Grace and Peace

Ephesians 1:2 (NLT) May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
2 Peter 1:2 (NKJV) Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,

Grace and peace. This was a common greeting found in Paul’s and Peter’s letters to the churches. This greeting describes two great gifts given to the church, and one could write long papers about each of them.

Grace is generally translated as “unmerited favor”. Other definitions include “inclined to do favors for you”, “looks on you favorably”, kindness, friendship, forgiving mercy, or “gifts freely given by God” The other popular definition of grace is the acronym God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Grace is all about the giver, not the receiver.

Peace was written in Greek, but both Paul and Peter were fluent in Hebrew and were thinking like Jewish people. The Hebrew word shalom is much stronger than our word peace. It means peace, prosperity, wholeness, well-being, and success. Billye Brim once wrote that a noted Hebrew text book translated it “nothing missing, nothing broken”. Another translation I found recently is “freedom from fear”.

Grace and peace be unto YOU!

Doug