The means of grace in Christian theology are those practices or instruments (the means) through which God bestows grace. The nature of this grace is understood in various ways: generally speaking, some interpret it as God's blessing upon humankind that sustains and strengthens the Christian life, while others understand it as forgiveness and salvation.

Catholic theology

According to the Catholic Church, the means of grace that Christ entrusted to the Church are many. They include the entirety of revealed truth, the sacraments and the hierarchical ministry. Among the principal means of grace are the sacraments (especially the Eucharist), prayers and good works. The sacramentals also are means of grace.

The Church itself is used by Christ as a means of grace: "As sacrament, the Church is Christ's instrument. 'She is taken up by him also as the instrument for the salvation of all', 'the universal sacrament of salvation'." The conviction that the Church herself is the primary means of grace can be traced back to Irenaeus, who was expressing a common conviction when he said: "Where the church is, there is the Spirit of God; and where the Spirit of God is, there is the church, and every kind of grace." However, as the Second Vatican Council lamented, "although the Catholic Church has been endowed with all divinely revealed truth and with all means of grace, yet its members fail to live by them with all the fervor that they should".

Catholics, Orthodox and some Protestants agree that grace is conferred through the sacraments, "the means of grace". It is the sacrament itself that is the means of grace, not the person who administers it nor the person who receives it, although lack of the required dispositions on the part of the recipient will block the effectiveness of the sacrament.

==Lutheran theology==<!-- This section is linked from Infant baptism -->

thumb|The Church is the congregation of saints, in which the gospel is taught and the [[sacraments are rightly administered. &ndash; Augsburg Confession]]

In Lutheranism, the means of grace are God's instruments by which all spiritual blessing are bestowed upon sinners. Lutheran churches teach that the means of grace are the ways that the Holy Spirit creates faith in the hearts of Christians, forgives their sins, and gives them eternal salvation. The efficacy of these means does not depend on the faith, strength, status, or good works of those who proclaim the Word of God or administer God's sacraments; rather, the efficacy of these means rests in God alone, who has promised to work through God's gift of these means to God's church.

For Lutherans, the means of grace include the gospel (both written and proclaimed) (Romans 10:17), as well as the sacrament of Holy Baptism, and the Sacrament of the Eucharist.

Lord's Supper

Lutherans hold that within the Eucharist, also referred to as the Lord's Supper, the true body and blood of Christ are truly present For Reformed Christians divine grace is the action of God giving and Christians receiving the promise of eternal life united with Christ. The means of grace are used by God to confirm or ratify a covenant between himself and Christians. The words of the gospel and the elements of the sacraments are not merely symbols referring to the gospel, they actually bring about the reality of the gospel.

Methodist theology

In Methodism, the means of grace are ways in which God works invisibly in disciples, quickening, strengthening and confirming faith. So, believers use them to open their hearts and lives to God's work in them. According to John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, the means of grace can be divided into two broad categories, with individual and communal components: In Methodist theology, the means of grace are necessary in the maintenance of the Christian faith; the Emmanuel Association, a Methodist denomination in the conservative holiness movement, thus teaches:

See also

  • Prevenient Grace
  • Christian soteriology

Printed resources

  • Felton, Gayle. By Water and the Spirit. 1998.
  • Felton, Gayle. This Holy Mystery. 2005.
  • Neal, Gregory. Grace Upon Grace: Sacramental Theology and the Christian Life. 2014.
  • Pieper, Francis. Christian Dogmatics. Volume III. Theodore Engelder, trans. Concordia, 1953.
  • Underwood, Ralph. Pastoral Care and the Means of Grace. Augsburg Fortress, 1992.
  • The Presence of God in the Christian Life: John Wesley and the Means of Grace, Henry H. Knight III (Metuchen, N.J., The Scarecrow Press, Inc. 1992)

References

  • Sermon #16: "The Means of Grace" by John Wesley
  • Sermon #101: "The Duty of Constant Communion" by John Wesley
  • Sermon #104: "On Attending the Church Service" by John Wesley
  • The Sacraments as Means of Grace By Gregory S. Neal
  • Prayer as a Means of Grace By Gregory S. Neal
  • Giving as a Means of Grace By Gregory S. Neal
  • Works of Piety and Works of Mercy (Methodist)
  • Practicing the Means of Grace (Methodist)
  • FAQ: Means of Grace? (Lutheran)