Grace Is NOW.

By Tammy Lacock

Through a dissection of Paul’s epistles, Warren Litzman effectively explains God’s amazing grace, who it’s for, and when it is. He then questions when we, as believers, will be ready to take the biggest step we’ll ever take into His grace.

“But NOW in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace." (Ephesians 2:13-15)

In last week’s podcast, Warren explained that in Ephesians 2:11-12, Paul makes it clear that he is addressing the Gentiles. His gospel of grace is FOR everyone, Jews and Gentiles alike, but directed here to the Gentiles, who previously had been without God in their lives, living lives separated from Him. His gospel of grace breaks down the barriers for everyone, telling us Christ and His work on the cross is our salvation, not our works or lack thereof.

In Ephesians 2:13-15, Paul tells us Christ’s death on the cross, His shed blood, brought about a new covenant for everyone. This new covenant not only abolishes the law (our salvation based on our works), but it abolishes the separation between God and man, and between Jews and Gentiles. It’s Christ’s work on the cross that reconciles us to God, bringing us back to Him, one body in Christ.

By Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, we are no longer separated by the bonds of this world, its laws, and even death! We are brand new creations, eternal children of God, joined to Christ in one Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17)!

We are complete NOW in Christ, and we are one body in Him. Paul tells us Christ is our peace NOW. This is God’s amazing grace, His gift to us NOW!

Warren makes an extremely important point that most Christians may not know. That is, being joined to Christ in one spirit, He NOW literally lives in us. Christ lives in us and yet we may still be without Him in our actions.

We must understand that if we accepted Christ in our lives, God didn’t work in us on the basis on what we think or know. He birthed His Son, by placing His Seed (and the uprooting of the sin-nature) in us the moment we believed in Him. Christ completes us, and we are NOW saved only by Him. It is not a progressive salvation. We are saved by Christ, and not by our continual works. Yet, if we don’t know where Christ is, He may never come out of us in our expression. As believers, knowing Christ lives in us is the foundation from which we get to know Him and love Him. We now know where He is. Paul’s epistles make it clear that He lives in is. There is no separation between us. We abide in Him and He in us.

Paul tells us we must now have a radical mind-change if we are to ever live the fullness of God’s grace. In fact, he tells us, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5 KJV).

This radical mind-change is literally giving our minds over to Christ, who now lives in us. If we are to step into the fullness of God’s grace and begin the love affair with Him, then we must be all in — mind, body, and spirit. We are all NOW joined to Christ in one Spirit, one body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13).

And NOW, Paul says, it’s time to give Him our minds, too!