16. Grace as Kingdom

I have shared with you that, since God finished the “nine months” of the experience of Completion for us in December 2022, I have sensed an ever-growing awareness of God having led us into a vast and brand-new room inside of Him. At first, I could see nothing, though I knew its reality. Gradually, the outline of wondrous things have been appearing, but now, finally, I can give a Bible name to this room. It is a place inside of God called “Grace.” It is the very Heart of God.

Yes, all Christians live here, but with a veil over their hearts and eyes. He opens our eyes to see, but only as He has finished in us the full confident surrender to all Completion.

A Living Room. Grace is a living thing; a room inside of God that is alive. Grace is the bubble of myself, inside of which God and I share all life together. Life is movement with purpose, within and without. Grace is the sharing of Life together. Thus the form of Grace, we call Symmorphy, and the flow of Grace, we call Synergeia.

Covenant joins Father and us together, but Grace is the movement of our shared life, within and without. Grace is made visible as the Kingdom, as every next step Father and each of us takes together. Every next step is the outward movement of Life; it comes out from shared desire and is filled with shared purpose.

Our JS2 Pages. In this lesson, we are doing parts of two pages in JS2 and all of a third. The first is in 2 Corinthians, titled “The Face of Christ.” Here we need one more box, “The Aroma of Grace.” Our second page is in Romans, titled “I Am Led and Carried by the Spirit.” This page has been re-worked, such that we are adding two boxes, “Sharing Together,” and “The Celebration of Grace.” Our final page is back to Second Corinthians, titled “I Give Generously,” which is a new page and thus blank.

In all of these, we are completing three slides on “grace” in Lesson 8.3 of Our Glorious Salvation, “Form and Flow.” We are also moving towards a second “Bridge” titled “Defining Grace.” Resurrection Life is the flow of Grace.

Aromatherapy. I had already written the page “I Am the Fragrance of Christ,” on 2 Corinthians 2:14-15, but it lacked Grace. More than that, this ruling verse is a major definer of Grace.

Now, salvation is also wholeness and wholeness is also health. Let’s consider the three parts of healthiness. The first part is intermittent fasting, which is actually rest. The second part is giving the body only the purest nutrition that it needs. But the third part is the best, and that is taking into the body the wonderful essences of plants, the oils that contain the high frequencies of life, frequencies that spark the body into the highest levels of life. So yes, the “aroma” of Christ is actually aromatherapy.

Blessing God. Now, the aroma is the knowledge of God to others in every place, and the fragrance, or good smell, is to God, yet to God as Life into Life inside of others. Thus the gift, the Eucharist, the “Holy Grail,” if you want, is for God to drink of us. Giving thanks is giving our lives to God that He might share them with us. Thus when it says “well-pleasing to God,” it means that when God receives the energeia of our lives as the highest frequencies of our faith, it makes His own Life to be WHOLE.

Grace means that you and I, in blessing God, give LIFE to the Father. That makes sense, because in sending us forth out from His Pro-Knowing, God gave, as it were, part of Himself. Receiving us becomes receiving of His own essence in return.

The Eucharist. Kingdom must begin with us. Covenant begins with God first, and union begins with Jesus first, but Kingdom begins with us. The Greek “Eucharist” actually means that you and I give grace and favor to God. “I give God thanks,” means, I give my approval and favor to God; I want God to share me with me. Giving thanks is part of the aliveness of Grace. It is our living connection with God that gives God the authority to come through.

I think that finally we are on the right path to KNOWING this Grace in which we live, this shared Life with God, Father and us knowing one another through doing things together, that is, every next step shared together.

The Aroma of Grace (OGS). There is an aroma to Grace, a life-giving essence like the essential oils of plants imparting their life-giving frequencies to uplift and make alive. Grace “smells” wholesome and alive, and that wholesomeness fills the air around us everywhere we go, causing everyone to recognize the presence and goodness of God.

Even more than that, this living Grace, this shared life with the Father, makes the believer in Jesus to be the sweet fragrance of Christ to God. Yet because this Grace envelops every passing person, it returns as the fragrance of Life to the Father through each, inspiring the knowledge of God whether as life to Life or to those living in ruin, the open door of the death of Christ.

