The Grace of God is the goodness of God that has been freely given to us by what Jesus has accomplished on the Cross of Calvary. As believers, we can fall from grace.
But what does that mean?
Many people think that falling from the Grace of God means that one has simply sinned. No. In Galatians, Paul was addressing the demand that Gentile believers be circumcised. The Judaizers were teaching that circumcision (and the Law) was a requirement for salvation. Paul responded that if you add circumcision as a requirement for salvation, then what Jesus did on the Cross is rendered ineffective for you.
Galatians 5:1-6 (AMP)
1It was for this freedom that Christ set us free [completely liberating us]; therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery (sin) [which you once removed]. 2Notice, it is I, Paul, who tells you that if you receive circumcision [as a supposed requirement of salvation], Christ will be of no benefit to you [for you will lack the faith in Christ that is necessary for salvation]. 3Once more I solemnly affirm to every man who receives circumcision [as a supposed requirement of salvation], that he is under obligation and required to keep the whole Law. 4You have been severed from Christ, if you seek to be justified [that is, declared free of the guilt of sin and its penalty, and placed in right standing with God] through the Law; you have fallen from grace [for you have lost your grasp on God’s unmerited favor and blessing]. 5For we [not relying on the Law but] through the [strength and power of the Holy] Spirit, by faith, are waiting [confidently] for the hope of righteousness [the completion of our salvation]. 6For [if we are] in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but only faith activated and expressed and working through love.
Verses 1–6 explain that making any requirement (like circumcision) a condition of salvation removes the effect of the Cross. "Fallen from grace" in verse 4 emphasizes being severed from Christ when salvation or justification is sought through the Law rather than through faith in Christ's finished work.
In verse 4, Paul is saying that if, having heard the Message of the Cross, you believed yet then forget, forsake, or worse reject it, you have fallen from grace. When we try to gain salvation or live the saved life by any means other than the Cross of Christ, we have fallen from the Grace of God.
We only have God's goodness (grace) in our lives because of what Jesus did on the Cross for us. If Jesus had not died on the Cross, paying our sin debt, none of us would have God's unmerited favor — Grace — in our lives.
Grace vs. Law
We are either living under Grace or under the Law. "Law" can be any set of rule/requirements we place on ourselves to try to live a Christ-like life. This could church law (rules/requirements), but these are man-made. That might include going to church, praying or reading the Bible. While God desires these things, they are not the basis for salvation or holiness; we cannot look to these things. Only what Jesus accomplished on the Cross saves and makes us holy. All of this is looking at what SELF can do and not at what Jesus did for you to be saved. We continuously try to insert ourselves (what we can do) in Salvation and Sanctification (holiness). God doesn't need our help! IT IS FINISTHED (nothing else needed), and it was finished at the Cross! All we must do is have Faith in that which God has done in the giving of His Son, Jesus (John 3:16).
When we live under law — anything that is not the Cross — we frustrate the Holy Spirit (cf. Galatians 2:21). We also frustrate ourselves, because though we genuinely want to live for God, attempting to do it by our own effort, power, knowledge and abilities rather than by Faith in Christ and the Cross will fail. It will end in frustration.
God's way is Jesus and the Cross; any other way is law. Even if we lived under law initially out of ignorance, once we understand the sufficiency of the Cross, our faith must be placed properly in Jesus and Him crucified. When we place our faith in other things, we fall from grace. If we persist in that path, not only do we grieve the Holy Spirit, but we also risk losing our soul - and none of us want that!
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