The Truth About Grace

The law was brought in so that more people would sin the way Adam did. But where sin increased, there was even more of God’s grace. Sin once used death to rule us. But God gave us more of his grace so that grace could rule by making us right with him. And this brings us eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord….So do you think we should continue sinning so that God will give us more and more grace? Of course not! Our old sinful life ended. It’s dead. So how can we continue living in sin? Romans 5:20-21, 6:1-2 (Easy-To-Read Version, ERV)

God introduced the law of Moses so that man would have a clear choice between what was sin and what was not. It defined sin. And when it did, man was shown that in his own strength and ability he could not keep the law. He could not measure up on his own. So, God gave men grace and allowed animal lives to be sacrificed to cover the sin. The more men sinned, the more grace God had to extend. And since Jesus has now paid the ultimate penalty for sin, the law has been fulfilled and sin has no hold on us.

However, some Christians read Romans 5:20, where it tells us that where sin abounded, grace abounded more- and they think that Scripture gives them permission to sin so that more grace will be released. But Paul addressed this just a couple verses later in Romans 6. The real truth is that sin doesn’t bring grace, but grace brings freedom from sin.

Consider that statement a moment. Sin itself does not create grace. Quite the opposite. Grace creates complete and total freedom from sin. We don’t sin to get more grace. We tap into grace to live free from sin. And we do that by faith.

So the next time the enemy tries to tempt you to do something you know you shouldn’t do, don’t let him fool you into thinking you can do it and ask forgiveness later. That is not what grace is for- although we can repent and be forgiven when we mess up. The purpose of grace is to empower us with God’s power, strength and ability to stay clear of sin in the first place. So use your faith and allow grace to keep you from the traps of the wicked one.