The Aroma of Grace (JS2). The Eucharist, speaking good Grace, is my response to God out from the life we share together. Yet my response to God fills the air around me as the aroma of Grace. That aroma of the knowledge of God flows out from the Grace I share with my Father everywhere I go, causing everyone who encounters me to recognize the presence and goodness of God towards them. This living Grace, emanating from me, gives wholesomeness of life to all.

I am the fragrance of Christ to my Father. The life-giving essence of God’s goodness shared with me returns to the Father as His own pleasure when it passes through each person whom I encounter. To those who live in ruin, my Grace to God becomes the open doorway of the one death of Christ. To those who open their hearts to the Grace enveloping them, the fragrance of my life becomes the Life of the knowledge of God inside of them returning to the Father. Grace is the living essence I share with God.

Sharing with Christ. The second portion of Romans 8 is focused on our ongoing relationship with the Spirit of Life, being led by that Spirit. The word “Led,” ties together with our primary verse, 2 Corinthians 2:14-15, God always leads us.

The Spirit personally shares witness together with our spirit, that we are children birthed out from God. And if children, then also heirs, heirs indeed of God, and joint-heirs shared together with Christ; if indeed we share together with Him in His suffering that we might also share together with Him in His glory (Romans 8:16-17). “Shared together” is repeated four times in these two verses. Grace is Life shared together.

God’s Door. The first two “shared togethers” are life within, the second are life without. Life within is automatic; life without is conditional. – I realize that I now know fully a question that bothered me when I started writing, jeopardy versus assurance. There is no “versus.” “Jeopardy” is the wrong word for God’s love of doors. Kingdom is a better word.

When our eldest son visits our home, he does NOT knock. He is our son and heir; he enters as if he belongs. The door is there to keep out those whom we do not know. The words “If indeed” and “might also” are God’s door, keeping out those who will not share Hheart with Him. Sons know they already belong.

Our Every Next Step. Out from the Spirit causing us to know that we are sons and heirs, known by our Father and knowing Him, we take every next step with God inside of Grace, KNOWING that our every step is shared suffering with Christ and every step is shared Glory with Him. One step is suffering, the next glory. In one step we give thanks, in the next, we expect Resurrection. This is Kingdom.

The first step is you and me giving Grace to God, our full and just favor and approval, rejoicing in the sufferings we share with Christ for the sake of others. And the second step is God giving Grace to us, His full and just favor and approval, our whole beings swallowed up by LIFE. Both steps are shared purpose coming out from shared desire.

Sharing Together. Grace is the life I share with God through Jesus. Jesus shares all that He is and does with me inside the glory of the Father. The Spirit of God shares with me the knowing that I am a son of God and that I inherit all things with Jesus from my Father. I am born of God, and I walk in the certainty of this Grace, knowing that in all places where the Spirit leads me, all of God belongs to me. Jesus and I share all suffering together. giving thanks and justifying God with every step. Jesus and I share all glory together, the expectation of God arising as life through every next step we take. I give grace to God in all; God gives Grace to me in all, the shared essence of life together, the Resurrection of Life.

The Triumphus. For those who are led and carried by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God (Romans 8:14). God always leads us, and God always leads us in the triumphal procession inside of Christ, in the full celebration of all victory as Jesus shares His glory with us (2 Corinthians 2:14 – paraphrased and expanded).

The “Triumphus,” then, is the celebration of Grace. Since Grace is a living thing, a shared Life, the celebration is also alive. Another word for “living celebration” is resurrection. The Resurrection is the living celebration of the life of all-Victory that we share with Jesus, and it is inside of this celebration that the Spirit always leads and carries us.

Celebration of Glory. Giving thanks inside of and for the sake of all things, the communion service, partaking of the suffering of Christ, of His flesh given, of His life poured out, this is the beginning of all the celebration of sharing life with God in every next step forever. Giving thanks is GREAT Grace.

