301. Grace that Brings Salvation
Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men.
Grace brings salvation: not works, not prayers, not faith, not repentance, nor any other good thing that we can do. It is Grace Alone.Grace is free to us as a gift (that’s what grace means), but it is not free. It is earned at a priceless cost: the lifeblood of the Son of God. Jesus earned it for us because He loves us, and then He gives it to us. Grace brings salvation: grace is personified as a force that does something. It saves. It is not a theory or a construct, but it is a real entity.
The power of Grace is awesome, indeed, amazing. It is the very power of God fighting, working, warring and winning on our behalf. Grace defeats every enemy that has been marshaled against us. Grace is the outworking of the Love of God. It is the love of God that initiates and then carries out the grace that brings salvation. But it is grace that actually does the job. We are justified by grace, which is the free gift of salvation. Grace is earned; the merits and the shed blood of Jesus Christ earn it. It absolutely and completely satisfies the just wrath of God against sin. Because of Christ the Lord God is no longer angry with us, and will never be again. Because of Christ Grace means that God must unconditionally love us forever.
This saving grace of God has appeared to all men. This is an incredible assertion, because it seems to us that there are still many people who have lived on earth to whom the grace has not appeared. But it must be believed because God said it: “Grace has appeared to all men.” Even though it looks likely that some people have not heard the Gospel, yet the grace of God has appeared to everyone who ever lived on earth. Every person in the world can and may seek God and ask for grace and salvation, and the Lord will get the message to them. Then that gospel message must be heard with faith so that they may be saved by grace through faith.
Nonetheless, whether believed or not, the grace of God that brings salvation has been made available to every single person. Faith is necessary to personally make salvation real. The Lord has determined that an individual may resist the grace that has appeared. It is incredibly possible to neglect so great a salvation. The promise is to me: The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to me!