We have a family member who is amazingly gracious. One year when our family of eight wanted to take a vacation, he offered us his beachfront condo for two weeks, free of charge. We were overwhelmed by his kindness! We all responded in unique ways, tears, delight, clapping, hugs, gasps, silence and wonder, but none of us were indifferent. That is what grace does, it amazes!
Grace is unmerited. God’s grace delivers and guides us, provides forgiveness and kindness. We believe God because of His unending grace and power.
Ephesians 1:6-9
To the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him.
God “freely bestowed” and “lavished on us” redemption, forgiveness, grace, and His kind intentions. We are privileged to believe God as He overwhelms and amazes us with His grace.
The ultimate display of God’s power occurs when Jesus conquered death. Paul expresses the magnitude of this feat as he prays for the Ephesian believers.
Ephesians 1:19-22(NCV)
And you will know that God’s power is very great for us who believe. That power is the same as the great strength 20God used to raise Christ from the dead and put him at his right side in the heavenly world. 21 God has put Christ over all rulers, authorities, powers, and kings, not only in this world but also in the next. 22 God put everything under his power and made him the head over everything for the church.
God’s power is limitless. In the book of Joshua, the Israelite people were completing the journey from Egyptian slavery to the promised land. God told them to take twelve stones from the Jordan riverbed and set them as a sign of God’s great power.
Joshua 4:20-24(NCV)
They carried with them the twelve rocks taken from the Jordan, and Joshua set them up at Gilgal. 21 Then he spoke to the Israelites: “In the future your children will ask you, ‘What do these rocks mean?’ 22 Tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan River on dry land. 23 The LORD your God caused the water to stop flowing until you finished crossing it, just as the LORD did to the Red Sea. He stopped the water until we crossed it. 24 The LORD did this so all people would know he has great power and so you would always respect the LORD your God.’”
We believe God because of His great power that deserves our highest respect and praise.