When most of us think of grace, we think of salvation. Ephesians 2:5 (and other verses) tells us we are saved by grace and that it’s a gift from God. Then in 2 Peter 3:38, we are told to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. You can find a lot of information and many studies online about growing in grace, so I won’t try to replicate that here.
Besides the gift of salvation, grace also means having compassion, mercy and kindness, and in a nutshell, these are the things we are to grow in, becoming more mature in Christ. God shows these to us and then we, through the Holy Spirit, can show them to others. Just as 1 Corinthians 13 is a description of who God is, the definition and properties of grace show us who God is – his very heart. He is our champion, always on our side, always for us and wanting the best for us.
God’s grace is a beautiful gift and fortunately for us, it doesn’t stop with our salvation. His grace covers us daily and continues to teach us the way of Jesus – the way of the Kingdom.