Grace to Grow

As I have stated before, “grace” is the only way believers grow. That is a consistent, progressive awareness of Jesus, and His work at the Cross on our behalf. “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen” (II Peter 3:18, KJV).

The more our world evolves, the more we see the need of getting the “gospel” out—to every creature in every hamlet. Through the turbulence of our world, I now realize that, prior to the imminent return of Jesus, the gospel must be preached everywhere and by all means (television, radio, correspondence, etc.), so that the hearts of men and women may be influenced and changed by the grace of God. I formerly believed, or perhaps better stated, only realized one side of the reason to expose the gospel, which was to hasten the return of Jesus—“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14, KJV).

You see, I now realize more than ever, that change to humanity will not come because of political parties or leaders (though believers should vote in every election), or by law enforcement being immersed and meshed into communities to control violence. The only hope, which is sufficient for every facet of our perplexed society, is the power that comes through the name of Jesus and by His finished work. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16, KJV).

The Greek word “power” is “dynamis”, meaning strength power, ability. The idea here is that in preaching and declaring the “gospel”, God’s power is released which causes the soul to change, and God’s morality is embraced. I know this seems like a tall order for words to accomplish alone, but remember, we are not talking about men’s words, but the Word of God. The same words which formed everything tangible which is seen in our world. “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.  Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.” (Psalm 33:6-9, KJV)

“And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.” (Genesis 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, KJV)

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12, AMPC)

Preaching God’s grace may appear to be foolishness, but it is His antidote to redeem man and change cultures, societies, and thought patterns. “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” (I Corinthians 1:21, KJV)

So then, we now understand that it is vital that we, through a collective effort, engage in the function of spreading the gospel, and infiltrating humans wherever they are, if our world has any hope of being rescued from the soullessness which we have witnessed recently.