Leaving Beyond – Grounded In Scripture

Written by: April J. Buchanan

Grace works quietly and supernaturally in the heart, and yet its effects cannot be hidden.

Today, many believe that if God is truly present and at work, there must be visible signs, miracles, and wonders, and that these should be normative. The ordinary work of God is deemed insufficient, while the extraordinary is demanded as proof of His presence, His Power, His love.

What is remarkable is that proponents of such doctrines often fail to recognize the continual work of God in the world, in His people, and through His sovereign providence. God is actively working all things according to His intended end, yet many miss this reality while chasing what He has not promised, and in doing so, overlook what He is doing and has promised to do.

God’s grace truly is amazing. Many say as much, yet their hearts are so fixed on what they believe God must do, things He has never promised, that they miss what He is faithfully accomplishing. They miss it entirely.

The irony does not escape me. Often, they insist that others simply do not know what they are missing, pointing to euphoric experiences and dramatic manifestations that they falsely attribute to the Holy Spirit. In truth, it is better to miss those things. Better still to flee them intentionally.

Grace is not a means to secure breakthroughs, miracles, blessings, or prosperity. It is not a tool for self-advancement.

Many have turned grace into a means of selfish gain. In doing so, they demonstrate that they do not truly know grace. And yet, even so, they still experience it without realizing it. There is a restraining grace, a common grace, that all men experience but rarely acknowledge. But they do not know the saving grace that works in the heart, drawing sinners to God, granting repentance and faith, and continuing its work so that the glory and power of God are displayed in transformed lives.

Grace is not merely a first step. It is not a pathway to our own desired ends. It is the beginning, continuation, and completion of the Christian life.

Those who are quiet, meditative on scripture, and worship God without spectacle are often accused of quenching the Spirit or missing out. I speak here as one who once danced, shouted, was “slain in the spirit,” participated in false manifestations, experienced euphoric highs, and wrongly attributed to the Holy Spirit what was not of Him. We were the ones missing out. Our doctrine was shallow, aberrant, and when the emotional high faded, we had no sure ground on which to stand.

But those precious saints we once dismissed as dead, dry, religious, or pharisaical, those who sit under doctrinally sound preaching, who worship reverently, perhaps with one hand raised or both hands at their sides, not disorderly but attentive to the Word, they experience, yes experience, the true work of God’s grace and power in their hearts.

The evidence of God’s work is both heard and seen in their lives. The true display of God’s power and grace is not found in falling backward, shouting down a sanctuary, or running the aisles. It is found in the continual, faithful work of God through His ordinary means of grace, quietly and in order, producing holiness, endurance, humility, and love.

And though this work is often quiet, it cannot be hidden.

Grace and peace, y’all.
Soli Deo Gloria