Romans 4:2-4 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.

For this reason the Christian community has defined grace as unmerited favor. I find that definition to be inadequate to explain all that grace involves. Simple definitions often do that. If I were to ask you to do me a favor your first response would be “What?” Favor only implies benefit and does not define the benefit.

Here in Romans Paul relates the gracious favor of justification in relationship to work. It is a free gift based on Christ gift to us. All we have to do is receive that gift. Salvation cannot be earned. Where we are looking into these issues of daily salvation and those blessings that are bestowed upon us we add new words into the understanding of those blessings. They define the favor bestowed through grace.

Grace defines the reason for the favor but does not limit those favors to only one thing. The reason God is gracious to us is because once we become betrothed to His Son Jesus Christ, He treats us as family members. Grace is God’s love towards us as His children. If we think of all the things we do for our children because we love them, grace could not explain all that we do, only why.

If that was all that grace is we would be through and move on. Grace has one more fascinating aspect besides being God’s unmerited favor. That definition does not pertain to the residence of grace but merely to the source. One should examine the free gift and see what is does in order to use the gift rather than putting it back in the box and store it in the back of the closet.

Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

Sanka is the first decaffeinated instant coffee I can remember. I use this title in comparison to sanctification, a first help word. It is instant and removes all our sins.

Sounds a little strange doesn’t it. Sanctification is a separation of sin from our lives yet we still live in sin.

Romans 7:22-23 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

The inward and real Vs. the outward and seeming. The Holy Spirit in you is your life in Christ. The body physically is subject to the contaminations of the outside world. In this we must look to the Spirit of Truth to understand what is going on with us.

When Jesus Christ died on the cross He took away the sins of the world. All sin for all time for all mankind. He holds those sins separate towards judgment day. God has dealt with sin and He is satisfied in the sacrifice of His Son. We on the other hand live in time and have to deal with sin on a daily basis. In this sanctification is a twofold approach.  God’s act and man’s act.

John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

God has provided the Word of Truth. The power of sanctification is in the truth.

John 3:19-20 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

Reading His Word sheds the light of truth on the inward man driving out darkness. Our part is getting the Word to the inner man. Read the Word daily. Sanctify yourselves.