Some years ago, George ScalIa, went to Los Angeles police and told them of a daring plot he and another gangster were about to carry out. They planned to kidnap multimillionaire Leonard Firestone, but now George wanted out of the whole thing. An arrangement was made between the police and George that he was to go through the motions of the crime, so they could catch Cal Bailey, the leader, redhanded. In event of gun-play, George was to drop to the floor and be spared.

The agreement didn’t work out.

When the smoke cleared, George lay dying beside slain Cal. The arrangement failed.

There is coming an awful showdown, a world-wide judgment of fire by the Almighty. He has made an agreement with those who have fallen to their knees in repentance before Jesus Christ — to spare them. God’s arrangement WORKS! This agreement made by God Himself is called the covenant of grace. It is His very own testament to us.

Read carefully our TEXT, II Timothy 1:9-10. Notice the word “grace.” This means God’s loving favor. Under the covenant of grace God pledges undeserved kindness to sinners and gives Jesus to die in our stead.

According to our text, verse 9, the salvation offered includes both our being saved, or spared, and being called to a new and wondrous future. (Poor George got neither!)

The Bible is full and over-flowing with GRACE from God. Three of the related Old Testament words occur some 240 times. In the New Testament the noun and verb torms for “mercy” occur over 30 times. While the great word “charis” (Greek) appears 150 times. Grace! Grace! God’s merciful heart is open to those who will enter into covenant with him.

Let us study now this gracious covenant.

I.  ITS ORIGIN

Grace “grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,” says our text. Before the ages began their processional march — back before the shapeless world lay in the dark, vaporous womb of unbounded space — back, back until there was just God alone. There and then grace was given!

Why did He choose to be gracious? What moved Him to be so? Our text says it was only “because of his own purpose.” As someone has suggested, God’s eternal purposes are like tracks that determine where the train will run. The train of gracious salvation moves down the track of His own secret purposes.

From its very origin back in eternity, we see that the grace, or merciful kindness, of God is Purposeful. It came of his good will alone, for there was nothing else in the universe but God. No other wills or agents. Nothing moved. There was not so much as a tick of time.  Alone God chose. He destined all things after His will.

Secondly, this grace from its very inception is Proper.  It is “given us in Christ Jesus.” God never says, “I am merciful, so I will forget your sins.” No, He must act according to His holiness and truth, so grace is given only in Jesus Christ. There can be no mercy apart from the Savior.

Actually, the covenant is made directly between the Father and the Son, Who became the Savior of God’s chosen children. Jesus taught, “All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37).

Thirdly, grace must be Pure. Thus, it must be “not….our works,” text verse 9. We aren’t spared from God’s gun-sight simply because we have done good deeds. The saving arrangement is all together one of free grace, without reference to our work or worth. Remember, God made His gracious plans before men were ever created, before any had done good or bad. (And, please don’t think He peeked ahead at us and then devised His plans to fit our doings. No, God first decided. He does not base all His plans on the whims of men!)

Now, we must come to see fourthly that God’s grace is Particularistic. It is extended toward His chosen ones — His elect, as they are called. Study verse nine further. See the word “us.”  The “us” who are actually saved indicates the same persons as the “us” to whom are extended the covenant of grace “before the world began”. God is God. He says, “l will have mercy on whom I will have mercy,” (Romans 9:15).

Thus, God covenants with His Son and His elect children to be gracious and pass by the children’s sins, but only on the basis of the CROSS. What grace! Mercy for us meant agony for Him.

Let me insist that this is just. God has a right to do as He will. Furthermore, none are ever condemned on the basis that God did not choose them.  Jesus puts this straight: “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil,” (John 3:19).

Side by side with this is the certainty of this plan. Since it is not based upon our doings, we can neither earn nor lose our salvation.  The weak, the ignorant, the world’s little ones may be secure in His arms. A recent missionary letter relates the triumphant life of a small child who lived 24 months as a Christian, accounted for the salvation of others, before being crushed beneath a school bus. His last conscious words included the name “Jesus.”

“God chose the weak,” (I Corinthians 1:27).

II. ITS MANIFESTATION

Some might object, “This is all so fearful and beyond our understanding.” Not so. God intends for us to grasp much of it. We are not mechanical robots, and furthermore God treats us with utmost respect — more than men show to Him!

Read verse 10. See how grace is offered to us as intelligent beings. It “has now been revealed.” See also that matters of “life and immortality” are “brought to light through the Gospel.”

The preaching of the Gospel (Indeed, this message!) is given to inform and challenge men to accept Jesus Christ and thus become a sharer in the heavenly bargain of mercy. God covenants to save and call all who truly believe in Jesus Christ.  Men are not saved mechanically apart from their own will and choosing, nor are they simply moved mysteriously and magically. They are appealed to on the basis of truth.

God says, “Let who ever will  come – be saved.”  In our darkness and confusion, the very bright word of hope — that Christ died for our sins and arose to offer pardon to those who will repent — stirs us to look toward Jesus. If you choose Him, you have no cause to worry over whether or not He chooses you. He promises, ”whoever comes to me I will never drive away,”  John 6:37.

The solemn job of every Christian is to make clear this glorious, eternal grace by sharing the Gospel.  This is God’s instrument for awakening those who yet slumber in their sins. “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent.  For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city,” (Acts 18:9, 10).