God's Grace

Good Morning,

Titus 2:11-12 (NIV)
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.

Today's verse of Scripture comes close on the heels of a marvelous sermon given by Pastor Bryon at Journey Church last Sunday. Actually, I've been leaning on his message all week which I mostly remember as being based on 2 Corinthians 12:9, "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." What I found for myself during this past week and after contemplating and praying about what Pastor Bryon gave in his message, was that God's grace is, truly, sufficient and that His power is made perfect in our weakness.

Today, we read something else about God's marvelous grace: That it not only brings salvation, but also helps us to "say 'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age." That, my friends, is a magnificent revelation to many of us! We don't have to rely on our own power and strength to help ourselves to lead the kind of lives we want to live. That same grace from God that loved us enough to send Jesus for our salvation, that very same grace will help us and give us strength and power to overcome "ungodliness and worldly passions" even in this evil world in which we live.

I don't know about you, but for me, well, this is absolutely wonderful! Putting these two sections of Scripture together and allowing them to speak into my life has helped me immensely in my mind and in my spirit.

As Pastor Bryon taught so clearly last week, God's grace is sufficient for us to overcome whatever it is that's bothering us or tempting us or keeping us from living a truly godly life. God's grace is sufficient to lift us up so we can live a self-controlled life, no matter what's going on in the world around us.

Let us rejoice that God's love and grace abounds, even this very day!

Love, peace, and blessings,

David