Creflo Dollar
Most people don’t understand New Testament grace the way God applies it. When we talk about grace, we’re not talking about some sweet church phrase we toss around to make ourselves feel better. It’s gritty, humble, and a formidable power that comes straight from God. It’s the tool He gave us to change from the inside out in ways we could never manufacture on our own.
The Transformational Power of Grace
Unlike in the Old Testament, grace doesn’t simply cover sin; it changes us and delivers us from it. If we’re honest, real change doesn’t begin until we actually want it, because it won’t override our willingness. God is waiting to take the heavy load we’ve been dragging along, but He asks for our cooperation in giving it to Him. “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved” (Psalm 55:22). He considers those who trust Him enough to do this as righteous.
God isn’t trying to beat us into shape but teach us how to live through the power He’s already placed in us. “Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Titus 2:12). However, this only works if we’re listening, and sometimes we’ve been too busy making excuses instead of paying attention. He patiently invites us to grow, but we still have to say yes.
Speaking What’s in Our Hearts
A lot of us have been like the man Jesus met at the Pool of Bethesda, waiting on someone else to pick us up, push us forward, or make us ready. “And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me” (John 5:5-7). Jesus cut straight through all those excuses with a simple question that addressed the heart of the issue. That same question comes to us every day. If we’re waiting on someone else to change before we do, we’ll stay stuck longer than God ever intended.
What we believe shows up in how we speak, which is why our mouths keep revealing the true condition of our hearts. “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak” (2 Corinthians 4:13). What we say outwardly is the evidence of what’s really going on inside. We can say all the right Christian things, but when pressure hits, the truth spills out. Grace works on the heart first, so our words line up with God’s Word and not with our emotions.
Words of Faith, or Doubt?
In one of His many conversations with the Pharisees, Jesus made it clear that what we say gives away what we really think. “O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:34-36). If we keep hearing negativity, fear, worry, or doubt coming out of our own lips, that’s not the devil—it’s our heart showing us what still needs renewing. God doesn’t shame us for that; He invites us to guard what enters our hearts so that better things can come out. What fills us eventually spills out, and grace helps us fill up on the truth.
We’ve all had those moments when something happens and our reactions shock even us. This is why it’s important to pause and check our hearts instead of blaming people, circumstances, or emotions. Most of the time, the issue isn’t “out there,” but something inside that God is trying to heal. He leads us to honesty, not condemnation, because honesty is where real transformation begins.
Believing What God Can Do
We’re also called to renew our minds every day. “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2, NLT). We can’t walk in lasting change while holding onto old perceptions of ourselves. When we shift how we see ourselves so that we can see the new creation instead of the old mistakes, change becomes possible, even natural. God never intended for us to return to what He delivered us from.
Renewal the way God wants us to experience it doesn’t come from our own efforts, but from the Holy Spirit interceding on our behalf. What’s impossible for us to do on our own isn’t an issue with Him living inside us and empowering us. We can’t change our behavior until the Spirit first changes our motivation and our “want tos.”
Nothing is too heavy for God to move. On our own we can’t do much, but with Him, all things are possible. Believing in what God has already done for us moves us into the realm of the finished. “…If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you” (Matthew 17:20). Relying on the faith of Jesus Christ to do the heavy work in our lives gives us amazing results.
