Days of Grace

	"And working together {with Him}," Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 6:1-3, "we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain-- for He says, 'At the acceptable time I listened to you, and on the day of salvation I helped you'; behold, now is 'the acceptable time,' behold, now is 'the day of salvation'-- giving no cause for offense in anything, in order that the ministry be not discredited."
	In this passage, Paul urges the reader not to receive the grace of God in vain.  In other words, the apostle is addressing people who are living in days of grace.  But just what are days of grace?  Unfortunately, many view days of grace as days of ignorance.  In other words, it is a period of time during which people may do whatever they want to.  It doesn't matter.  Everything will be overlooked by God's grace.  But does the New Testament agree with this view of days of grace?
	"Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance," Paul preaches to the people of Athens in Acts 17:30-31, "God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." 
	Does this sound like God accepts any longer the idea of days of ignorance?
	For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men," we read in Romans 1:18-23, "who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.  For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.  For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.  Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures."
	Does it sound like God accepts ignorance as an excuse?
	"Men, why are you doing these things?" Paul asks the people of Lystra in Acts 14:15-17 as they attempt to worship him and Barnabas.  "We are also men of the same nature as you, and preach the gospel to you in order that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that is in them.  And in the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways; and yet He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good and gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness." 
	Does it sound as though the ignorance of these people is acceptable?
	"Brethren," Romans 10:1-3 expresses, "my heart's desire and my prayer to God for them is for {their} salvation.  For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge.  For not knowing about God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. 
	Does God accept zeal without knowledge?
	Whatever is involved in days of grace, it must not be a period of ignorance when God is willing to accept whatever the people want to do.  Sadly, though, this is the pathway being followed by many in the world today.

	Contrary to the belief of many, days of grace do not represent a period of time when God accepts ignorance.  Others may feel that days of grace are the same as days of plenty.  In other words, then things are going well for us it is because God has blessed us with an abundance of material possessions.  Perhaps this is the way the rich man had felt before he reached torment and realized that he had been mistaken.  
	"But Abraham said," we find in Luke 16:25, "'Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony.'"
	"Come now, you rich," James 5:1-6 warns, "weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you.  Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten.  Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure!  Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, {and} which has been withheld by you, cries out {against you}; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.  You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.  You have condemned and put to death the righteous {man;} he does not resist you."
	Does this make it sound like days of grace can be equated with days of plenty?
	"Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow, we shall go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit,'" James 4:13-16 notes.  "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are { just} a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.  Instead, {you ought} to say, 'If the Lord wills, we shall live and also do this or that.'  But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil."
	Does it sound like days of grace are days of plenty?
	"No one can serve two masters," Jesus instructs in Matthew 6:24-34, "for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.  For this reason I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, {as to} what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor for your body, {as to} what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, and {yet} your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?  And which of you by being anxious can add a {single} cubit to his life's span?  And why are you anxious about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory did not clothe himself like one of these.  But if God so arrays the grass of the field, which is {alive} today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, {will He} not much more {do so for} you, O men of little faith?  Do not be anxious then, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'With what shall we clothe ourselves?'  For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.  Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. {Each} day has enough trouble of its own."
	Jesus seems to be making a distinction between having enough and having too much.  There is no doubt that God is generous and bounteous, but this is not grace.  Sadly, though, many people today equate days of grace with days of material abundance.
	No, days of grace are not days of ignorance. Days of grace are not days of plenty.  What, then, are days of grace?  Paul answers this for us in the second verse of our original passage. 
	"And working together {with Him}," Paul states in 2 Corinthians 6:1-2, "we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain-- for He says, 'At the acceptable time I listened to you, and on the day of salvation I helped you'; behold, now is 'the acceptable time,' behold, now is 'the day of salvation.'"
	What are days of grace?  They are days of salvation.  This becomes even clearer when we look at the passage being cited by Paul.
	"Thus says the Lord," Isaiah 49:8 explains, "'In a favorable time I have answered You, and in a day of salvation I have helped You; and I will keep You and give You for a covenant of the people, to restore the land, to make {them} inherit the desolate heritages.'"
	In this passage, the "You" is the Messiah.  And the word "acceptable" is replaced by the word "favorable."  These are days of God's favor, His grace.  And they are the days of the Messiah.  They are days of salvation.  What, then, are some of the things that are involved in these days of salvation?
	"Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance," we have seen in Acts 17:30, "God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent."
	These are not days of ignorance, they are days of repentance.  We must turn our backs on the old way of doing things and turn toward God's way of doing things.
	"Child," we have heard Abraham tell the rich man in Luke 16:25, "remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony."
	Days of grace are not days of plenty.  They are days of humility.  We must put aside our pride and follow God's way.
	We are living in days of grace.  We are living in days when God offers salvation and deliverance.  We are living in the time of God's favor.
	"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me," Isaiah 61:1-3 states, "because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives, and freedom to prisoners; to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn, to grant those who mourn {in} Zion, giving them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified."
	We are living in days of grace.  We are living in the time of God's favor.  We are living in the days of salvation.  But we must realize that there will come a time when there will be no more days of grace.  For some, they will be replaced by days of vengeance.
	If we reject Jesus, there will be no more days of grace.  If we obey the truth, we will be set free.

Unless otherwise noted, "Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE(R), (C) Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission."