In Every Good Work and Word
Grace is all around us. Both believer and unbeliever benefit from the undeserved blessings of God. Common grace benefits everyone regardless of their faith. Special grace is the saving work of Jesus Christ that benefits those who have been chosen by God and have believed his gospel. Grace saves, grace sanctifies, making the believer progressively more like Jesus throughout their lives, and grace ultimately ushers us from this life into eternity. In that middle part where we are saved but continuing to live our lives here on earth, there is an obligation to dispense that grace to others. Every believer is a conduit of the grace of God in this world, influencing others to receive and benefit from all God offers us in his Son, Jesus Christ.
In 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17, the Apostle Paul launches into a benediction, a prayer for his readers, in which he expresses his desire for God’s grace to flow through them in every good work they do and every good word they speak. As their understanding of grace increased, Paul wanted them to understand that grace was not something simply to be enjoyed but freely shared in our service to others in the name of Christ.