Fullness of Grace

Although Moses presented the law to the Israelites, according to Romans 8:3, the law was powerless because it was weakened by the flesh.  The law was great because it showed us right from wrong, but it had no power to transform the heart of man.  
The law reveals without the power of transformation.  
In comes the good news of the gospel in the second part of Romans 8:3:  God sent His Son who knew no sin to be sin for us in order to condemn sin in the flesh.  In Sunday’s sermon, Pastor Michael said,  “grace and truth CAME through Christ.”  “Grace came to us and met us where we were.”

The solution CAME.
Then comes discipleship:  Grace grows in our lives as we become more acquainted with and immersed in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.  
His power transforms us.  
By the grace of God, we were saved and made right with God. Also, by grace we are transformed.  By that grace, we become full of grace.  By that grace, we display the glory of God.  We become the manifested glory of God to the world as we yield to the work of the Holy Spirit.  The outcome of the work of the Holy Spirit will be visible in us as we grow in love.  As my daughter Taylor said to me, the root of the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE.  
We reflect His glory and grace.
So how do you pull all of that together?  The law shows our flaws, which left us in need of rescue because we couldn’t do anything about it.  God had mercy on us and sent the rescue because of His graciousness.  We receive it where we are and as we get to know the author by relationship with Him, He transforms us to fulfill the law in us.  Then the world sees a reflection of God’s glory in us and experiences a taste of His grace through His people.
And that my dear friends is the absolute best news!  AMEN!!!

--Beverly Verhage

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