The Balance of Grace and Faith
For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God. [Ephesians 2:8]
In this teaching on faith, I have discussed faith and grace, and hopefully you have a clear understanding of what Romans 5:2 means: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Grace and faith are two separate elements, like sodium (Na) and chlorine (Cl). Separately, sodium reacts violently with water, and chlorine is extremely reactive, and is used as a bleaching and disinfecting agent. In other words, the two elements separate are reactive poisons. But together and in equal amounts, sodium and chlorine make salt (NaCl), which is essential for life. Similarly, as Christians, we must have equal amounts of grace and faith in order to realize the fullness of God’s blessings.
God is responsible for grace and He has done His part; and as I discussed in the previous section, God’s grace is a done deal—it is finished! Though without the grace of God, we would be men most miserable and condemned to eternal torment. However, without faith, grace, while existent, is not profitable because it can only be appropriated by faith; and therefore, we would still be men most miserable and condemned to eternal torment. However, as I mentioned previously, the path of truth has a ditch on each side of it. One side is called faith alone; and the other is called grace alone.
The faith ditch’s motto is “Name it and claim it,” and the grace ditch’s motto is “Que sera, sera. What ever will be, will be.”
Faith’s favorite verse of the Bible is, Whatsoever things you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them. [Mark 11:24]
Grace’s favorite Bible verse is And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. [Romans 8:28]
At the entrance to the faith ditch, there’s a sign that says, “I won’t let go ‘til you bless me.”
At the entrance to the grace ditch, the sign says, “God is sovereign.”
Faith’s honorary captain is Simon the sorcerer in Acts 8:9; and grace’s honorary captain is the impotent man at the pool of Bethesda from John 5:5.
Unfortunately, there are many Christians in either ditch, and few with an understanding of the balance of grace and faith. While the one (faith alone) makes you aggressive and works oriented, thinking that you must shake the throne of God until His blessings come out; the other (grace alone) makes you passive, and therefore ripe prey for the devil who as a roaring lion walks about seeking whom he may devour. [Peter 5: 8]
The faith alone ditch exceeds and perverts God’s will, while the grace ditch believes God’s will is whatever happens to them. The Lord led me to choose Simon the sorcerer to be the captain of the faith ditch because he represents the most dominant sect in the faith ditch—the ones who think they can alter the means of accessing God’s provision. They have a limited grasp of God’s grace, but only to the extent that God dispenses and withholds it according to a person’s diligence or performance. If you remember Simon from Acts 8, he was formerly a magician who performed feats that caused onlookers to claim that he was of God. But when Phillip the evangelist came to Samaria, Simon witnessed the true power of God and believed.
Now when the apostles which were in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John, who when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost. (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them; only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus) Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Ghost. And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto him, Your money perishes with you, because you have thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. You have neither part nor lot in this matter. For your heart is not right in the sight of God, Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven. For I perceive that you are in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. Then Simon answered and said, Pray to the Lord for me, that none of these things which you have spoken come upon me.
Many in the charismatic and Pentecostal realms are stuck in this ditch. Their lives are based on an emotional roller-coaster ride, trying to be good enough, to give enough, to pray and “press into” what God has dangling by a string, only for it to be quickly yanked away as soon as they fail in some way. They preach, sing, dance, and worship with such intensity that one would find it hard to believe it were not true. However, their worship is not a worship based in love, but in fear of punishment, rejection, and withholding of blessing and anointing, although you couldn’t get any of them to admit it. When they lift up their hands, they’re inwardly hoping for God to see their worship and decide to “move” in their lives. They live lives filled with the frustration of trying to please and manipulate the Almighty slavemaster to move in response to their fervent and very spiritual demands. People in the faith ditch perceive God as an indifferent egomaniac, able to be manipulated and even coerced into having compassion as a result of fervent prayer, fasting, or other self-afflictions. These folks also walk through their Christian lives, never or rarely being absolutely sure of their salvation from one minute to the next.
Furthermore, some have taken the verse from Mark 11:24 (above) and made it like a blank check and all they have to do is to demand God to sign it. These folks are declaring things by the name of Jesus, believing that whatsoever means exactly what it says, “whatsoever.”
The most important reason the Lord led me to use Simon the sorcerer is that the Bible says that there was still hope for him, if he changed his attitude. Whether he was truly born again or not is a matter for debate, but regardless, Simon demonstrated a change of heart after Peter’s correction. We can’t know exactly why Simon wanted the power to give people the Holy Ghost by laying on of hands, but we can conclude (by his own words) that Simon wanted it to do good, and I believe he was sincere in his motives to help people. In like fashion, the people in the faith ditch, they want to be on the right path, but like Simon, they’re going about it the wrong way.
The grace ditch is, as logic would tell you, at the other end of the religious spectrum. While the faith people are storming the throne of God, shaking the very heavens with their faith-filled demands, people in the grace ditch are like the multitude of people hanging out at the pool of Bethesda. They are waiting on God, since He is sovereign and in complete control, to move, bless, save, heal according to His own timing and plan.
Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the movement of the water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water. Whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he said unto him, Would you like to be made whole? The impotent man answered, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool. But while I coming, another steps down before me. Jesus said unto him, Rise, take up your bed and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took his bed, and walked; and on the same day was the Sabbath. [John 5:2-9]
Many in the denominational and non-Spirit filled churches are in this ditch. However, since their numbers are greater than the faith side, more sects have developed. The most dominant and destructive teaching of this ditch is the sovereignty of God—that God is in complete and absolute control over everything, and when something happens—good or bad—God is behind it either by His direct control or by “allowing” it to happen. While the faith ditch people perceive God as an indifferent grandparent, able to be manipulated and even coerced into having compassion as a result of fervent prayer, fasting, or other self-afflictions, the grace ditch people view God as schizophrenic. Not only is He Savior, but He will also “allow” you to get cancer, and refuse to heal you to teach you patience and character or to be stronger in faith. The same God that sent His Son to be tortured and die for us, is also the same God that refuses to heal a child with leukemia.
These folks have been deceived into being passive concerning their relationship with God. Their prayers always begin with, “If it be Your will, Lord.” And if their prayers aren’t answered, they automatically conclude that God’s will is to teach them something by either afflicting or allowing them to be afflicted (as with Job). Therefore, they become hypocrites because if they get sick and pray for God to heal them, and He doesn’t, then they go to the doctor and get treated, knowing that they might be hindering God’s purpose in refusing to heal them. And then they never learn their lesson, and God has to fix the fix they fixed in order for them to be fixed. If that sounds confusing, then you’re on the right track.
I have to ask just one question to the sovereignty of God doctrine supporters: If God is in complete and absolute control over everything in the world, why couldn’t He do a better job? I mean, do you really think that Jesus meant what He said when He taught the disciples to pray, Your kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven? [Matthew 7:10] If the world we live in today is the result of a God who is in total control, but yet His Son—God incarnate—told us to pray for earth to be like Heaven, then why is it not what we perceive Heaven to be? The answer is simple: God is not in total and complete control over this planet. He could be, mind you, but He has chosen to give all authority and dominion on earth to human beings. Therefore, His influence in the affairs of people is limited by His own word. The foundational truth of the balance of grace and faith can be found in Deuteronomy 30:19: I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life, that both you and your children may live. By grace, God has given you life and blessing, and it is up to you, by applying faith, to make the choice to receive it. On the other hand, the alternative is not from God, but came as a result of sin, by rejecting life and blessing, you have by default, chosen death and cursing; and therefore, are limiting God’s involvement in your life.
Some of you may be shocked at the notion that you can limit God, but Scripture supports this assertion. Psalms 78:41 says, Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel. This passage refers to the children of Israel and because they did not believe and remember the wondrous works of God that had delivered them from the bondage of Egypt, they limited God. As I discussed before, unbelief and hardness of heart (not remembering) places limits on the power of God in your life.
Other examples of this truth can be found in the ministry of the Lord Jesus. After casting out a legion of devils from a man in Gadara, the people of the region asked Jesus to depart from their country and He did. (Matthew 8; Mark 5; Luke 8) In His own city of Nazareth, Jesus could do no mighty works other than healing a few of the sick; (Matthew 13:58; Mark 6:6) and the Bible says that it was due to their unbelief.
In these instances, it wasn’t God’s will that the children of Israel roam the desert for forty years, but yet, because of their unbelief and hardness of heart, which led to all the sin and rebellion, they limited God’s plan to give them the promised land, which was to be in less than a year.
In the same way, Jesus was limited in what He could do. It is important that you understand that Jesus could, as opposed to would, not do any mighty works. It certainly was His will to do many mighty works in Nazareth and Gadara, but because of the unbelief and rejection of the people, He could not do any mighty works there.
I am in no way asserting that man has greater power than God—that man has been elevated to being god of this world. This assertion is true because God loves mankind so much and God has chosen to honor His word.
Therefore, when you look at what the word of God says concerning this teaching, it is easy to understand the delicate balance of grace and faith. God is the provider of grace, and by faith, you appropriate it. As in nature, God has designed a delicate balance to life with seed time and harvest, the life cycles, and provision. As all of you can bear witness, man has chosen to disrupt the delicate balance in nature, which has proven to cause chaos in the world with overpopulation of some animals, and the extinction of others; with the wasting of untapped resources to the destruction of rainforests. In all these things, God has designed a balance that when altered, always brings forth disorder and confusion.
God’s plan for you is no different as He has established both natural and spiritual laws for our own good; and when His children disrupt the balance of what He has provided and the means by which they partake, it stops the flow of provision. Therefore, when you fail to understand that grace is done and no amount of faith, prayer, begging, pleading, fasting, giving, and even reading the Bible can make God “move”, then you hinder God because God has already moved by grace.
In the same way, when you fail to understand that faith (as produced through knowledge of God’s word) is your key of access to the grace of God, and are passive and have the attitude of whatever happens is God’s will because He is sovereign, then you also hinder God because He cannot override your choice to ignore the laws of faith.
