Is there some condition we
must be in to receive God’s Grace? Our Father's love is described
all through His word, and His gift of His Son is given to human kind despite the
disposition of our natural sinful human nature. This does not say He does not
care how each of us respond to His gift of love. His love through Christ
changes our disposition. How we respond and demonstrate our love in return does
matter to Him. Romans 5:8 But God
demonstrates his love for us in this: While we were still sinner, Christ died
for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we
be saved from his wrath through him! For if when we were God’s enemies we were
reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been
reconciled, shall we be saved through His life. Not only is this so, but we
also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received
reconciliation. This scripture says For
God’s sake and Holy name His grace that brings salvation as “appeared” to all
human kind, but it does not say all will “hear” or “see” Him who gives His
grace. Titus 2:11 For the grace
of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “No”
to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and
godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope-the glorious
appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to
redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his
very own, eager to do what is good. He is the gift for all
mankind that has appeared to all mankind, and he has appeared to all, to save
all. Clearly not all see Him, hear him, or believe in Him so it is us that
respond to His saving grace and love differently due to whatever we are letting
block our ears or our eye sight. This must have something to do with the
“condition” we are in, if some believe and others do not. God gives us the
answer to this question through Paul to the letter to the Corinthians. 2 Corinthians 4:4 The god
of this age (world) has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot
see the light of the gospel that display the glory of Christ, who the image of
God. This scripture tells us
two reasons the god (Satan) of this world has blinded the minds of believers so
they cannot see the light of the gospel. The first one is the message must be
the gospel message. The message of Him being
crucified as a sacrifice for us, and us crucifying ourselves in faith as a
sacrifice for Him daily, His resurrection, and Him resurrecting in us by faith
in Him daily because we are crucifying ourselves daily through faith while we
carry our own cross by all He gives us of His presence to carry it. If we do not hear that
gospel message, and hear another gospel message our minds are being blocked,
and we can’t see the light of Him, and His truth. The second reason the god
of this world has got our ears blocked is because we would rather belong to the
world, keep what we like rather than give up our rights to ourselves willingly
we don’t want to believe we are too busy gratifying our sinful natures, and the
world. God will bring each of us
to our broken spirit through the circumstances and relationships He arranges in
our lives. Everyone will experience a trail that brakes their spirit at some
point in their lives. That is why we have no true peace in our hearts without
His presence giving us His faith. That is why without him we are moved and grow
by our own feelings and understanding through our experiences and each
relationship and circumstance we face. We begin feeling like tossed waves going
back and forth because we have no wisdom from Him. James 1:6 If any one lacks wisdom, he should ask God,
who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to Him.
But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like
a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. We learn from Him through
our experiences, and we learn from Him in our relationships that is what
separates us from the wise in the world which He makes look foolish. So, what
condition do we need to be in for us to receive His faith, mercy and grace
through His presence? Psalm 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart. O God, you will not despise. He tells us in this
statement one who has a strong human spirit, self-seeking, selfish, or thinking
they are their own god then they will not receive the knowledge of who He truly
is. He despises a prideful haughty human spirit that thinks their natural soul
and spirit is their own god, but a spirit that knows it is broken and contrite
within itself that comes to Him, He will not despise, and those kinds of people
will be blessed by Him. Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs
is the kingdom of God. These words of Jesus
reveal to us the person who knows their spirit is poor in making them holy and
true He blesses them by His presence that opens His Kingdom for them. Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they
will see God. These words of God through
the Son of God reveal to us that a person who has a pure heart for Him alone
and does not mix other voices, teachings, people and things above Him,
including themselves will see God. Another Scripture I found
that many may getting the unconditional message through is this one. Colossians 3:11: Here there is no Greek or Jews,
circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is
all and is in all. Paul is speaking to the
church in Colossians, and He is saying “here” in this body of believers all who
have come to the cross whether you are Greek, Jew, circumcised or
uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, all of them had the
opportunity to give all of themselves to Christ so all of Christ could be in
all them. Clearly His love comes
through the gospel message of the Cross without human-kind having to be
righteous when they can’t be, but knowing they are poor and broken is the key
to receiving his grace that opens their unbelief from them being a sinner into
His saving grace. If we want Him to manifest His sanctified presence in us, and
living through us for others through His presence, denying ourselves daily, and carrying our own cross we have to
be poor in Spirit, before He will do it. God is love and He has
given it to all men, and He will never change wanting to save us from the sin
that holds us captive to our sinful natures, and this world. His love changes
us daily when we are willing to give Him ownership of ourselves through the
faith His presence reveals so His Son’s Spirit can continue to work in and
through us. Our hearts and its
condition does matter to Him in how we respond to His love. Not our gender,
race, or ethnic origin. He calls all to the Cross. It does not matter to Him if we are naturally
morally good, educated, in poverty, wealthy, wicked or evil, His love can
change us if we are willing to let go of all things that are blocking us from
receiving His. |