Romans 3:23-24, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:”
The question that I’ve been asked on a regular basis by those who learn that I believe in Eternal Salvation by Grace and Grace Alone is, Why do you preach if you’re not trying to get folks into heaven? The answer to such a question can and usually does require an ample amount of time to answer. This past week, I read through the Book of Romans, and have become quite satisfied that Paul answered this question in the 16 chapters of the Roman Epistle. The Apostle Paul gives at least 7 benefits to the child of God who hears and believes the message of Salvation by Grace, which are;
(1) The Message of Grace brings comfort and peace to the sin sick soul (born again child of grace). In Romans 5:1-5 the Apostle teaches the reader how the gospel will help the child of grace to place his or her faith in Jesus Christ. By taking the faith that we have through the new birth, we are able to see our standing before God through the death of Jesus Christ. What a blessed peace and comfort it is for a sin sick soul to see themselves before the judgment seat of the Father without spot and blemish because they have been cleansed by the Blood of Jesus. If you, dear reader, feel to be a sinner, the good news of the Gospel is that this is a powerful evidence that you, yes you, are already saved by the Grace of God.
(2) The Message of Grace informs the child of God about his or her God. According to Romans 10:2-3, the Apostle Paul had a great zeal to inform the children of God about the Lord who saved them by His grace. Paul understood that an informed mind would know how to show forth thankfulness and praise to their precious savior.
(3) The Message of Grace promotes contentment. In Romans 1:14 we learn the Apostle felt himself to be a debtor in his service of God. When Paul examined himself without grace, he saw that he was a hell deserving sinner. Romans 5:9 references the “wrath” that he was saved from by the death of Jesus Christ our Lord. When compared to the hell we deserve, anything and everything is a great blessing. Paul felt it to be a great blessing to be a debtor to the Lord and His Church.
(4) The Message of Grace promotes humility in the child of God’s life. In Romans 3:27 the Apostle asked the question, “Where is boasting then?” His answer was, “It is excluded.” The message of Salvation by Grace eliminates the mouth of the boaster. The boaster, since eternal salvation is by grace and not by works, has no work of his own to boast in. The child of God who understands this can only boast in the God of all Grace (Ps 44:8).
(5) The Message of Grace promotes a greater service to God. Most people who oppose the Message of Grace say that it promotes licentiousness (gives a license to sin without restraint). I had a person say to me once, “If I believed that, I would sin all I wanted to.” But Paul disagreed. Paul affirmed the message of salvation by grace convicted the heart of the child of God from sin. Romans 6:1-2 reads, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?”
(6) The Message of Grace promotes an upward longing. According to Romans 8:18, the Message of Grace helps us to understand that the worse the child of grace will suffer is in this present world. But the sufferings of this present world “are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” How precious it is to have a hope in Christ, and hear the message of grace that helps to stimulate and kindle the hope which we have within us toward the day when we will all be with the Lord, satisfied together and satisfied forever, by the grace of God.
(7) The Message of Grace will promote and motivate a greater level of love and forgiveness to our brothers and sisters in this world. Romans 14:19 reads, “Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.” Every time I read that verse of scripture my mind is drawn to two others.
Ephesians 4:32, “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”
1 John 4:10-11, “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.” Amen!