The Nature of Common Grace

A Biblical definition of the grace of God would be, the unmerited favor of God. In other words, God gives you something that you are not worthy of. This can include his kindness, his love, his patience, and his salvation. In our world today, we see the need for the grace of God in every aspect of life. Whether it be in the home, at work or school, during our leisure time or even at church, our sin causes us to be in need of the grace of God at all times.

What we need to understand is that there are different kinds of grace found in Scripture. This Blog, as well as the next two will look at three different kinds of grace found in Scripture. These three categories include: Common grace, Special grace, and Prevenient grace. Although each are similar in their meaning, the outworking of each is vastly different.

To begin,  we'll discuss common grace. This is the grace of God by which He gives people innumerable blessings that are not part of salvation. The word common here means something that is common to all people and is not restricted to believers only. If we were to look at the world around us and contrast it with the fires of Hell, we would immediately see abundant evidence of God’s common grace in thousands of examples in everyday life.

Some of the specific categories in which this common grace can be seen include: the physical realm, the intellectual realm, the moral realm, the creative realm, the societal realm and even in the religious realm. Some examples of common grace in the physical realm include the fact that unbelievers continue to live in this world. This is solely because of God’s common grace. We learn from the bible that the wages of sin is death, not life. God told Adam in the garden that on the day that he eats from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil he would surely die, not live. Adam did die spiritually but he did not immediately die physically. This is an example of God’s common grace. This is seen numerous times whenever someone blasphemes the name of God or mocks one of his children. The fact that they are not immediately destroyed is a sign of common grace. The reality that all unbelievers are allowed by God to exist even for a millisecond on this earth is a tremendous testimony to the common grace of God.

To take this common grace to the next level we see that not only does God allow the unsaved to live, he also allows them to enjoy physical things such as the rain and the sun, the blessings of marriage and family relationships, the beauty of the mountainsand the sea, the wonders of space and the pleasures of eating.

Two clear examples in scripture that point to God’s common grace would include the house of Pharaoh and the house of Potiphar. Neither of these men were believers yet God bestowed his grace upon them simply because of the presence of Joseph in their home. This is an example of God’s wonderful common grace.

As Christians, we rejoice in God’s wonderful common grace. We are to praise him that he is a gracious God not only in salvation but even in the realm of allowing unbelievers to exist and enjoy life. We also need to remember that the common grace of God involved natural revelation. The aspects of God’s creation that the unbeliever enjoys such as the sun and seas etc. leaves them without excuse.

Romans 1:20 ~ 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, both His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 

This should bring about a passion in us to share the gospel with the lost while they are here on earth.

The next blog will deal with another form of God’s grace known as Special grace.