Amazing Grace is almost certainly the most widely known Christian song of all time. This beloved hymn was written by John Newton, an English slaver trader who later became an Anglican minister and ardent abolitionist. The simple tune yet profound truths of Amazing Grace have deeply affected countless people around the world for more than 250 years.
In 1785, John Newton first met William Wilberforce, a member of Parliament who had recently committed himself to the Lordship of Jesus. Their relationship would alter the course of history. After his conversion, Wilberforce considered leaving the world of politics to pursue vocational ministry. But Newton urged Wilberforce to remain in Parliament. He recognized that Wilberforce had a tremendous opportunity to advance God’s kingdom by fighting to end the execrable British slave trade – the very trade in which Newton had once been an eager participant. Newton remained Wilberforce’s friend and collaborator over the next two decades.
Grace is one of the most common words heard in evangelical churches. The Oxford dictionary defines grace as “courteous goodwill.” In other words, we experience grace when someone shows favor towards us. But in evangelical churches, this straightforward definition of grace has taken on a strange additional meaning. The word grace has become a way of strictly excluding any human response, energy or effort. Yet when we turn to the pages of scripture, we find that this meaning simply doesn’t hold up.
Let look at what the Apostle Paul has to say about grace in his letter to Titus:
“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus the Messiah, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” (Titus 2:11-14)
Paul begins by announcing that “God’s grace has appeared.” This phrase is Paul’s shorthand way of referring to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. I would insist that it also includes the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. As I’ve written frequently, the Spirit is the missing element in evangelical soteriology. If you’re ever asked “How are we saved?” and your answer doesn’t include the transformational work of the Spirit, then you’re missing the big picture. As Paul declares later in Titus: “[God] saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit…”
God’s grace “offers salvation to all people.” A more literal rendering would be “bringing salvation to all men.” (Greek: soterios pasin anthropois) The basic idea ought to be clear: God’s grace reaches out to all people, bringing them the offer of salvation. There is absolutely no sense here that God arbitrarily limits his grace to a subset of people, while others are shut out.
Nor does this mean that grace involves no human response. This blog has often pointed out that the gospel announcement of Jesus as the Messiah (God’s anointed king) naturally requires a response of loyal obedience. This response allows God’s grace to flow into our lives. By committing to follow Jesus, we’re able to enjoy divine favor. Of course, many people stubbornly resist God’s grace by refusing to submit themselves to the authority of King Jesus.
Paul elaborates on the precise nature of God’s grace: “[God’s grace] teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives…” In short, God’s grace radically changes our conduct and behavior. Grace involves taking humans off the road of ungodliness & sinful passions and putting us on the road of righteousness & godliness. (The Greek word often translated “upright” is dikaios, which literally means “righteous.”)
Note that Paul does not say what most evangelicals might expect. He doesn’t write, “God’s grace and salvation only come through Jesus’ finished work on the cross. This grace is totally unrelated to any action or effort on our part.”
Instead, Paul offers us an entire paragraph which is all about changed behavior. Paul makes it clear that transformed lives are not just a response, but the very substance of God’s grace. In other words, we enjoy God’s grace (and salvation) precisely when we turn away from the sinful practices that corrupt & destroy human life and learn to walk in the way of godliness which brings wholeness and life.
To repeat, the fullness of God’s grace does not at all exclude human response, but rather requires it. Paul’s language is clear: the grace of God “teaches us to say “No”” (NIV) or “trains us to renounce” (ESV) the ways of wickedness and to instead embark upon a life of righteousness.
When someone enrolls in school to learn a new subject, they would be foolish to think that this process will take place without a sustained commitment on their part. The same could be said of someone who joins a gym in order to get in better physical condition. In the same way, spiritual training requires strenuous effort & energy. Yet Paul still speaks of this as a key part of God’s grace.
Specifically, God’s grace teaches us to live “self-controlled, upright and godly lives in the present age.” Self-control is famously one of the fruit of the Spirit listed by Paul in Galatians 5. By mentioning this one particular fruit, Paul no doubt would have us keep the whole batch in mind. Anyone who has endeavored to cultivate the fruit of the Holy Spirit (such as love, patience and self-control) quickly realizes that life transformation requires serious discipline and moral effort.
As we’ve noted, the word “upright” literally means “righteous.” Many evangelicals insist that we can have no righteousness of our own. What they mean is that we are hopeless sinners, mired in the muck & mud of this dark world. Our salvation (going to heaven) comes only through passive trust in Jesus (“faith”), so that his perfectly righteous life can be credited to us.
This formulation is deeply flawed. Of course, it’s quite true that apart from divine grace we cannot become the righteous human beings which God intended. However, the mechanism by which this goal is reached has been badly misunderstood. As Paul here states, God’s grace trains us to renounce wickedness and embrace righteousness. This righteousness is not merely an “imputed” status. Rather, Paul is obviously talking about genuinely righteous behavior.
We must always remember that God created human beings in his image so that we might govern His creation wisely, allowing the world to flourish. The fullness of salvation requires far more than just being granted admission to heaven when we die. Rather, salvation involves restoring humans to the image of God so that we can fulfill our divine vocation.
Godliness is simply the imitation of God, the one who has fully revealed himself in Jesus the Messiah. As Paul famously writes in Romans 8: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…”
Paul explicitly declares that this new life – a life characterized by the fruit of the Spirit, by genuine righteousness and by the imitation of Jesus – will come about “in the present age.” This is a far cry from much evangelical theology, which consigns Christians to perpetual sin until they attain heavenly bliss. On the contrary, Paul insists that grace & salvation are not just a future hope but a present reality.
Of course, Paul acknowledges that there will come a future moment (“the blessed hope” v13) when King Jesus will return to destroy evil and fully establish his kingdom over all creation. His followers will be raised from the dead and will enjoy resurrection bodies completely animated by the Holy Spirit. But we should not let this glorious future hope prevent us from recognizing that we now possess the power to live righteous and godly lives.
Paul concludes this section by writing about how Jesus “gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” It’s crucial to realize that the redemption that Paul speaks of here goes far beyond just the forgiveness of sins. Rather, full redemption requires the complete rehabilitation of human beings. Redeemed people have been radically transformed in thought, word and deed. Formerly enslaved to wickedness, they’re now characterized by godliness – the imitation of Jesus who is himself the image of God.
Therefore, grace does not mean that we have no part to play. The wondrous transformation which Paul describes requires serious discipline, effort & energy on our part. Yet it’s also the result of God’s gracious gift of his Spirit, who empowers us to live righteously, conforming us to the image of our Lord. That’s the true nature of grace.
