“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people”. Titus 2:11

Grace has originated from heaven and God and found in the pages of the Bible. This is why it is hard to find grace on this earth. Grace is not earth formed, it is haven formed. Grace is divine and God-breathed. Work and performance-based religions are man created philosophies. It may not be easy to understand divine concepts but it is easy to understand humans. However, what we need is divine and not human. The core of Christianity and the Gospel it proclaims is grace. “The world thirst for grace in the way it does not even recognize; little wonder the hymn, “Amazing grace” edged its way onto the Top Ten charts two hundred years after composition.” Philip Yancey (What’s so amazing about Grace?)

You see, grace is the basis of Christianity. I mean not Christianity as a religion, as some fabricated it in that fashion. However, I meant Christianity as a relationship with God in and through the person and work of Jesus Christ. The grace of God says He loves the unlovely. It says God accepts you not based on your karma, works or performances, but based on His kindness and favor toward you. Grace gives divine favor to unmerited ones. To the one who does not deserve it. We face legalism all around us- at home, in churches, in schools, in the streets. Who wants to accept a person who messed up their lives? Messing up the lives could be self-caused and others caused. What want Samaritan woman, sinful women of the town, the hated tax collector, the criminal who spent all life in crimes? Who wants the losers and the lost ones?  No one else said, only Jesus said, he came to seek and to save the lost. The grace of God required nothing from us. It only asks to receive the free gift of grace with thankfulness.

The source of grace is God and the object of God’s grace is an unmerited, disobedient, rebellious and sinful man. The provision of God’s grace is not based on conditions. God gives grace to the ones who do not deserve it, with no condition or strings attached to it.

Our insight today says, “for the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.” Stop and read and think about it again. It says grace of God, unmerited and unconditional favor of God, is available to who? It says “to all people.” Did you read it right? “to all people.” When it comes to grace, You see God does not discriminate based on color, nations, and languages. When he gives grace it does not matter if you are tall or short. It does not matter if you are poor or rich. It does not matter if you educated or not. It does not matter if you are a child, young man, or old man, it does not matter men or women, it does not matter employed or unemployed. It does not matter if you lived a decent life or an indecent life. It does not matter if you are addicted to certain addictions or free and strong.

Beloved, Grace of God, unmerited favor, kindness, love of God is available for all people everywhere. In short, God wants to shower you with His grace no matter what your condition is or where have you been. By saying the parable of the lost son, Jesus brings home God’s grace is available for the least expected one. (Luke 15:11-31). The lost son disrespected and squandered his Fathers property, spent a loose life with prostitutes and wasted all the money. Here is the gracious, compassionate and loving Father looking at the horizon every single day for the return of His lost son. What is that called again? Grace-unmerited kindness, favor, and love of the Father. That father Jesus talked about is God who is kind and gracious toward you. If you understand nothing else about God, understand this- God is gracious and He welcomes you to His home as his child. It has nothing to do with your performances. It has everything to do with His Son, Jesus Christ. The angels in heaven over you (Luke 15:10) and God the Father, throws a big party among the angels to celebrate you’re coming Home.   (Luke 15:22)

Therefore, the grace of God is for you, dear one. You may have squandered and wasted your life. You may have ended up in a shameful place like the lost son ended up. However, God still wants to pour out His grace on you. He wants to clothe you with his righteousness and holiness. That is called grace.

You can never have a relationship with almighty God without understanding the concept of grace. When you understand what is compassion, grace, unmerited favor, kindness, and unconditional love, then you got a grip of God’s grace. One more point. Bible says this if you are already a believer in Jesus, the Bible says you have to “continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2nd Peter 3:18). Peter experienced the grace of Jesus Christ in big doze and so he was fit to write this admonition. Children of God, do not grow in discriminations, keeping people’s arms away, judgments and hypocrisy. Do not act like you are better than others. Do not grow in superiority thinking, do act as you got it all and the next person did not get it.

Instead, look at the grace Jesus portrayed in his dealings with the unworthy people. You simply continue to grow in it- in the grace of the Lord Jesus. This is growing in grace means. You see grace was the basis of God’s dealing all the time –Old testament and New times. However, grace is embodied in the person of Jesus Christ. (John 1:16-18). Never forget, it is from His fullness that we all received grace upon grace-grace heaped upon grace (John 1:16). For John and other apostles, His style of grace became theirs, His acceptance, kindness, compassion, love became theirs. What was the result? It transformed them into carriers of grace wherever they went. No wonder, they made the world upside down by the power and shock wave of grace. The same is the grace that you need to grow in. Grow in the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Beloved, the gateway of God’s grace is His Son, Jesus Christ. Our passage says, “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.” Did you accept God’s free gift of grace by accepting His salvation? There begins the grace-filled life. You accept God’s free gift of salvation, not based on your efforts or works, but based on the free grace of His Son Jesus and what he has done for you. Then you enter through the gate of divine favor, and grace to all that God has in store for you, here on this earth, and later after your death.

Got a moment for today’s prayer? “Father in heaven, I believe your divine, wonderful, amazing grace has appeared and I accept your offer of free salvation. I know it is not based on my works, but the finished work of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Please forgive my sins and shortcomings. I believe in the Gospel – Jesus died for my sins and rose again to save me. Please save and bless me today. Make me a channel of grace to people I come across. May I grow in the grace of my Lord Jesus Christ. In Christ’s name, I pray, Amen.