Marvelous Grace

MARVELOUS GRACE
Words: Julia H. Johnston, in Hymns Tried and True (Chi¬ca¬go, Il¬li¬nois: The Bi¬ble In¬sti¬tute Col¬port¬age As¬so¬ci¬a¬tion, 1911), num¬ber 2. Music: Daniel B. Towner, 1910

I
Marvelous grace of our loving Lord, Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured, There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.
Refrain
Grace, grace, God’s grace, Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace, Grace that is greater than all our sin.

II
Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold, Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold, Points to the refuge, the mighty cross.

III
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide. What can avail to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide, Brighter than snow you may be today.

Χαρισ (charis) is the New Testament (Greek) word which is now translated into English as GRACE. It would not be easy- in fact, futile- to try to really understand and appreciate our salvation without understanding the word GRACE. Christians generally agree that Grace describes unmerited divine favor. That’s how the technical and older English puts it. To put it in modern English, grace is the gift from God that I do not deserve but God gives it anyway. It is the good that we do not deserve and there really is nothing that we can do to acquire it. It is free and so undeserved. It is not a reward for a reward is given in relation to an accomplishment. It would not be technically correct to limit the description of Grace as God’s free gift. Yes, Grace is free but to limit its meaning to its being free is to miss the point. It is free but the core idea of this free gift is that it is something that we do no deserve. The agreement among Christians about the meaning of grace is not absolute and does not appear to be reaching a point of absolute unanimity.

It is a good idea and certainly helpful for our understanding if we do not separate Grace from Mercy and Justice. Using modern English phraseology, Grace is the good that we do not deserve but is nevertheless given to us. Mercy is the opposite. It is the punishment that we deserve but is not applied against us. Justice has two (2 ) components: Reward for good behavior (obedience) and punishment for disobedience.

The Bible makes it plain that the chosen believers are recipients of both Grace and Mercy. Both are also exercised in relation to God’s absolute freedom to choose the recipients of both Grace and Mercy. Ex 33:19 And the LORD said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. (NIV) Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace,… (NASB). Our salvation finds its root in divine election or the sovereign act of God in determining that some of us would be saved. That we were not a party to our salvation is clear in the fact that our salvation was decided before the creation of the world. God alone made the decision. The passage explains this as a matter of grace.

COMMON GRACE:
Among Christians, especially among those who are considered as Calvinists and Reformed, there is a type of grace called COMMON GRACE. The dominant word is GRACE and the classifying label is COMMON. Grace is the good we do not deserve but God gives it to us as His free gift. Why is this grace called common? Does it imply an inferior kind or quality? The word COMMON does not in any way imply an inferior quality but the scope of its operation and targeted recipients.

This is the favor of God that is given to everyone for the benefit of everyone. It is common because its recipients are not selected on the basis of religion or nationality. How does this Common Grace operate in the lives of people? Louis Berkhof (every Reformed Pastor has gone through Systematic Theology with his works as the textbooks) explains the function of Common Grace this way: “… curbs the destructive power of sin, maintains in a measure the moral order of the universe, thus making an orderly life possible, distributes in varying degrees gifts and talents among men, promotes the development of science and art, and showers untold blessings upon the children of men,” The specific operation of Common Grace are in the following areas:

PROVIDENCE: (God’s care for His creation).
All Christians believe that God is the Creator and that God continues to sustain and care for His creation. This is called providence and the fact that it is undeserved and applies to all justifies the use of the label Common Grace. The Bible tells us that Divine Providence – the expression of which is called Common Grace- is the ongoing task of the Lord Jesus Christ. Heb 1: 3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. Col 1:16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. The manifestations of Providence are the rain, sunshine and other gifts that are beneficial to humanity as a whole (Matthew 5:45).

THE PREVENTION OF EVIL AND THE PROMOTION OF WHAT IS GOOD.
Romans 13 tells us that those in authority are tasked with dealing with evil and promoting what is good. Areas such as Peace and Order, governance, social rules (including tribal rules) enjoy God’s approval in the task of protecting human life and promoting what is good, beneficial social structures and the like.

THE POWER OF CONSCIENCE:
Romans 2 presents an interesting discussion about those who do not have the law (as the Jewish do) but do what the law requires. Paul explains that this is because the “law” is written in their hearts. Man, whether he is a believer or not, knows the distinction between what is right and wrong. Theologically, the explanation for this is the fact that the image of God in man did not disappear completely when man fell into sin. Total depravity refers to total inability to be saved not total inability to do any good.

THE POWER OF THE CREATIVE MIND.
If you look at the advances in science and technology, you would note that the minds that created and generated these scientific and technological advances belong to both believers and unbelievers. The image of God includes intelligence and this enabled man to discover something new for the benefit of everyone.

SPECIAL GRACE: THE OPPOSITE OF COMMON GRACE.
In Reformed Theology, Special Grace the grace is applied for our redemption or salvation. Specifically, in relation to the work of the Holy Spirit in convicting us of our sin, it is called IRRESISTIBLE GRACE sometimes referred to as EFFICACIOUS GRACE. This is a topic for another article.

John 1:14 (NASB)
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John bore witness of Him, and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'" 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.