“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound unto every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)
The mercy of God withholds from us what we deserve and the grace of God bestows on us all kinds of wonderful blessings we do not deserve. Grace is also the dynamic we receive from God to do what God calls and leads us to do. 2 Corinthians 9:8 quoted above is the most superlative verse about grace in the Bible.
It tells us that God is able to make all grace, not just some grace, abound toward us, not just trickle in our direction. Then we may have all sufficiency, not just some sufficiency, in all things, not just some things. We are then equipped to abound, not just do our duty, as we do every good work God leads us to do, not just the works we like to do, ALWAYS! Twice in this verse Paul emphasizes the reality that this grace is for you – not just for the pastor or the missionary – but you!
Is this grace a reality in your journey of faith?
I once heard Dr. A. W. Tozer preach on this verse. After he read it there was an eloquent pause before he said, “Sometimes you cannot help but allow the thought that God oversold grace in the New Testament.” He then preached a powerful message challenging us to believe God has not oversold God’s grace but that we need to learn how to access His grace.
The hymn writer wrote, “The favor God shows and the joy He bestows are for those who will trust and obey…”
That is a good place to start.
Dick Woodward, 10 February 2012