We cannot earn or buy it. It is\nfreely given to us by the Gracious God. Therefore, the Sound of the Grace is\namazing to our ear and heart. But this amazing sound is the call of God unto\nthe salvation from sins for a sinner.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Page Name: A Theological and Devotional Reflection By Rameshwar Yadav Though the churches of Christ rely on God\u2019s Grace, many of them usually take it very lightly or have wrong perception of it. It considers as a gift to enjoy and misuse it because the license of God\u2019s Grace is with them to get the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[89],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1069","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-89"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1069","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1069"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1069\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1069"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1069"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hamroashish.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1069"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}