Category: Grace

Is your sin or God’s grace greater?

“Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more” (Romans 5:20).

Whether we have spent more time in jail than in church, God’s grace is available to forgive our sins and remove all our shame. Which is greater? God’s grace or your sin? God’s grace is greater and stronger than your sin through the blood of Jesus Christ! If Jesus’ blood can wash away the sin of all nations from all time in all of history (Hebrews 9:14; Revelation 1:5; 5:9; 12:11), certainly His blood can wash away your sin and shame the moment you believe in Him for His gift of forgiveness and everlasting life (John 3:16; Acts 10:43)!

God is not uptight about our sin and shame. He still loved us even though we were undeserving, ungodly sinners without any strength to reconcile ourselves to Him. He did not wait for us to clean ourselves up before He died in our place. The Bible says, “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6). “Christ died for the ungodly,” not the godly. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Christ died for us “while we were still sinners,” not saints. The idea that we must clean ourselves up and stop sinning before we come to Christ is not found in the Bible! We must simply come to Christ as we are and He will cleanse and forgive us.

God’s grace includes everyone. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). The word “whoever” includes both good people and bad people, godly people and wicked people.  When people start deciding who is deserving of God’s grace and who is not, they are cheapening His grace. The fact is none of us deserve His grace. We deserve God’s justice and punishment in the Lake of Fire (Romans 3:23; 6:23a; Revelation 20:15). So instead of pointing the finger at others, let’s give them God’s grace so they can discover that God is the God of second chance (Acts 20:24; Ephesians 4:32). He is in the business of forgiving and restoring guilty sinners with His grace.

Peace through Grace

“To all who are in Rome, beloved of God called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 1:7

In his greetings to the Christians (“saints”) in Rome, Paul extended God’s “grace” and “peace” to them as he did in all of his New Testament letters (1:7; cf. I Corinthians 1:3; 2 Corinthians 1:2; Galatians  1:3; Ephesians 1:2; Philippians 1:2; Colossians 1:2; I Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:2; I Timothy 1:2; 2 Timothy 1:2; Titus 1:4; Philemon 1:3). This reference to grace and peace summarizes the “gospel” or good news of Jesus Christ in all of Paul’s epistles. 

“Grace” refers to God’s unmerited favor whereby He gives us what we do not deserve. We do not deserve to be “justified” or declared totally righteous before God the moment we believe in Christ (Romans 3:21-4:25), but God’s grace makes this possible through “God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” who died in our place and rose from the dead (Romans 1:7b; cf. 1:3-5). 

God’s “peace” is the condition that results from God’s “grace” to us. Paul writes, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (5:1).  We can have peace with God because “when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son” (5:10). Jesus’ death provides the basis of our peace with God. Christ satisfied God’s holy demand to punish sin by taking our punishment when He died in our place on the cross and rose from the dead. All God asks is that we “believe in Him who justifies the ungodly” (Romans 4:5). 

Many people today are trying to find peace with God through their own religious efforts. An example of this in the New Testament is a Roman centurion named Cornelius (cf. Acts 10). He is described as “a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people and prayed to God always…a just man, one who…has a good reputation among all the nation of the Jews” (Acts 10:2, 22). Cornelius’ piety did not save him. His fear of God and righteous works did not give him “peace” with God (10:35-36). All of his prayers, fasting, and alms giving were expressions of his restlessness to be right with God. The apostle Peter correctly perceives this, so he speaks of Christ “preaching peace” (10:36). After declaring Jesus’ death and resurrection to Cornelius, Peter invites this religious man to “believe” in Christ for the forgiveness of his sins (Acts 10:43). What Cornelius could not find in fearing God, prayers, fasting, and alms giving, he found in the name of Jesus Christ! 

Only the name of Jesus Christ has the power to save and forgive all of our sins. The reason for this is because God the Father was completely and forever satisfied with Jesus’ full payment for our sin (John 19:30; I John 2:2). Those who are trusting in their good works or in Christ plus their good works to get them to heaven, are telling God the Father that Jesus’ death on the cross failed to pay their sin debt in full. However, since God was forever satisfied with His perfect Son’s payment for the sin of the world (Isaiah 53:11; John 19:30; I John 2:2), we must also be satisfied with what satisfies God. God cannot accept anything we do as payment for our sins because He has already accepted His Son’s payment for all of our sins when He died in our place on the cross.

The moment you believe this God forgives all your sins so you can have peace with Him. The Bible says, “Now to him who does not work, but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5). No amount of your good words or works can make you right with God. Only Jesus can do this for you through His grace the moment you believe in Him alone (Romans 3:24-26). The result is “peace with God” (Romans 5:1). Peace through grace is only possible through a relationship with Jesus Christ, not through a religion.

