There are words we use in Church that are ubiquitous but sometimes ill-defined. Grace can be one of them. We ought to be talking about grace each and every Sunday. But at the same time Christians can mean different things when they say the word “grace.” And those differences can be subtle. It can be helpful to draw out what we mean when we say “grace.”

In Paul and the Power of Grace John M.G. Barclay talks about “perfections” of gift and therefore of grace. A perfection is a tendency to “draw [a concept] out to its endpoint or extreme.” (12) He suggests our differences over “grace” might reside in how we choose to “perfect” the concept. He offers six perfections of grace, or gift.

Superabundance. We might say God’s grace is superabundant in it’s sheer lavishness. We might also say it is unending, infinite, more than anything we could ask or imagine.
Singularity. We might say God is singularly benevolent or loving in his grace. There is no room for wrath, or disappointment. When God gives it is solely out of love, and if love is lacking then our understanding of grace is lacking.
Priority. We might say that God’s grace always precedes anything that we do. In some cases this turns into predestination, the idea that God chooses the saved.
Incongruity. We might say that God gives precisely to those who are undeserving. When we were dead in our sins God showed his love for us by sending his Son to die for us.
Efficacy. We might say God’s gifts accomplish what they set out to do. In some traditions this turns into the idea that when you are once saved you are always saved. How could God’s grace not effect salvation?
Non-circularity. We might say that God gives expecting nothing in return. So good works are not a return gift to God. Thanksgiving is not a return gift to God.

You’ve likely seen God’s grace described in many if not all of these ways. Some equate God’s grace with his singular love and acceptance. Others equate God’s grace with it’s priority and non-circularity, that the ball is always in God’s court so we are unburdened by self-righteousness. And everyone might think they have the corner on grace, and if anyone disagrees with them they just don’t understand grace.

But no one has the corner on grace. Everyone at least affirms God’s free and loving grace. The question becomes what is grace? What is the biblical picture? How does God’s grace work in our lives and our communities? And when we get a clearer vision of how we understand grace then we can better discern what grace is.