Here’s an illustration of these truths. Three brothers were sitting in a coffee shop one day when a young man approached them and said, “My father is the richest man in the world and he has sent me to give you a million dollars each.” Amazed by what the young man had said, the brothers invited the son to sit with them where they asked him how this could be. The son reached into his briefcase and pulled out three books and placed them on the table in front of the brothers and said, “Inside these books are instructions for acquiring your inheritance. The money is locked in a vault and inside each book is the key you must use to unlock the door to the vault. All you have to do is use the information contained in the book, and this will lead you to the vault. The key will not only unlock the door to the vault, but it will also help you read the book.” The son placed three business cards on top of each book. “Here’s my card. If you have any questions or need any help with understanding the book, don’t hesitate to call me at any time.” After saying these things, the son stood and walked out the door.
After the son left, the brothers were very happy because they all believed the son and his offer, and were excited about the inheritance he spoke of. They then left and went to their own houses. The first brother got home and immediately opened the book and found the key and put it along with son’s business card in his pocket for easy access in case he needed them.
The second brother went home and opened the book and began reading some of the pages. He too found the key, but he put the key in a locked drawer to protect it from being stolen; and put the son’s business card in his shirt pocket in case he needed it.
The third brother opened the book when he got home and began reading with great interest. When he found the key, he saw that he could use the key as a guide for reading as the lines on each page were close together. At first, it was difficult to use the key, but the more he read, the easier it became. As he read the words and used the key, he found the words easy to understand and directions clear as if the son was actually speaking to him. Therefore, he used the son’s card as a way to remember what page he was on. He decided that it was important to keep the key with the book always.
Early the next day, the first brother decided to set out on his journey to find his inheritance. During breakfast, he scanned the book and saw that it mentioned a bank, and he therefore logically concluded that such a great sum of money would be found at a bank. Later, he took his key and went to every bank in the city, demanding to be allowed to use his key, but he was refused by all of them. Frustrated, he showed up at the father’s house and knocked on the door. When the father opened the door, the brother pulled out his key and said, “You gave me this key and I tried every bank in town but no one would let me in. The book your son gave me said my inheritance would be found in a bank, but it was wrong. I want you to come down to the bank with me and get the money.” The father quietly replied, “If you read the book I gave you, it will tell you where the money is. The key will unlock the vault, but because you have not read the instructions, the key will be of no use to you.”
The second brother arose late in the morning, and during breakfast he thought about his inheritance. After breakfast he opened the book from the beginning and began to read, but found it difficult because of the narrow spacing of the lines. Instead of using the key, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the son’s business card and gave him a call. When the son answered, the brother told him that the book was difficult to read and that instead of reading the book, he thought that the son would just tell him, because, after all, it was the son who wanted him to have it, and if he wanted him to have it bad enough, then he would tell him. The son said, “All my father has given you is located in the vault—it is yours as long as you can find it. I am here to help you understand the instructions and answer any questions, but it is not my place to find it for you—only to help you find what my father has already given you.”
The third brother arose in mid-morning, excited about his inheritance. During breakfast, he read the book while using the key. During the day, he meditated on what he’d read and used the business card to call the son for understanding of certain instructions. That night, he continued to read, and did so until he was finished.
Each and every day, the first brother continued to visit banks, make frantic calls to the son and father demanding them to give him the money. Soon, the first brother grew tired and frustrated, and threw away the key and the book. Several years later, he died never receiving the inheritance.
The second brother read the book until he was finished. Then he called his friend and told him about the son and what he’d read in the book. The friend said that the son had also visited him with the same offer and added that although the son said the key was the only way to unlock the vault, he believed that if the father really wanted him to have the inheritance, he was just deposit it in his bank account. And since this had not happened, the friend concluded that the father really didn’t want him to have the inheritance despite what the son said and the book confirmed. The second brother agreed and set his thoughts upon calling the son frequently and asking for the money, and waiting for the call from his bank that the deposit had been made. While he was waiting, he lost his job and therefore had no income to feed himself. Some time later, this brother died never receiving his inheritance.
After a long time of reading, meditating, and conferring with the son, the third brother believed he knew the location of his inheritance. Taking the book, the key, and the card, the brother journeyed only a short distance to a place called Grace. This place was exactly how the book and the son had described. At the door, he pulled out his cell phone and called the son to say thanks for all he had given him. After hanging up, he used the key and unlocked the door and found all that the son and the book had promised. Therefore, he took only the money he needed at the time and returned frequently because he remembered where it was and how to gain access.
The first brother represents the faith alone ditch; the second brother represents the grace alone ditch; and the third brother represents someone who understands and applies the balance of grace and faith.
The Bible provides a clear understanding that God has already moved by grace and given us all things that pertain to life and godliness, but these things are accessed through knowledge of His word, which produces faith. And as the Lord said, According to your faith, be it done unto you. [Matthew 9:29]
Part VIII-- The Balance of Grace and Faith
