"The
grace of the Lord Jesus be with you." - 1 Corinthians 16:23
Paul normally closed his letters by saying, "Grace be with you." Now it's interesting that Paul used that particular phrase because he had been a most unlikely candidate for accepting the grace of God.
Paul normally closed his letters by saying, "Grace be with you." Now it's interesting that Paul used that particular phrase because he had been a most unlikely candidate for accepting the grace of God.
Paul spent his
"first" career terrorizing first century Christians. He literally
persecuted the church and killed Christians. That was his mission. But Christ
appeared to him, saved him, and forgave him. And Paul, perhaps more than anyone
who has ever lived, was focused on the grace of Christ because he knew he
didn't deserve to be chosen to be a child of God. None of us
do! None of us deserve to have the God of the universe go to a cross and pay
that awful penalty for us, so that we might be forgiven and have eternal life.
Paul's
salutation reminds us that a thriving ministry/church will focus on the grace of God
that is found in what Jesus did for us on the cross. A healthy ministry/church will
emphasize the grace of God, remembering the price Jesus paid in giving us
something no one deserves—forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life.
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