The Spirit carries us, and always leads us inside of this glory, this celebration of sharing with Jesus the very Life of God poured out for others, bringing life and healing everywhere we go. Yet it is Victory already all which we celebrate. Jesus set forth His soul for us pre-resurrection. We set forth our souls for others – subdue/overcome – the Action of God – not “post” resurrection, but inside of all Resurrection. This Glory Jesus shares with us is the greater Glory.

The Celebration of Grace (OGS). We know the Father most inside our shared celebration of the Victory that is the Resurrected Life of Jesus inside of which we live entirely through faith. Though we see nothing outwardly, yet our confidence, in God sharing all with us as life and love outpoured, is so certain and True that we KNOW nothing else. Jesus joined us with God inside His Soul before Resurrection swallowed Him up into Life. We join others with our Father inside our souls INSIDE that Resurrection already all.

It is shocking to know the Father in this way, in this celebration of Victory already won before anyone else knows. The celebration of Grace is the confidence in Jesus that we share with the Father.

The Celebration of Grace (JS2). I am a son of God; I am led always by and inside of the Devoted Spirit I share with Christ Jesus. This Spirit who always carries me joins me together with Jesus in the celebration of His Victory given to me. By the Spirit, I give thanks and speak good grace in return to God. By the Spirit, I know that I am a son birthed out from God. By the Spirit, I call God, “My Daddy, the Father.” I know my Father with me by the Spirit.

This same Spirit, always leading me, always carrying me, is the energeoing of Christ Jesus inside of me, giving me all victory over sin and death. I possess all Victory now; I walk inside the celebration of that Victory. This is Grace.

Victory is alive! Grace is alive! Celebration is alive! The Celebration of Grace is the Life I share with my Father every moment, the Joy of every next step I take with Him. More than that, since it was the Father who raised Jesus out from the dead, I celebrate with the Father as my mortal body is swallowed up in Life by His Spirit leading me.

I Give Generously. Now we return to 2 Corinthians, an entire page this time, titled “I Give Generously.” I just now extracted the statements of faith from 2 Corinthians 8:1 to 9:15. All I can say is WOW! These two chapters are FILLED with grace, in an incredible description of how it works, that is, Grace as the working of the Kingdom.

When I attempted to understand and set forth Paul’s gospel, I realized that we needed to look at it from several different directions to have the whole picture. I am just now discovering that I left out a HUGE portion of Paul’s gospel. I had no idea what God meant by GRACE. You cannot teach Paul’s gospel without being a prosperity preacher, yet a prosperity that is true to the Hheart we share with God.

Statements of Faith. Because I know the grace of God given inside the churches. my great joy abounds in generosity. I give grace and fellowship in service to all who belong to Jesus. I give myself to the Lord and to His ministry. I give through the desire of God. I abound to overflowing inside the grace of generosity.

I prove the genuineness of my love. The grace of the Lord Jesus turns my poverty into abundant wealth. I give my abundance to those in need; I receive their abundance into my own need. I serve others with abundant and lavish generosity, in all that is beautiful and good. I am eagerly and enthusiastically confident in the giving of grace.

I demonstrate my love for others. I am always prepared to give and to be a blessing. I sow bountifully; I reap blessings. I give with hilarious cheerfulness as God makes all grace abound into me. I abound always, in every way, having all sufficiency in every good work, for God supplies me with all I need to give generously. I am enriched inside of everything in generosity and in giving thanks.

I fill to overflowing the needs of all who belong to Jesus. In so doing, I fill full all good grace towards God. I glorify God; I am generous in fellowship. I desire deeply that the favor and gift of God would be upon all my brethren.

The Kingdom Unfolds. In a sense, we are treating this study of Grace, of life shared with God, as a science. We might even say an engineering science, that is, how the Kingdom of God unfolds. We could view what we just read as practical engineering. We are looking first at the local church as a living cell, a bubble of life filled with grace, and second, at the many cells of the body, that is all the churches, and the flow of generosity among all. Such a view always requires clearly defined terms.

