What is grace and why do we need it?

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Grace can be difficult for us to grasp. It is complex to understand, and likewise difficult to give. Did you know that you have been offered grace? Every day, God showers His grace on all of us. Every day we are given the gift of grace and are also commanded to show grace in our lives. What does this mean? What is grace, and why do we need it? Why should we accept it, and why should we give it? I’ve heard, read, and seen so many different definitions for grace, but today we are going to look at what the Bible teaches us about grace.

What is grace?

Throughout the New Testament, the Greek word charis is used for our word “grace”. According to Strong’s Concordance and Zondervan’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, charis boils down to undeserved favor bestowed on believers by God through Jesus Christ. It is loving-kindness, goodwill, and mercy from God given to sinners who don’t deserve it. Grace is a gift to humans who could never earn it. It also has to do with the spiritual condition of those who have been given grace.

Why do we need grace?

Grace is the means by which God offers salvation to those who choose to believe and have faith in Jesus Christ. By the grace of God, we are offered salvation through Christ, and then by grace those who believe are indwelled by the Holy Spirit and led to live godly lives, sanctified to become more like Jesus, displaying God’s grace and the fruits of His spirit as evidence of saving faith in Christ.

⁹But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.”
Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me.
2 Corinthians 12:9 CSB

Therefore, grace not only initiates the means of salvation but is also continuously poured out to sustain believers and lead them to become more like God. God’s grace is sufficient to save sinners, and then to transform and sustain them through sanctification.

¹⁰By this will, we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time.
Hebrews 10:10 CSB

What is grace and why do we need it? — Pin me for later!

What are we supposed to do with this grace?

By the grace of God, believers receive salvation, are given spiritual gifts, empowered to love the way God loves, and display His grace to those around us. Just like God bestows love and grace on us while we do not deserve it, we are called and empowered by His Spirit to do likewise.

¹¹For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation^[a] for all people, ¹²instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age, ¹³while we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Titus 2:11-13 CSB

¹⁹We love^[a] because he first loved us.
1 John 4:19 CSB

This grace, and this salvation, is not “of yourselves”. This is a gift from God. We cannot earn it, we don’t deserve it, but God offers it freely as a gift to each of us. His grace then sustains us and leads us to become more like Him as we wait for Christ’s return.

⁸For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— ⁹not from works, so that no one can boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9 CSB

As we receive grace from God, we are to share in this grace by living in it, living it out, and bestowing it on others. We must remember that we don’t deserve this beautiful gift, and neither do others, but we have received it and are instructed to give it as well in love. We must show grace to others, loving others as God loves them, and loves us. Accept this gift with a grateful and humble heart and then live in it, not rejecting the grace of God.

⁹Let love be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Take the lead in honoring one another. ¹¹Do not lack diligence in zeal; be fervent in the Spirit;^[a] serve the Lord. ¹²Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. ¹³Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality. ¹⁴Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. ¹⁶Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud; instead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation. ¹⁷Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Give careful thought to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes. ¹⁸If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
Romans 12:9-18 CSB

If I speak human or angelic tongues^[a] but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. ²If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. ³And if I give away all my possessions, and if I give over my body in order to boast^[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 CSB

Have you accepted the grace of God?

If you have not accepted the grace of God and chosen to believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I encourage you to pray to God now and invite Him in, accept Jesus as the sacrifice for your sins, and repent of your sins. Submit it all to God, lay it at His feet, seek the forgiveness of God, welcome Him into your life, and believe that Jesus died and rose again to save you from your sins.

If you would like to learn more about salvation, you can find a couple of studies that may help here: