I am working through a new syllabus looking at the Letter to the Romans from the point of view of spiritual growth and formation. I have read too much philosophy and theology in my life. I’ve become much more interested in “First Principles”–that is, how we become deeper enmeshed in God’s Spirit and what we do about it.
This is my working outline for the thoughts in the letter:
- Awareness of our sinful life
- Faith
- Grace
- Living in grace
As part of the faith discussion, Paul seems to digress into a long discussion of Jews and Gentiles (everyone not a Jew).
The thoughts I’m currently working out look at this Jew and Gentile discussion not as an ancient problem because Jesus and the movement called The Way grew out of Judaism. I wonder if the discussion is germane to problems currently found globally with one ethnic group demonizing another. Just standing here at my desk flashes of vision from at least six countries in the world appear behind my eyes. It’s a current problem.
Sit and read Romans through several times. Don’t try to dig into theologies that Paul might not even have entertained. You can see a clear progression from having a life full of sin, to awareness, to faith, to grace, to living in grace. I have observed many Christians stopping at the “grace” part ignoring how we are supposed to live in grace. A good secondary source is Paul’s letter to the Galatians.
This sounded so familiar to instruction I have had, that I asked Claude.ai to list John Wesley’s four types (or manifestations) of grace. He/she/it provided this description:
- Prevenient Grace – This is the grace that “goes before” and precedes human response to God. Wesley believed this grace is given to all people universally, enabling them to recognize their need for God and making it possible for them to respond to the gospel. It counteracts the effects of original sin and restores some measure of free will.
- Justifying Grace – This is the grace through which God pardons sin and declares the believer righteous. It’s received through faith and represents the moment of conversion or being “born again.” This grace removes the guilt and penalty of sin.
- Sanctifying Grace – This grace works in believers after justification to gradually transform them into the likeness of Christ. Wesley emphasized that this is an ongoing process of spiritual growth and moral purification that continues throughout the Christian life.
- Glorifying Grace – This is the final grace that believers receive in heaven, where the process of sanctification is completed and they are made perfect in love. It represents the ultimate fulfillment of God’s work in the believer’s life.
Then provided a bit of context with which I concur and offer for contemplation.
These four types of grace formed a comprehensive framework for understanding the entire process of salvation from God’s initial drawing of individuals to their final perfection in heaven. Wesley’s emphasis on the availability of grace to all people (through prevenient grace) was particularly important in distinguishing Methodist theology from more strict Calvinist interpretations of predestination.
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