A child asks his father, “Do I ‘have’ to go to church today?” The father replies, “Yes, for at church we have access to the ‘means of grace.’” Generally, we understand that to mean two things. First, when God’s word is properly proclaimed it is a ‘means of grace.’ The Holy Spirit graciously applies God’s word to our hearts and creates faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as the only way of forgiveness and eternal life (Romans 10:14ff). A second ‘means of grace’ is when the sacraments, both the Lord’s Supper and Baptism are faithfully administered as Christ instructed (Mat 28:19; Lk 22:19). These sacraments remind us in a visible way what Christ has done for us through his death and resurrection (See also Lord’s Day 25, Q&A 65).

There are also secondary ‘means of grace’ which are indirectly related to the first two. Reading the Scriptures can be a ‘means of grace’. Prayer and being in communion with the living God, thanking Him and bringing our requests before Him can be ‘means of grace’. The fellowship of the saints can be a ‘means of grace’. Singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs together in praise and thanksgiving to the glory of God’s Name can be a ‘means of grace’.

Now when we say they are a ‘means of grace’ we should not insist that we can only have access to that grace when the preaching of the word and the administration of the sacraments are done by an ordained preacher or when we attend worship. God’s ‘grace’ is by definition ‘free’. If we were to say that we cannot receive ‘grace’ without the ‘ordained’ preacher being present, or that we have to be at worship, then we have made the reception of God’s grace and our salvation a work and that would be unbiblical. Romans 11:6 reminds us, “And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.” If we can only receive God’s grace by some additional human effort, we not only muddy the waters as far as ‘grace’ is concerned, we are suggesting that Christ’s work on the cross was not sufficient for our salvation.

Please remember then, that our salvation from beginning to end is all of grace. God’s Word proclaimed and read is His gracious way of showing us His grace to us in Jesus Christ. And those who are saved will in thankful, loving response endeavour to attend worship, obey His word and ensure that baptism and the Lord’s Supper are received as signs of God’s grace to us and not as works that we need to do to gain salvation. Let’s be on our guard not to mix ‘grace’ with ‘works’.

In John 6:28, some people came to Jesus and asked Him, “What must we do to do the works God requires of us?” Jesus didn’t say you must go to church or be baptised or take part in the Lord’s Supper. On the contrary, Jesus’ reply was, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.” (v29). Thankfully, the preaching of the word along with the faithful administration of the sacraments occurs regularly on the Lord’s Day. So, let us not ask whether we ‘have’ to go to worship, rather, let us see it as a great privilege and opportunity to participate in the ‘means of grace’. JZ