Cheap Grace
There is a fair amount of criticism in our day about cheap grace. It may go by the name of easy believism or greasy grace. There is such a thing as insincere faith but is there really such a thing as grace that is too easy?
Who is the one who gives out grace? There is nothing about it that was cheap. It was God's greatest gift. If we are the recipients of Grace we should consider it a priceless gift, freely given to us by the King of all mercy. If He should bestow it upon anyone, we should marvel at the kindness shown to them, the same as to us.
Being a disciple of Jesus for a few decades should produce several things in our life. We come to realize that our Lord and Master is going to require some things of us. This is perhaps not something we should burden new Christians with in the first week of their new life in Christ. Eventually, however, there are mature things that we become aware of in our walk with the Lord.
Many times, a seasoned Christian will stress upon new Christians or even the “pre-born” that they must do a certain important thing or maybe several things in order to be right with God. New converts or unsaved persons are told they must be baptized, should tithe, observe the sabbath, confess publicly, speak in tongues, etc. There is a very real thing such as insincere faith but God is the Judge that knows the hearts and intentions of all. Is it really our place to put additional requirements upon people to help God out?
If we place burdens on new believers that we should not, we are no different that the Judaizers of Paul's day (Acts 15). When God had clearly opened the door of faith to the Gentiles, certain teachers arose who taught that one must be circumcised in order to be saved. Some of these teachers were believers and some were not. Believing in Jesus is fine, they taught, but you must also follow the Law of Moses. It is somewhat understandable that this confusion would exist in the transition time of the first century, but not in 2024! Yet, this is a big deal today among many teachers, true and fake. It is a condition of the human heart. We (humans) cannot believe that God demands faith plus nothing else to be saved. We feel like we have to help God out. We have to add something to the Gospel even if it is something small.
Moses was a mighty man of God. At a place known as Meribah Kadesh, Moses was to speak to a rock and water would come out, enough for all the people and their livestock. These were God's instructions. However, Moses was nearly pushed past his human limit by the complaining and threats of the people. Instead of speaking, as God had instructed, he struck the rock twice with his staff. Moses did not want to demonstrate God's power by simply speaking to the rock. He wanted to add more showmanship, some more flair and drama. He wanted to add his own ideas. He could not simply obey God and leave it alone. He had to add something of his own thoughts and feelings and action. If Moses fell to this human tendency, we might be tempted to do the same thing. And we are.
I rarely use the repeat-after-me technique. I do not want to blast it because I realize that leading someone in a prayer really can help certain individuals depending on where they are psychologically. John, the Apostle, tells us that
(we) were born (again), not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:13)
We do not get saved by the will of man. Some people have such strong personalities that they will someone into the Kingdom of God. They simply insist on their will being done. They pull a Moses. They know what God has said but they must be God's little helper and add their own signature to the Gospel.
If there is such a thing as cheap grace, have we ministers cheapened it? Have we added our own personal requirements to God's unconditional forgiveness? This is not a call for mini-disciples. This is not a suggestion that new Christians do not need to grow up. Anyone who wants to continue in sin has not tasted the Grace of God.
John, the Apostle, seems to favor short, powerful almost simplistic statements. I do not think that means that he was short sighted or a simple thinker. He is the Gospel and epistle author who deals with the Eternality of Jesus and with infinite quantities. The concise statements that he makes are powerfully true.
Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: (I John 5:1)
Of course, John knows that there are many other important truths and commandments but what he says can be stand-alone truth. Can we proclaim this truth and leave it in God's hands? No, it doesn't seem like it. We see the struggles of new Christians. We remember our own struggles, so we add things to the Gospel message in an attempt to cull out the insincere among us.
And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. (Gal 3:8)
It is almost not able to be believed that God would justify sinners through faith apart from any added thing. God desires them to grow as disciples of Jesus later but the Door to salvation is accessed by faith. This is bigger than you may think. To realize the importance of sin and salvation then to esteem God's free grace as sufficient is huge. In Paul's preaching he said, “...God raised him (Jesus) from the dead:”. Hearers either found the supernatural ability to believe that or they did not. Therein lies their eternal destiny. God bestows on such believers unfathomable measures of Grace.
“That's just too easy!”
It was not easy for God. Your part is.
And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. (Acts 16:31)
July 14, 2024