Humility and Grace

I Corinthians 15:10

"But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than they all; yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me."

Grace is the divine influence upon our hearts and it's reflection in our life. God has bestowed His grace upon us and it is not in vain- not hidden and neglected but stirred up and worked out through spiritual disciplines. This grace, then, is not from within ourselves but from "without" - God must apply His grace to our lives. That grace is freely given as a gift in order that it would be demonstrated in our lives for His glory.

Because grace is a gift from God, it is His work in our lives as we walk in obedience to His will. This is not of ourselves - humility is necessary in order to walk in grace. Humbly acknowledging that we cannot do it without Him, we need His grace to pour into our hearts so we can then in turn pour it out on others.

Extending grace to others is a humbling experience, we must lay down our rights and our expectations. We are unworthy of His grace yet He abundantly bestows it upon us, we have no grounds to withhold grace from those around us. If we are willing to be humbled then grace will begin to flow more freely out of our lives and God will be able to use us for His glory.