Rahab and God’s Grace

“Now Joshua the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly, saying, ‘Go, view the land, especially Jericho.’ So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there.” Joshua 2:1

When Joshua sent two spies to secretly assess the land of Canaan, they “came to the house of a harlot named Rahab” who hid them on her roof to protect them from the king of Jericho’s men who sought to kill them (Josh. 2:1-7). Rahab was a woman of faith (cf. Heb. 11:31; James 2:25) who trusted in Israel’s God knowing that He had “given” Israel “the land” and He would bring it to pass since she “had heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for” them and had defeated “the two kings of the Amorites” for them (2:8-10). After Rahab pleaded to the spies to deliver her and her family from death, the spies instructed Rahab to tie a scarlet cord in the window through which she let them escape to identify her house for rescue, and if she and her family stayed in her house which was on the city wall, they promised to spare her and her family when the city of Jericho was destroyed (2:12-21). Amazingly when the walls of Jericho fell flat, Rahab’s house stood firm and she and her household were saved from physical death (6:22-25).

Like Rahab, all of us have sinned with our thoughts, words, and actions (Rom. 3:23). We all deserve to die forever in hell. But God loves us just like He loved Rahab. Her story is filled with pictures of Jesus Himself. Rahab’s scarlet cord pictures the safety we can have through Christ’s blood from God’s eternal judgment (2:21; cf. 2 Cor. 5:21; I Pet. 3:18). In Rahab’s case, the scarlet cord would have been visible to the Israelite army as they marched around the city of Jericho before the walls fell flat because Rahab’s house was built into the city wall. The scarlet cord not only spared Rahab’s house and those in it from God’s judgment on the city, but it also marked her and her family out to be brought into God’s family. Just as God’s judgment passed over Rahab’s house because of the scarlet cord, so God’s eternal judgment passes over every believer because of the blood of Jesus Christ. 

Rahab’s story reminds us that no one is TOO BAD for God’s grace to save. Will you choose the Lord today to save you from your sins and give you eternal life? Jesus promised, “whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16b). Now is the time to trust in Christ alone because later may never come.

Applying God’s Grace to Suicide

Living during a global pandemic makes it especially difficult to connect with one another. There is a great emphasis on social distancing. People cannot connect with one another as easily as before because of all the COVID restrictions and fear of getting sick. The additional stress caused by COVID increases the chance of conflict with others which can also become a barrier to connecting with one another. Emotional needs are much greater during this pandemic. There is more fear and depression which can lead people to isolate themselves from others. More people feel hopeless and think of taking their own lives.

A question that may arise during this pandemic is, “Will a believer in Jesus Christ who commits suicide still go to heaven?” The answer to this is strongly related to one’s view of God’s grace.

WHAT DOES GOD SAY ABOUT A BELIEVER WHO COMMITS SUICIDE?

In Romans 8:31-39, God answers four questions or accusations that can arise in cases of suicide:

1.MAN’S ACCUSATION: “Doesn’t such a death as suicide prove that God works against us, not for us? Isn’t this what prompts a believer to take his life?”

GOD’S ANSWER: “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:31-32) God says, “Since I am for you (and no one is greater than Me), no one can successfully oppose you, including yourself.” When the unexpected happens, you need to ignore the lie that God is against you. He is on your side. God does not work against us. How wrong it would be to believe that God turns His back on the believer who commits suicide. God is FOR US – on our side – deeply interested in our needs, our hurts, our pain, our failures and loneliness. 

Proof of this: God gave His Son to die for our sins, including the sin of suicide (Romans 8:32). 

2. MAN’S ACCUSATION: “Doesn’t the suicide of a Christian confirm the fact that Christianity really doesn’t have the solutions to man’s problems?” 

GOD’S ANSWER: “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.” (Romans 8:33) God says, “No one can successfully press charges against a believer in Christ because I have declared him totally righteous on the basis of his faith in My Son.” No one can successfully accuse any Christian who commits suicide because God does not even accuse him – He declares him totally righteous or not guilty the moment he believed in Jesus Christ. No one can bring an accusation against the Christian who commits suicide that will stand. But how difficult it is at times to realize God’s interest and presence! It’s like the sun – every day – it shines. No one could EVER say – the sun isn’t shining! We may say, “I can’t feel it or see it”…but fly high enough and there it is!

3. MAN’S ACCUSATION: “Doesn’t such an act as suicide deserve condemnation?” 

GOD’S ANSWER: “Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.” (Romans 8:34) God says, “No one can successfully condemn the believer who commits suicide because My Son – 

“… was condemned to death for his sins, removing his guilt (8:34b).

“… was raised to life, satisfying My demand to punish his sins (8:34c). 

“… is at My right hand defending him against all accusations (8:34d).” When Satan comes to God’s throne with accusations against the believer who commits suicide, God looks to His Son, and Jesus says, “Father, I paid for that sin.”

“… intercedes for him (8:34e).”

Now let me make something quite clear. I am not suggesting that such a death is condoned in Scriptures… for God assures us that He has not only designed LIFE but LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY for His children (John 10:10). However, the struggles and pain are often too great for a person who commits suicide. But God does not condemn him because Christ has taken his or her punishment. 

4. MAN’S ACCUSATION: “Doesn’t such an act separate a person from God’s love and presence? Isn’t this the classic act of rejection?”

