Many Christians think that if only they had received the grace of God, everything would have been better! But the Bible says that he has called us by his grace and therefore we have already received grace. 'God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me ...'( Galatians 1:15) If you have a revelation of Jesus, then you have already received grace in accordance to your calling, because he not only calls us, but also gives us the power to fulfill that calling. 'Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God ... Through him and for his name's sake , we have received grace and apostleship ...' (Romans 1:5) Christ has already apportioned the grace according to our calling. 'To each of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it... It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ...'(Ephesians 4:11-13) When Paul doubted whether the grace of God upon him was sufficient for him to overcome the 'thorn in his flesh', what Jesus reminded him could be paraphrased thus: "The grace I apportioned to you is sufficient but the reason you think it is not enough is because you are relying on yourself."( 2 Corinthians 12:9) Infact the measure of grace apportioned to us is more than we need because he has lavished it upon us. 'In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance to the riches of God's grace that he has lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.'( Ephesians 1:7-8) Let's not be ignorant but understand what he has already given us freely in Christ. 'Only let us live up to what we have already attained.' (Philippians 3:16) Amen.
Sam Matthews. K
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