The Person of Grace
- Zechariah 12:10 “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.”
- Hebrews 10:29 “Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?”
Now that we have learned that Grace is an undeserved gift and that this gift of Grace is God’s enablement and that to open and use God’s enabling Grace is by faith (“The Gift of Grace” and “Faith to Access Grace”), you need to know that Grace is not merely an object; a thing. Grace is so much more. The gift of Grace is the gift of the promised Holy Spirit. When God prophesied through the prophet Zechariah in Zech. 12:10 (our text) about Christ’s crucifixion, God also revealed the coming of “the spirit of grace”. Hebrews 10:29 (also our text) also refers to God’s/Christ’s indwelling spirit as “the Spirit of grace”. The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of grace. When Christ ascended into heaven, He “gave gifts unto men” (Eph. 4:8), and “every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” (Eph. 4:7) And this grace given by Jesus Christ was His very self; His Spirit (Rom. 8:9 “Spirit of Christ”).
Let’s further apply what we have learned so far about grace to the Person of Grace:
- – Grace is a gift. The Person of Grace, the Holy Spirit, is a gift given to all believers.
- – Grace is not deserved or earned. The Person of Grace, the Holy Ghost, was/is not given based on merit or good deeds, nor does He work in our lives because of anything we deserve or have earned. Rom. 8:26 declares, “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities….” It does not say our goodness or greatness.
- – Grace is God’s enablement. Therefore, the Person/Spirit of Grace is the One Who enables believers to live, preach, pray, or die for Jesus. For instance, “the Spirit of grace and of supplications” (Zech. 12:10) prays for us on our behalf (Rom. 8:26-27), and God answers our prayers because of our Mediators, Jesus and His Spirit, not because of anything we have done. Pray one minute or one hour. Prayers are answered because of Jesus and His Spirit, not us. This same principle applies to every area of the Christian life: the raising of children, souls saved, the size of churches, the size of your bank account, etc…. All thanks and praise should go to the Spirit of Grace working in our lives.
- – Grace is accessed by faith. Therefore, the Person/Spirit of Grace’s enablement, power, wisdom, etc… are accessed by faith (belief/acceptance of God’s Word/will, and trust/dependence upon God’s ability). When we live by faith in dependence upon God’s enabling Spirit of grace inside us, God is able to do many mighty works in our life.
- John 14:12 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.”