The layout of our page goes on from these incredible statements of faith to include three boxes. The first is a dictionary style definition of “Favor” and “Generosity.” This will be followed by a box titled “Reciprocal Abundance,” and then, “The Favor and Generosity of Grace.”

Favor (Webster’s 1926). Noun: 1. Kind regard; approving disposition; commendation; kindness; goodwill. 3. A kind act or office; kindness done or granted; benevolence shown by word or deed; an act of grace or good will. 9. A gift or present; something bestowed as an evidence of good will; a token of love. Synonyms: kindness, countenance, patronage, support; grace, gift, benefit; benevolence, readiness, zeal.

Verb: 1. To regard with favor; to aid, or to have the disposition to aid; to wish success to; to be propitious to; to treat with consideration or tenderness. 2. To afford advantage for success to; to facilitate. 3. To give confirmation; to sustain.

Note: The dictionary definitions of “grace” and “kindness” add little to these definitions for “favor.”

Generosity & Generous (Webster’s 1926). Generosity: 2. Liberality in spirit or act; magnanimity; munificence. 3. An act or instance of magnanimity or munificence.

Generous: 2. Exhibiting those qualities which are popularly regarded as belonging to high birth; noble; honorable; magnanimous; spirited; courageous. 3. Liberal; openhanded; not close or niggardly; munificent; bountiful. 4. Characterized by generosity; abundant; ample; fertile. 5. Full of spirit or strength; stimulating; rich.

Note: Yes, as sons of God, we are of high birth. It is out from God our Father that we are generous. Also: “Abundant” adds “way more than is needed; an overflowing fulness.”

Favor & Generosity (from Webster’s 1926): I live and walk inside the favor and generosity of God always given to me. Out from God, I give that same favor and generosity to all my brothers and sisters inside of Christ. I live in kindness and goodwill; I give kindness and benevolence in return. I live in God’s magnanimity and abundance towards me; I give liberally and munificently to all. God gives me all aid and advantage for success; I give my full support to others, always ready to help. God plants His token of Love inside of me; I give the gift of my heart to my brethren. God is always way more than I need; I give always His overflowing fulness to all.

Full Harmony. We are envisioning Grace as a living plasma meant to fill our entire beings. More than that, all that we are in our human design is crafted specifically to live in harmony with this Grace, a “frequency,” one might say, that is needed by our “cells,” spirit, soul, and physic. It is faith that causes us to know this Grace in which we live and thus to come into full harmony with it.

Then, from our text, we see two qualities inherent in this living Grace that shapes and energeoes every aspect of our lives and our beings. One of those is abundance inside of favor, and the other is a full reciprocity of giving. Thus we have our title, “Reciprocal Abundance.”

Knowing Abundance. There are then three ways of knowing this reciprocal abundance inside of Grace. The first is the giving of favor between each one of us and the Father through Jesus. The second way of knowing reciprocal abundance is that which is shared among us as a Community of Christ; of truth, “forgiving one another” is better translated as “giving favor one to the other,” that is, reciprocal favor. In this abundance of generosity, it is God with me sharing with God with you.

Finally, we know reciprocal abundance between God and us together on the one hand and all creation on the other hand. Creation lives in abundance of Life only in relating in this harmony with this Living Grace Church.

Reciprocal Abundance. The grace I share with God is a singing harmony between all the frequencies of my own being and all the frequencies inside of God. This living Grace energeoes every aspect of my life, resulting in abundance inside of favor and a full reciprocity of giving. I know the Father inside this shared abundance and the back and forth giving by which we live together. I know my brothers and sisters inside this same reciprocity of favor. And I know all creation through this same abundance of favor and generosity of giving flowing from me to all and from all to me in return. I am God’s channel of all reciprocal abundance.

Giving Thanks. All of this, all of it, begins with GIVING Thanks.

Think of blessing the meal. We give thanks, we speak grace, we bless the food. That means that we are extending the qualities of the Spirit and of the Grace of God out over the food and the life that food will provide our bodies, AND out over our fellowship and the life that fellowship will provide our souls. Why do we do this for meals only? Why would we not speak the giving of abundance over everything? Why would we not want to see the harmony of God-with-us in all the giving and receiving of Favor happening to every part of human life, that is, the unfolding of the Kingdom?

