From this grace-filled space of forgiveness and light, we get to live grace!!
With unlocked heart and mind we can live from this position of grace. We can BE to the praise of His glorious grace (Eph 1:6)
Ps 145:2 (Ampl) “Everyday
with it’s new reasons will I bless You (affectionately and gratefully praise
You)
Every day has reasons for praise, reasons to be grateful. Today is a day for grateful praise – not only for the out-of-season Kalahari rain that is blessing the earth this morning, but also for the blessing of God’s Word of grace, yet again.
If you remember from blog #2, the reason for this study of Grace, is that I believe we (or me at least) are called to be stewards of Grace. And to know how to steward it, I had to discover the textures, colours and nuances of grace so that I can understand the infinite power of grace and how to adequately steward it.
My journey started in Ephesians and I was drawn back to it over the last few days. This is the reason for my praise and gratefulness!! God’s Word is so alive and it never ceases to amaze me!
We view the world through the lenses of our past,
perspectives and beliefs. I’m sure you
have experienced wearing sunglasses where the colours around you gets a bit distorted?
Have you ever compared sunglasses in the store, comparing and then choosing lenses with the truer view? So, by now, I’m wearing grace-coloured lenses and what a beautiful hue the world takes on!
I have read Eph 1 again through these grace-coloured
lenses and before I start sharing with you the stewardship of grace, and how we can BE to the praise of His glory, I
would like to share with you the joy of what I see. Through these lenses grace takes form and
becomes clearly recognizable!
Grace is a gift; it is favour & blessing; it is mercy
Without retyping the whole of Eph 1, I would just like to show you the characteristics (form)of grace as they were highlighted for me and invite you to read and discover for yourself.
Paul starts off with “may GRACE be yours” and then he describes they why’s and how’s throughout chapter 1.
I realized I can recognize grace by:
V2: Spiritual
peace [peace with God, harmony, unity and undisturbedness]
V3: Praise - Praise be to God Who has blesses us with
every spiritual blessing
V4-6: Love and belonging (sonship) – For He
picked us out for Himself as His own and planned in love for us to be adopted
as His own children, so that we might BE to the praise of His glorious grace which
He bestowed on us
V7: Redemption & remission in accordance with the
riches and generosity of His gracious favor
V8: Wisdom and understanding which He
lavished upon us through that same gracious favor
V9: Knowledge of the mysteries of His will
and purposes
V11: Heritage & purpose & Design – we obtained an inheritance, because we had
been chosen, appointed beforehand in accordance with His purpose, Who works out
everything in agreement with the design of His will.
V18: A heart of light – having the eyes of
your heart flooded with light
Hope - so that you can know the hope to which He
has called you
V19: Power (authority) – And so that you can
know what is the immeasurable and unlimited greatness of His power in and for
us.
This is just a glimpse of the magnitude of God's grace! There is so much more to come. To be entrusted to steward this grace, is
humbling, empowering and a bit daunting.
But is also fills me with joy, excitement and wonder.
