Grace, Faith, Love = Truth

With each passing day, it seems I receive word of yet another little one who has gone home to be with Jesus.  Silent sounds in the ultrasound room, a baby who doesn't wake up from his nap, a diagnosis of something or another in utero that will inevitably end this precious baby's life.  For parents, waves of grief crash in like a tidal wave in those moments.  There is no preparing for such a thing.  The hurt runs too deep and the pain penetrates our very hearts.  Oh, the grief of saying goodbye to a child far too soon.  Just as readily as the grief washes over us, so too does God's grace rain down.

"The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus."

1 Timothy 1:14

Visualize these words in the verse above...our Lord's grace is described as having been "poured out on me abundantly."  Not only His grace, but "along with faith and love."  Have you experienced this kind of abundant grace?  Do you know faith in the Father and His love?  Do you know that they have already been poured out abundantly for you? Trust me when I tell you this ~ this grace, this faith, this love ~ they are not feelings.  They are absolute truth.  


The pouring out of His grace occurred at the cross of Christ.  To understand this truth, we must consider the remainder of the verse, which reads, "...that are in Christ Jesus."  In Christ.  To be in Christ is to know His grace and love ~ to really know it.  Faith is both a precursor and a result, no matter the circumstances or the outcome.  This two-word phrase, "in Christ" is used over 90 times in the New Testament!  It seems to be that this little ditty may be important for us to understand.  


So what does it mean to be "in Christ?" Let's dig into the Word and see for ourselves.  According to Scripture, to be "in Christ" means...


Nothing can separate us from God's love!  Romans 8:39

We are not condemned!  Romans 8:1, 2 Corinthians 5:19

God's promises are fulfilled!  2 Corinthians 1:20
We are able to stand firm! 2 Corinthians 1:21
We are alive! Romans 6:11, Romans 6:23, 1 Corinthians 15:22
We are forgiven! Ephesians 2:13, Ephesians 4:32
We are saved through faith!  Galatians 3:26, Galatians 2:16, Ephesians 1:13
We are a new creation!  2 Corinthians 5:17

And the list goes on!  Being in Christ means that one has acknowledged their sin, recognized their need for a Savior, and has humbly bowed before the foot of the cross and asked Jesus to be Lord of their life.  God longs for us to be in relationship with Him, through Christ!  May these truths speak to your heart today; let it not be a matter of feelings, but of absolute Truth from heaven...

"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us."

Ephesians 1:4-8