The Christian’s Diligent Use of the Outward and Ordinary Means of Grace

by Mark Kuo, WRPC Pastoral Intern

Serious Christians care about how we may continue to grow in our faith, and how we may evangelize non-Christians effectively. The Bible clearly teaches that God has ordained certain ways which He ordinarily uses to save and mature His people. Reformed theologians call these ways “The Ordinary Means of Grace.”

The Westminster Shorter Catechism Question 88 explains the means of grace as:

“The outward and ordinary means whereby Christ communicateth to us the benefits of redemption are, his ordinances, especially the Word, sacraments, and prayer; all which are made effectual to the elect for salvation.”

Christ purchased redemption for His people by His life, death and resurrection. Christ then communicates the benefits of redemption to the believer by His Spirit under the Old and New Covenants. The benefits of redemption include justification, adoption, sanctification, and other benefits accompanying or flowing from them.

The key question is: “How does the Spirit apply, or how does Christ communicate such benefits to the elect?”

As the third person of the Godhead, the Spirit is able to apply them without using any means, but out of God’s divine wisdom, the Spirit ordinarily uses means to apply such benefits. The means are not something devised by men but ordained by God alone, especially the Word, sacraments, and prayer.

Through baptism and teaching the Word, by the work of the Holy Spirit, the New Testament Church was built up. Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He commissioned His disciples to bring the gospel to all nations and build churches therein. Jesus promised to empower them by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1) and entrusted them with the means of grace. In Matthew 28:19-20:

”Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

In Acts 2:41-42, we see the consistent pattern of using the means of grace in the life of the early church:

“Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”

Believers of the early church were not only baptized, but they also continued learning God’s Word set forth in the apostles’ teaching, took communion (the breaking of bread), and prayed corporately. God uses the preaching of His Word to regenerate, to give saving faith unto, and to sanctify and preserve His people. God uses the sacraments as a sensible and vivid picture to illustrate and ensure the covenant of grace and all its benefits to His people. God uses prayer for His people to commune with Him in fellowship and worship, and to receive daily the spiritual and physical blessings they need.

The New Testament is a continuation of this same pattern of the means of grace from the Old Testament. God commanded His people to teach His Word to their children on a regular basis (Deu. 6:6-9) which was the primary way for the covenant children to know the Lord. Levitical priests were responsible for teaching the law to God’s people for their sanctification (Lev. 10:11, Deu. 24:8). God also commanded His people to circumcise their male children as a sign of the covenant of grace (Gen. 17:10-11), and to celebrate the Passover feast to remember God’s redeeming them from the Egyptian slavery and God’s wrath (12:24-27); both ceremonies were sacraments in the Old Testament. The book of Psalms includes numerous prayers to instruct God’s people to pray not only privately but also corporately.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism Q. 88 describes the means of grace as “outward and ordinary.” They are outward because they involve human participation. The Word needs to be preached by preachers and received, the sacraments need to be administered and received, prayer assumes the act of praying, not only privately, but also corporately for and with one another. While we believe in God’s absolute sovereignty, we should also use the means of grace diligently for our sanctification and for the salvation of others.

The means of grace are outward, because they are distinguished from the inward blessing and power of the Holy Spirit to effectuate our salvation. That is why Jesus promised His disciples His presence and the outpouring of the Spirit. The outward means of grace can be effectual to our salvation only when the inward blessing of Christ by the Spirit accompanies it. Thus, we should not rely on the means, but on the Spirit with a prayerful heart that He would use the preaching and sacraments to save and edify God’s people.

The means of grace are ordinary, because they need to be practiced regularly. We tend to expect dramatic things, and dislike long-term and painstaking labor. We may want to see a big crowd of new converts after one sermon; we may want to see a major transformation in our lives within short periods of time. But the ordinary pattern for the conversion of sinners and for the growth of believers is our diligent, patient, and consistent use of all the means of grace. We must pray for the unbeliever patiently, inviting them to church actively, sharing the gospel with them faithfully, and living a gospel-reflecting life humbly before them. The believer also grows in grace by listening to the preached Word week after week, reading the Bible day by day, taking the Lord’s supper regularly, watching baptisms when administered, and praying with and for other believers constantly. The Lord uses all the means to sustain, feed, strengthen, and mature our spiritual life, so that we can persevere.

The means of grace are ordinary according to worldly wisdom: simple and humble. The purpose of preaching the Word is not to explore profound knowledge, but simply to expound and apply God’s Word faithfully, clearly, and passionately. Baptism is nothing extraordinary, but simply water sprinkled on the head. The Lord’s Supper is not a gourmet meal, but simply bread and wine. Prayer is simply pouring our hearts out to God with praises, confessions, thanksgivings, and supplications uttered according to God’s Word. With the Spirit’s blessing, the means of grace are simple but powerful, ordinary in form but extraordinary in power.

When the church makes faithful and diligent use of the ordinary means of grace, we can and should expect the Lord to bless the church by saving unbelievers as well as sanctifying believers. Much like starving our bodies from proper nourishment, it is a pity for the believer to neglect the means of grace. What a joyful privilege that we have all the necessary means of grace sufficient for our daily growth in grace and our witness to the world. May we make diligent us of the outward and ordinary means of grace!