Why are we called "Grace Baptist Church?"

What is Grace, anyway?

Grace is God's unmerited favor toward us. We deserved nothing but His wrath, yet He extended grace and mercy to us in the person of Jesus Christ, who was "full of grace and truth." Some people have made the word "grace" into the acronym  God's Riches At Christ's Expense.

Ephesians 2:8-9 talks more about grace, saying "For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast." There is nothing that we can do in and of ourselves to please Him; good works, baptism, church membership--none of these, commendable though they may be, can satisfy God's requirement of righteousness. God does not keep an accounting system on each person's life and when life is over, if your good deeds outweigh your bad ones, you get to go to heaven. Isaiah 64:6 says that all our "righteousnesses" - our good works - are like filthy rags in the sight of God. Salvation is by His grace, not by any works of our own.

The fact is, that before God extended His grace to us, we were dead in our trespasses and sins. Romans 3:23 tells us, "for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
More sobering is Romans 6:23, which states the penalty for our sins: "For the wages of sin is death." We all die physically. But in addition, this verse refers to a second or spiritual death. Revelation 21:8 describes this second death: "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." Hell is not easy to speak of, but that does not change its reality. This is where the penalty for sin is paid. Good works, no matter how noble or sincere, can never erase or outweigh our sins.

Our sins separated us wholly from God, and were it not for His grace, His mercy and His love, we would remain divided from Him forever. Yet Jesus Christ has already paid the penalty for our sins! Consider what the Word of God says:

But God commendeth [demonstrates] His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

God loves me even though I'm a sinner.

Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation [payment, atonement] for our sins. (I John 4:10)

God made the payment for my sins HIMSELF.

For He [God]  hath made Him [Jesus] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
(2 Corinthians 5:21)

Through the work of Jesus Christ, I can be declared righteous before God.

For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8, 9)

Salvation is God's gracious gift that I cannot earn by any good works.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

That "whoever" means you and me!
The word "believe" does not indicate intellectual acknowledgement; rather, it means to trust or wholly rely upon.

Are you willing to set aside your reliance on church membership, baptism, or any other good works, and instead trust completely in Jesus Christ alone to save you?

Romans 10:9 states "that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved,"
and again in Romans 10:13, "for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

If you have never settled this matter, why not do so today? In your own words, admit to Jesus that you are a sinner and that you deserve the penalty of your sins. Tell Him that you believe that He died on the cross and paid that penalty for you. Ask Him to have mercy upon you and save you.

If you were sincere, the Bible promises a place for you in heaven: "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life." John 3:36

Praise be unto God for His unspeakable gift! Grace and peace to you.