The grace of God

We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain – 2 Corinthians 6:1

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 In the second epistle to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul speaks with urgency and honesty about what it means to live as God’s people in the real world. His message is both a warning and an encouragement: “Do not receive God’s grace in vain.”

God’s grace through salvation is His free gift of forgiveness and new life, made possible through our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ, received by faith.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that to receive grace “in vain” is to never allow it to transform how we live. Paul urges us to recognize that now is the time to respond. Not when life is easier or less busy, but today.

We can look to Abraham for an example. Abraham did not simply follow the traditions he inherited. Instead, he chose obedience to God over cultural expectation. He left behind the familiar world of Ur. He left behind its customs, its way of life and stepped out into the unknown. 

Tradition and routine can become so familiar that we stop questioning whether they truly align with God’s Word. Like Abraham, we must be willing to leave behind anything that stands in the way of following God. Therefore, we must never allow habits or traditions to cause us to dismiss God’s truth.

Abraham’s journey was not comfortable. Paul’s life as a missionary was also not comfortable. In today’s passage from 2 Corinthians 6, we read about many ways how Paul suffered. Following God means breaking away from patterns, habits, or even traditions that hold us back spiritually.

There is also a vital truth we must face: we can be wrong about many things in this life and still go on living. But if we are wrong about who we are trusting for salvation, the consequences are eternal. This is not something we can afford to ignore or delay. We must ask ourselves honestly where is our trust placed?

Like Abraham and Paul, we are called to remain faithful even when the path is difficult. Be sure of where your trust truly lies. Trust God in the unknown.

 

Reflection on 2 Corinthians 6:1–10 by Hanne