Grace and a Living Relationship

Religion gives you things to do and rules to follow.

Christianity gives you a relationship to enter into.

And rules without relationship lead to rebellion.



The reason that Christianity is different is because of grace. The story is told of C. S. Lewis that, as he was attending a theology conference, a group of theologians were discussing the major difference Christianity and other religions. C. S. Lewis said that was easy; that the major difference was grace.



In John 3 we see the evidence of that truth. John shows us grace that makes a relationship with God possible.



John 3:3

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”



It is a living relationship. It begins with the new birth. It is a birth from above. When we receive Jesus into our lives, we share His very life and become children in the family of God.



In John 17:3 Jesus says that eternal life is knowing the Father and the Son. Eternal life or salvation is not a commodity; it is a person.



In Galatians 2:20 Paul says that He has been crucified with Christ and that it is not him who lives but Christ who lives in him. Salvation is by faith experiencing the resurrected life of Jesus being lived through us.



Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is experiencing a living relationship with God through Jesus living in us.



John 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son and that whoever believes Him will not perish but have everlasting life.



It is a loving relationship. Jesus is the bridegroom and we, the church, are the bride. Our desire is for Him above all else. John the Baptist in John 3:30 says, “He must increase, but I must decease.” That needs to be our attitude. Grace moves God to love us and do what is necessary to establish a relationship with us.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is experiencing a relationship with God based in His love for us.



John 3:11

Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.



It is a learning relationship. Jesus is the faithful witness. He is the teacher. He shares God’s truth with us. It is a real delight to receive God’s Word, mediate on it, and make it a part of our daily lives.



The relationship continues to grow, and the longer we are in relationship with God, the more we learn and the more we can experience the joy of the Lord.



Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is enjoying a growing relationship with God year after year.



God’s grace is what enables us to experience a living, loving, and learning relationship with God. May God’s grace invade you and fill your life.



In God’s Grace Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                           Joe