God’s Grace – How We Can Make It Be In Vain

I awoke, as usual, well before dawn, prepared to make the decision I must make each day to draw from God the strength to face the challenges of the day. This is always a crucial time for me as it sets the tone for the whole day. I'd been spiritually sluggish lately and God had seemed far away. So I was surprised as my being was filled with happiness not the inward joy that resides even in sorrow but a manifest joy. It was a feeling I'd almost forgotten and was certainly not from circumstances I knew it was from God. But why would He give me this at such a time? I had not been a particularly pleasing child and felt very undeserving of such a refreshing. "What is this Lord?" I asked. "It is My grace do not receive it in vain." This was not the first time the Lord had spoken to me about receiving His grace in vain so I gave it much thought and knew I must share. But as I was preparing this letter, a very dear friend whom we have prayed for (and with) for years died. I was laid very low and was emotionally crippled for two days when the Lord quickened me to remember this letter. I didn't want to write it but had a great sense that not only did many of you need it but I needed it, and so by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony shall the adversary be defeated.

"(As God's fellow workers) laboring together with Him then, we beg of you not to receive the grace of God in vain that merciful kindness by which God exerts His holy influence on souls and turns them to Christ, keeping and strengthening them, do not receive it to no purpose." (II Cor. 6:1 Amp) In Heb. 10:29, the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Grace. The conviction of sin, ability to repent, instruction in righteousness, comfort in trial and everything pertaining to salvation comes to us by grace through faith. (Eph. 2:8) Have you sometimes felt God's grace is not sufficient for your need? I have. That's why we must understand what it means to receive God's grace in vain. Let me share five hindrances.

1. Trying to "earn" God's grace by our efforts. Eph. 2:8 tells us we are saved by grace not by works lest any man should boast. I almost rejected God's grace that morning He gave me His joy because I didn't feel spiritually "fit". My actions did not meet my standards for receiving gifts from God. But to receive grace requires death to self. Often we think of this as a whipping of self into submission and we end up trying to conquer self with self! But true death to self stops relying on self to obtain God's favor and help one of the most difficult things for us as humans. We all memorize Gal 2:20 about being crucified with Christ but may fail to go on to vs 21 which says "Therefore I do not set aside and frustrate the grace of God and defeat its very purpose for if justification comes through the Law, then Christ died in vain." (abbr from Amp)

2. Refusing God's grace because of a mistaken sense of responsibility to bear burdens ourselves. I have learned a lot about receiving grace for my own physical crises but was not prepared when it involved Jim. On January 4, Jim had a hernia operation. It was also the day of So. California's worst storm. That morning we prayed and committed Jim to God during our family communion. After he left I began relaxing with Jenny but soon felt I should not be relaxed when my husband was about to suffer. To make a long story short, I ended up frantically worrying about Jim, panicking over complications he had from the spinal, and being afraid David wouldn't be able to get him home in the storm. Jim recovered from all effects of the surgery long before I did all because I felt a good wife should worry about her husband a lie from Hell that kept any grace from possibly reaching me. The enemy had found an untested, unguarded area to bring me down.

3. Feeling guilty because our experience of grace does not fit our or others expectations in the situation. In early January Carolyn Jenkins (whose husband Roger died in a plane crash last year) stopped by to visit Jim. She told how Christmas and the anniversary of Roger's death had gone well even though she'd expected this time to be depressing. But it was apparent she was feeling guilty about not grieving more at these times. It was obvious she took this as a sign that maybe she hadn't loved him enough. When Jim told her that what she was experiencing was God's grace and what an amazing testimony her strength was to all who knew her, she was greatly relieved. She had almost received that grace in vain as Satan tricked her with false guilt. But instead, she could say, "By the grace of God I am what I am and His grace toward me was not without effect." (I Cor. 15:10a)

4. Depending on man's knowledge apart from God's Spirit. In our society we have been taught to have mid life crisis, PMS, stages of grief, victimization, and much more. This is all real, documented knowledge of human behavior and weakness and it can be powerful if we use it to learn to wield the shield of faith. But instead, we often look for our own solutions or even excuses which foster and nurture these problems. This is the fruit of the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil and it is the "good" side that is especially dangerous because it appears right but keeps us from the Tree of Life God's grace. Eph 4:17,18a warns us that we must no longer live as the heathen in the emptiness and vanity of their souls and futility of their minds. Their moral understanding is darkened and their reasoning clouded making them self banished from the life of God because of spiritual darkness. (Amp)

5. Refusal of God's will or Word for a situation. I remember a time when I felt I absolutely could not go on God had given me a promise of healing and I needed it NOW. But as I sought Him, He said, "You have need of steadfast patience and endurance in order to fully carry away that which was promised." (Heb. 10:36) I did not like this one bit and continued to plead my case for healing now all from God's Word. Then I finally realized God was leading me with His Word and I could not lead Him with His Word. So I started asking for what He told me I needed not what I perceived I needed. I was going to have to endure anyway but it sure was much more bearable with His grace! For I found His grace truly was sufficient.

In closing consider Paul's thorn in the flesh. (II Cor. 12:7 9) We are told it was a messenger of Satan! Surely not something a child of God should have to endure. Paul could have fought it, rebuked it, continually pled the promises to God for its removal or shrank back from serving God because if it. But through it, he learned the necessity of his own weakness for receiving God's strength, the all sufficiency of grace and that God is Lord over Satan and uses even him to accomplish His own purposes.

Dear one, did you recognize yourself somewhere in this letter? Has that burden that seems to be breaking you made you feel that God doesn't care? It is our prayer that the Spirit of Grace Who is extending His Hand to you right now will have the freedom to meet you in your need. May all barriers be removed so that you too may say, "His grace to me was not in vain." We love you, appreciate your partnership with us and carry you in our hearts with thanks to God.