GOD’S ANSWER: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? …Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35-39) Nothing, including suicide, can separate a Christian from the love of God. Even though others may stop loving us or we may stop loving ourselves, God’s love will never abandon us. Nothing you do, say, or think can separate you from God’s love. Absolutely nothing. 

Listen to Jesus’ own words: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them…and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” (John 10:27-29) That includes the believer who commits suicide!  

Who shall oppose us? NO ONE. Who shall accuse us? NO ONE. Who shall condemn us? NO ONE. Who shall separate us from God’s love? NO ONE. The believer who commits suicide is in God’s presence – no more tears, crying, pain, death or darkness… all that is gone. His body awaits that incredible moment when it will be raised and changed—NEVER TROUBLED AGAIN WITH INNER DISTURBANCE  …CONFLICT …INSECURITY…UNREST…

HOW CAN I OVERCOME THOUGHTS OF SUICIDE?

  • Aim to work on the causes of your emotional pain, not just the symptoms.
  • If your depression is due to guilt, admit your sin to the Lord (Psalm 32:1-5; I John 1:9).
  • When you are depressed, place your hope in God (Psalm 42:5; Lamentations 3:20-25).
  • Avoid being isolated (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10). Stay connected to loving and supportive friends.
  • Seek help from others (Galatians 6:2; James 5:13-16).
  • Listen to uplifting Christian music and sing (I Samuel 16:14-23).
  • Identify and replace the lies underlying your suicidal thoughts with God’s truth. Jesus came so you could have life, but Satan came to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). Suicidal thoughts often stem from some of Satan’s lies.Focus on the truth of God’s Word, not Satan’s lies (John 8:31). If you are not aware of the lies you believe, journal your thoughts and feelings, relying on the Holy Spirit to reveal the underlying lies. Then ask God to remove the lies that cause you to have suicidal thoughts and graciously replace them with His truth (Psalm 119:28-29).

WHAT IF I SUSPECT SOMEONE I KNOW IS HAVING THOUGHTS OF SUICIDE?

  • Don’t be afraid to talk to them about it. We are only as sick as our secrets. Ask questions like: “Are you thinking about taking your life? Do you have a suicide plan as to how you would do it? Why do you think that’s the only answer?” Talking about suicide does not plant suicidal thoughts in someone who is already depressed. Talking about suicide actually decreases the possibility of that person taking his or her life because it diffuses its power. (If someone has a plan to kill themselves, make sure they get medical assistance immediately!)
  • Obtain a verbal “non-suicide” contract or commitment not to do anything that would be harmful or self-destructive without first talking with you or with a counselor, pastor, or another trusted person. 
  • Ask them to think through these questions: “If you died and came back to life, could you find other reasons for being glad to be alive? Would the Lord’s promises of love and guidance though your trials still be in place? Would the sun still shine and water still be cool and refreshing? Would there still be adventures in life and growth in relationships? Could some positive reasons for living, as opposed to dying, be developed?” Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! There is hope for the hopeless!

God’s Grace in the Garden

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings… Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” Genesis 3:7, 21

When Adam and Eve sinned against God, they tried to remedy their sense of fear and shame by covering themselves with “fig leaves” (3:7). But this covering did not remove the effects of their sin. Since that first attempt to remove the consequences of sin through human effort, people have been trying to remove their own guilt and shame through their own accomplishments. Various religions have been created by people trying to remedy their sin problem. But all man-made religions fall short of God’s solution to our sin problem. 

In Genesis 3:21, God graciously provided the proper covering for Adam and Eve. He “made tunics of skin” through the death of an innocent animal. Blood must be shed. Imagine how Adam must have felt to see one of the animals he had named and cared for being killed on his account! Never had Adam and Eve known death. This was serious business and this was to be God’s way of dealing with sin throughout the ages. By providing a covering with animal skins, God provided forgiveness through the “shedding of blood” (Hebrews 9:22). God later provided forgiveness through the Old Testament sacrificial system. 

Those animals were shadows of the Babe who was born on that first Christmas morning. He would be called “the Lamb of God” (John 1:29). Like that first animal that was sacrificed for Adam and Eve, Jesus Christ would also be innocent and without sin because He was and is God (John 1:1, 14, 17; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; I Peter 3:18). And like that first sacrificial animal, Jesus was born to die for the sins of others (John 1:29; Romans 5:8; I John 4:9), that “whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Like Adam and Eve, our human efforts or works cannot remove our sin and shame (Isaiah 64:6; Romans 4:5; Ephesians 2:8-9). Religion cannot take away our sins. Only Jesus Christ can take away our sins (John 14:6; Acts 4:12). This is called grace. Grace is receiving what we do not deserve. We do not deserve forgiveness or everlasting life. But because of God’s grace, He offers us His forgiveness and everlasting life freely. Will you trust in Him alone to do for you would you could never do on your own? He is waiting for you to come to Him in faith just as You are and then He will forgive all your sins and give you everlasting life (Acts 10:43; John 3:15-16). Praise God for His magnificent grace!