Grace and Peace from God

[Christsfreeservant]

Ephesians 1:2 ESV

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”​

1. Who is this written to specifically? And more broadly?
2. What is the meaning of this word grace? Grace from God?
3. What is the meaning of this word peace? Peace from God/Christ?
4. How are both grace and peace to be applied to our lives?

The Apostle Paul wrote this letter under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to the saints in Ephesus who are also faithful in Christ Jesus. And a saint is one who is holy. And for the believer it means “likeness of nature with the Lord” because “different from the world." And faithful means reliable, trustworthy, believing, and loyalty to faith, the faith which is persuaded of God, thus believing the faith which God imparts (source: biblehub.com). So more broadly this applies to all of us who are God’s saints and faithful ones.

[See: Hebrews 12:1-2; Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12-13; John 6:44]

Now, does that mean that you shouldn’t bother reading this if this is not where you are? To the contrary! For not one of us has “arrived” yet. None of us will be absolutely perfect until we get to heaven, providing that is where we end up. But the point in knowing who this is written to is so we understand that these are the people to whom God’s grace has been imparted. These are the ones who have the peace of God in their lives. God’s grace and his peace are not promised to those still living in sin against God.

[See: 1 John 1,2&3; Romans 6:1-23; Galatians 5:16-21; Ephesians 5:3-6]

So, what is the meaning of God’s grace? God’s grace is his kindness towards us, and the word means "favor, disposed to, inclined, favorable towards, leaning towards to share benefit") – properly, grace is preeminently used of the Lord's favor – freely extended to give Himself away to people (because He is "always leaning toward them") (source: biblehub.com).

[Rom 3:23-25; Rom 5:1-2; Rom 6:1-4,6-7,12-23; 2 Co 6:1-2; 2 Co 9:8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 6:24; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 10:26-31; Heb 12:12-17; Jude 1:4]

Okay, so what did Jesus do to give himself away to people because he is leaning toward them to share benefit? And what benefit? Well, the Scriptures teach that Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. He died that we might live for him and no longer for ourselves. He shed his blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our lives of slavery to sin so we would now honor God with our bodies, and so we will now live for him in walks of obedience to his commands.

[1 Peter 2:24; 2 Corinthians 5:15; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans 6:1-23]

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:11-14). And…​

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“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life… so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin” (Romans 6:1-4,6).​

Does this include forgiveness of sins? Yes! Does this include the promise of heaven when we die? Yes! But provided that we walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh, and that we walk in holiness and in righteousness, and not in deliberate and habitual sin against our Lord, and provided that we die with Christ to sin and live to his righteousness daily (in practice), and that we make it our practice to obey him, and that obedience to sin is not what we practice.

[Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Galatians 5:16-21; Ephesians 5:3-6; Galatians 6:7-8 etc.]

Is God’s grace a free gift to us? Yes! But “free” does not mean freedom to keep living in sin claiming heaven as your eternal destiny. “Free” just means that Jesus shed his blood for us to buy us back for God out of our lives of sin so that we can now, by his grace, die with him to sin and live to his righteousness, in his power and strength. So “grace” is not free license to continue in deliberate and habitual sin. “Grace” delivers us from our slavery (addiction) to sin so we will now live for God and for his righteousness.

Then we will have true peace with God. For we cannot be at peace with God if we are still walking in deliberate and habitual sin against the Lord, and if our lives are not surrendered to Jesus Christ to do his will for our lives. For this word “peace” means “to join, tie together into a whole” – properly “wholeness, i.e. when all essential parts are joined together; peace (God’s gift of wholeness)” (source: biblehub.com). So if we are still going our own way, and not the way of the Lord, we cannot be at peace with God.

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

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