"But He Giveth More Grace!"
James 4:6
Thank God, he does not
deal with us according to our merit or reward us according to our goodness! But
"like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear
him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust" (Psa.
103:13-14). Though "the spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy,"
causing godless strife where peace should abound,selfish
cries to go up for prayers, and an undue attachment to this world, yet "he
giveth more grace!"
GRACE IS THE GIFT OF
GOD TO SINNERS WHO DESERVE HIS WRATH. Faith, hope and love, peace, joy and
comfort, forgiveness, righteousness and eternal life are all gifts of grace,
bestowed upon us and wrought in us by the Spirit of God. But James declares that
grace itself, the source of all good, is the gift of God. If you have grace,
you have it by the gift of God. God gives his elect all the grace that is in
Christ Jesus, all the blessings of grace that are in the covenant, all fruit of
grace produced by his Spirit, and all the benefits of grace received in time
and eternity. Man earns nothing from God but wrath. Grace is his gift. God
alone can give grace to sinners. "Grace is a free gift. It is given of the
sovereign will and good pleasure of God to whom, and when, and in what measure
he pleases" - (John Gill). Grace is God's eternal, unconditional,
immutable, irreversible gift to sinners in Christ.
YET, AS WE EXPERIENCE
IT, GRACE IS GOD'S EVER-INCREASING, CONSTANTLY ABOUNDING GIFT. "He giveth
more grace." The more we need grace, the more God gives grace. The more we
require grace, the more he supplies grace. The more we use grace, the richer we
are in grace! So long as we are in this world we are sinners in need of grace.
May God give us wisdom to know that his grace is sufficient, abundantly,
infinitely sufficient for us (II Cor. 12:7-9). Every day, every hour, every
moment, "He giveth more grace"... to sustain us in trial...deliver us
from temptation... restore us when fallen...content us with his providence...comfort
us in trouble...help us in time of need...keep us from the snare of
satan...strengthen us in labor...direct us in life...support us in death...and
bring us to heaven (Rom. 8:28-39 ). What is your need
this hour? "He giveth more grace!"
Don Fortner