Grace, Back to Fundamentals

"Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." - Genesis 6:8
"We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone." - Martin Luther

Ask yourself, 'What is grace' ?  One of my pastors defined it like this:
Gods
Riches
At
Christs
Expense
I have come to believe that grace is much more than that.  I have also come to the conclusion that grace is the absence of legalism, the rules of do's and don't s.
To inherit God's grace one must believe by pure faith that it is freely given because of Christ.  This is total freedom, knowing there is nothing we have to do to obtain it or receive it.
Grace lifts the burden of shame and guilt and in grace there is no condemnation.
Grace is both horizontal and vertical.  It allows us to approach God and also change how we approach others.
During the scandals of the late 1980's there were those who declared that those preachers should never enter a pulpit again.
My stand on the subject is this, Grace is a two way street.
Parishioners expect that there leaders to show forgiveness when asked, but pastors who fall from grace should also expect grace from the parishioners.
I have learned to live by faith that I have God's grace all the days of my life.  If I were to transgress, I can go boldly to God and ask for His' forgiveness, and freely receive grace.

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