A United Methodist Pastor's Theological Reflections

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory (nikos) through our Lord Jesus Christ." - I Corinthians 15:57


Saturday, August 15, 2009

God's Grace is a Guiding Grace - August 9 Sermon Reflections

This past week, in response to my sermon on "Grace Upon Grace," someone in my congregation included God's guidance in his definition of God's grace. I think this is an extremely helpful way to think of God's grace.

Too often, we only connect God's grace with a moment in time when we were born again or when we experienced salvation. When we think of grace as a guiding grace, it helps us to see that grace is active with us every day of our lives.
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The United Methodist understanding of grace includes this aspect of grace since we believe that conversion isn't simply a momentary time in our lives when we are saved, but is a life long process in which we allow God's transforming love to lead us on to holiness and perfection.

It's so encouraging to know that people are reflecting on the sermons and the worship themes and that together, we can come to a better understanding of what it means to be fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.


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