The Means of Grace

The Means of Grace

One remarkable truth much neglected by Christians is known as the means of grace. By this we mean the outward ways through which God grants grace to the Christian. The means are like channels or avenues – designated paths by which God provides strengthening grace to his people.

The three means of grace are the Word (the Bible), the Sacraments (the Lord’s Supper and baptism) and prayer.

Word:

The Bible is the very word of God that he has given to his people. Scripture tells us that the Word of God is inspired (2 Timothy 3:16) – that is, the original documents of Scripture come to us as the very will of God, without error or confusion.

Sacraments:

Perhaps you are not familiar with idea of sacraments. You may have heard baptism or the Lord’s Supper referred to instead as “ordinances.” How can it be that either baptism and the Lord’s Supper be means by which God grants the Christian to grow in grace?

Prayer:

In prayer, we draw close to God and praise, thank and bless him for who he is, and offer to him prayers concerning our needs. We pray, just as we read the Word and take the Sacraments, in faith. Without faith, none of these means of grace is effective.