"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