More importantly, why is grace important to ME?
Paul wrote the Ephesians, telling them that we can only be saved by grace through faith, not just with works. This grace is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8-9). Well if grace is required for our salvation, then it is obviously important. Interesting that he says it is through faith and a gift from God. That is because grace is a direct result of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, a gift from God because he loves us, for those of us who believe in Christ (see John 3:16). Paul also expressed that we were not saved by our works. This is so important and often misunderstood. Even if we have the very best possible works, we cannot under any circumstances be saved without the grace of God which is possible through the Atonement. This does not mean works are unimportant, but it does mean they are insufficient alone.
Another famous scripture regarding grace was written by Nephi, who taught that "it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do" (2 Nephi 25:23). This indicates that our works are still very important, but once again, we are saved by grace and not our works. Interesting that the word "all" is used, meaning we must really do everything we can - make every effort - in order for grace to save us.
These scriptures help us understand why grace is important - we can't be saved without it, and they help us understand that grace is a gift from God that was made possible through the Atonement. But on a practical, daily level, what does this mean to ME?
Jacob taught that "the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace" that we have power to do great things (Jacob 4:6-7). Similarly, Paul wrote to the Philippians, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Philippians 4:13). So the grace of God gives us strength to help overcome our weaknesses. Again this is a direct result of the Atonement.
One of the best scriptures on "grace" was written in Moroni at the conclusion of the Book of Mormon (Moroni 10:32-33). He wrote:
32 Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.
33 And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot.
You can look at this as a triple if/then statement. First he says IF you deny yourself of all ungodliness and love God with all your might, mind and strength, THEN his grace will be sufficient to make you perfect through the Atonement. And IF you are made perfect through the Atonement as a result of God's grace, THEN you can not deny God's power. And, lastly, IF ye are made perfect through the Atonement and cannot deny God's power, THEN you are sanctified and forgiven of all your sins.
Obviously we all sin, so we all need grace in our lives. Grace is the power of the Atonement to make up the difference when we've given it our all. Grace is power to cleanse us from our sins, to sanctify us through the Atonement when we have fully repented - something we cannot do for ourselves. Grace is not something that happens at the end of our lives; rather, it should be a power that strengthens us daily. But we must love God, put him first, and deny ourselves anything that is contrary to God's will in order to qualify for this grace.
A Parable to Illustrate the PrincipleJesus taught a parable that illustrates the principle of "grace" in John 15:1-11. This parable goes as follows:
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
In this parable, bearing fruit is equivalent to our good works, or the "all we can do" portion that pertains to us. If we do not bear fruit, then we're behaving wickedly and will be cast off. If we bear fruit (remember, good works), then God will help us bear even more fruit by making us even better than we were before. This is the grace of God in our daily lives. Please note though that there is a step in between where He "purges" us. How do we get stronger, more faithful, more righteous, more obedient, etc? Through trials and overcoming them. Grace does not mean an easy life, but it means that as we overcome, we get closer to perfection, become better people.
Verse three talks about how we'll be sanctified through His grace. In verse four we again see that we cannot improve ourselves and become better without the Savior's help, he is the vine. It is through the enabling power of the Atonement and God's grace that we work towards perfection. As this process repeats over and over in our lives, we'll get to a point where our will is so aligned to God's will that we'll get whatever we ask. Lastly, God is glorified when we take advantage of the Atonement to make ourselves better, when we use the grace he offers us. This is how we show Him that we are disciples, and this is the best way to glorify God.
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