Dear Church of the Open Bible,
“What’s this for?” I hear that question quite a bit. Here are some things I’ve been asked that question about: the passenger-side airbag indicator light in my car, our Pampered Chef garlic press, and the bench grinder in our garage. My kids are curious about the purpose of things. It’s good to have that curiosity because it pushes us to learn and grow. This is especially true when it comes to our relationship with God.
This past Saturday, a few of us guys from church looked at a couple of verses and asked that question. Specifically, the question was, “What’s God’s grace for?” How would you answer that? There can be a number of answers but let’s look at Paul’s answer in Titus 2:11-12
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age…” - Titus 2:11-12
Paul’s first answer to the purpose of God’s grace is “salvation for all people.” Jesus Christ came to redeem sinners. This is often what comes to mind when we think of God’s grace. But there is a second purpose and that is for His people to live a certain way, to be trained. So the purpose of God’s grace is to save us and sanctify us, to redeem us and remake us into the image of His Son. How is God’s grace training you today?