Grace: Apostleship and Peace

December 28, 2011 briank Grace

In Romans chapter 1, grace is mentioned in two verses:

Romans 1:5 “Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.”

Romans 1:7 “To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”

One of the first truths I’m learning from Scripture about grace is that grace is woven into the fabric of the Bible’s teachings. It would not be healthy to get on a grace bandwagon nor more than it would be healthy to get on a legalism or health and wealth bandwagon. So I attempt to approach the grace of God as a “centering mechanism”. I am quickly learning that the grace of God is the great center, the balancer, the equalizer, the stabilizer of Christian faith.

Apostle Paul links grace with apostleship. I see nothing that says these are opposites. Rather, they are presented together. Apostleship (apostolēn) is, in its simplest terms, “the office or dignity of an apostle, one who has been sent; commissioned with a duty”. The grace of God is forever connected to the mission of God.

Apostle Paul almost immediately also links grace with peace. Such a phrase is often found at the beginning and end of Paul’s letters: grace and peace to you. We should not fear grace, nor should it disturb us. The grace of God warms the heart of sinners, flooding our soul with peace.

So the first lesson in the grace of God, from Romans, the book of grace, is that grace is linked together with apostleship and with peace. We cannot separate grace from our Christian duty, nor can we do our Christian duty without grace. The grace of God is not divisive or contentious, but fully linked together with the peace of God.

We need grace and apostleship, grace and peace.