Galatians 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

I don’t like being left alone. For me loneliness is a hard pill to swallow. The day I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart my loneliness ended. Even now, in my quiet time, with my door shut and the noise of the outside world cut off, I am not alone. He is here with me.

Being adopted into sonship isn’t just about having God the Father as my Abba Father, it is a whole family. My elder brother is Jesus Christ. Every new born again Christian is my little brother or sister. Being family is so important to me because of my past experience of being alone. They too know how that feels. We stand on common ground now.

Getting to lend a hand as a newborn takes those first unsteady steps by faith is rewarding. I understand how difficult it was to walk by faith at first. We all need family for encouragement and support.

There is real benefit in coming to know those who have been walking with Christ much longer then we have. It is very much a part of what John described as a grace experience.

John 1:16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

Seeing this grace manifest itself in the elders is encouraging to the children as grace is imparted from the elder to the youth by the power of the Holy Spirit who abides in both.

Philippians 4:9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

If it be of God, it is in you also.

Romans 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Have you ever been issued an access card to gain entry into a job site? Someone might steal your card and gain entry. There is identity theft where all that is needed is your social security number and date of birth. Computer passcodes are hacked regularly. So what is so secure in this access of grace wherein we stand?

By whom we have access refers to Jesus Christ. Yesterday I began this foray into results of faith with Romans 5:1 and now continue in context with Romans 5:2 indicating that it is Jesus Christ Himself that is our access.

Ephesians 3:17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

Access to grace in granted by the presence of Jesus Christ in our hearts. If grace is a result of faith then what is grace to us? The common definition is unmerited favor which is not specific in content, only form.

The International Standard Bible Encycolpaedia makes this distinction of the Greek word for Grace. “In the English New Testament the word “grace” is always a translation of (charis), a word that occurs in the Greek text something over 170 times (the reading is uncertain in places). In secular Greek of all periods it is also a very common word, and in both Biblical and secular Greek it is used with far more meanings than can be represented by any one term in English Primarily” ISBE

Looking at the Hebrew and its first use we discover it is a result of how God sees Noah.

Genesis 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

No matter how you want to define or use grace, it should be seen from God’s point of view, not our own.