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Articles
Have We Neglected Grace?
It seems common for folks to think that many among the churches of Christ have neglected sufficient preaching on God’s grace over the years. While this is certainly a possibility, (and while it is true that many places have neglected the preaching of many Bible topics over the years), when such a serious claim is so oft-repeated, it is worth a little consideration. Have many (or most?) gospel preachers neglected preaching enough about God’s grace? Or is there something else going on?
First, let us remember what grace is. In its most basic sense, grace means favor or kindness. When talking about God’s grace, we are talking about the kindness of God. Grace is a gift given to man without any pretense of merit on our part. Now just think about the kindness of God for a moment. How many ways can we discuss the kindness of God? How many ways has He demonstrated His kindness to mankind? How many qualities of God’s character also reflect His kindness? One would have to write volumes to even attempt to answer these questions! Every page of the Bible displays some aspect of God’s kindness!
Think about it this way. If the author of a novel wrote about the sound of birds chirping while drinking a cup of coffee and watching the sunrise, what else are they writing about? They are describing a morning. The author does not have to use the word “morning” in order for you to know he is writing about the morning. In the same way, the Bible does not have to use the English word “grace” each time it talks about God’s grace? In fact, the Bible reveals many ways in which God’s grace is manifested to us.
Read the following verses that mention God’s grace. Based on these Scriptures, what other terms and ideas also refer to an aspect of grace?
Titus 3:5-7 “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
Titus 2:11-12 “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,”
I Peter 5:12 “Through Silvanus, our faithful brother (for so I regard him), I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it!”
Galatians 1:6 “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel;”
Compare with II Thessalonians 2:14 “It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
We could go on, but notice the other topics at play when discussing God’s grace. When we talk about justification, we are talking about an effect of God’s grace (Titus 3:5-7; see also Romans 5:15-16). When we talk about moral living, we are talking about our response to God’s grace (Titus 2:11-12; see also Jude 4). When we talk about apostolic authority, we are talking about the demonstration of God’s grace (I Peter 5:12; see also Romans 15:15). When we talk about the gospel, we are talking about God’s grace (Galatians 1:6; see also II Thessalonians 2:14).
Bible teachers and students implicitly talk about God’s grace all the time even when the word “grace” is not directly stated. As Bible students, let us listen with “ears to hear” (Matthew 11:15). Perhaps grace has been neglected by a shallow understanding of some in the pews just as much as it has been supposedly neglected from the pulpit, (if not more so).
We need to be careful of what C.S. Lewis termed “chronological snobbery.” Chronological snobbery is the tendency to assume our current beliefs and ways of thinking are superior to those in previous generations. By recognizing the myriad ways in which God's grace permeates every aspect of our faith, we can guard against such narrow-mindedness and cultivate a deeper appreciation for the timeless truths of Scripture. Let us humbly embrace the richness of God's grace, both in our preaching and in our understanding, across all generations.