Giving thanks is costly, for it is generous. Giving thanks is not for stingy people, those who keep it all for a separated self.

A Living Flow of Abundance. Consider the statements of faith again. ~ The grace of the Lord Jesus turns my poverty into abundant wealth. I give my abundance to those in need; I receive their abundance into my own need. ~ I sow bountifully; I reap blessings. I give with hilarious cheerfulness as God makes all grace abound into me. I abound always, in every way, having all sufficiency in every good work, for God supplies me with all I need to give generously. ~ This is all a living flow. There is no giving without receiving; there is no receiving without giving.

The Favor and Generosity of Grace (OGS). The generosity of grace is as the beating heart, sending forth the abundance of life to fill all need inside the body of Christ. Each of us knows the Father by the reciprocal flow of favor and generosity between Him and us. In the same way, each of us knows the Father by that same reciprocal flow of favor and generosity among all the members of the local Church. The first flow always becomes the second.

This living Grace creates a harmony of all the frequencies of God with and inside of His Church. This harmony results in a continuous flow of abundance of favor and all reciprocity of generous giving. This reciprocity of abundant favor and generous grace is how the Church LIVES and how God sets creation free inside of her glory.

The Favor and Generosity of Grace (JS2). The generosity of grace beats as my own heart, sending forth the abundance of the life I share with God to fill all need inside the body of Christ. Grace as the Kingdom begins as I bless God and give favor to Him inside the generosity of my love. As I give thanks through faith, I know the favor and generosity that fills this Grace of God shared with me. Christ Jesus fills all my lack with His abundant wealth.

Out from that overflowing abundance and favor, I give to my brothers and sisters with the same generosity in order to fill up their lack, even as the give the same generosity to me to fill up my lack. This giving of favor and generosity is a living thing, a “plasma” of life that surrounds and fills our gathering together with all the abundance of God. Out from our abundance together, then, this same abundance of Grace flows out into the world around us, bringing all whom it touches into the generous knowledge and favor of God. This is Grace, the life we share with God.

Sustaining All inside of Grace. Notice that the dictionary definition of “favor” includes “to sustain.” Jesus said that He will drink the cup of speaking good grace, the Eucharist, with us anew in the Kingdom. We have seen how giving thanks opens to us the full involvement with GRACE, with a life shared together with God our Father, with abundance and generosity of favor flowing reciprocally in every direction.

Does sharing together with Jesus’ suffering and glory also include sharing together with His sustaining of all things by His power-filled Word, through abundance of Life outpoured? This also is Grace, Grace as the Kingdom unfolding, the Life we presently share with our Father.

Reading for Next Time. The next lesson I will title “Grace as Completion.” First, we have the Jesus Secret page for 2 Corinthians 6:14 to 7:16 titled “I Complete All Devotion.” This page will contain the box, “The Devotion of Grace.” Then, we have the Jesus Secret page for Romans 12:1-2 titled “I Give My Body as a Living Offering.” This page will contain the box, “The Return of Grace.”

Now, I want to develop the box titled “The Capstone of Grace,” in 8.3 “Form and Flow” in a similar way. In fact, the final page for 2 Corinthians in the JS2 is perfect – “I Care for all the Churches.” We will include the box “The Capstone of Grace” there as well. The care for all the churches is the Grace upon us now.

Let’s Pray Together. “Father, we give You grace; we give You our lives shared with You. Father, we like every moment and every step; we appreciate the limitation of our frame. We know that as we give thanks to You, so we live in all of Your supply. Father, fill our hearts with all the confidence of Jesus that we live inside of Your favor and generosity, and that everything we need comes to us in abundance.

“Father, cause us to know the living abundance of this life we share with You that we might have even more abundance to give to Your people. Father, let the Grace of life shared with You become the Favor that includes all our brethren across the earth. We are the channel of Your Grace, in Jesus name.”