You are equating grace with work, and that doesn't seem right to me.
God's grace was the saving of Noah's house, and that grace was given through Noah's work of building the ark. Is this what you are asserting? If that's not correct please let me know.
God required Noah's obedience (build the ark) in order to receive grace (saving of his house). No one capriciously unconditionally receives God's grace, only those that conditionally obedy receives mercy from God.
marks said:
My understanding is that as Noah "found grace in the eyes of the Lord", this is that God would save Noah. God told Noah about the impending flood, and how to survive it. So Noah built his ark.
Noah and his house would NOT have been saved had he rebelled against God and not built the ark.
Noah built the ark
UNTO the saving of his house, building the ark was
in order to save his house. He did not build the ark
because his house was already saved from a flood that had not yet occurred.
marks said:
Just like the Law covenant which has permeated so much of the church.
God offered the Israelites a covenant, a trade off of blessings and cursing in return for obedience or disobedience. And included in that covenant was God's grace to them, the sacrifices. Instead of dying under God's condemnation, God told them what to do to survive.
In each case they trusted Him. Noah built his boat, the priests offered the sacrifices. All work.
There is not a single example in the Bible of a disobedient, rebellious person receiving God's grace, mercy. Many verses as Jeremih 18:8-10 show that receiving mercy is CONDITIONAL upon obedience to God's will.
marks said:
Now, God's grace to us, that brings salvation, is God pointing us to Jesus, and the work He did. He offered the sacrifice, not us. He built the Ark, not us. His work, not ours.
If we have to maintain by works the salvation we obtained for free, than we will have our works to say, "I did it. I've kept the works up right up to the end and now I'm here because of me."
But the Lord Alone will be exalted in that day.
And to that end, He declares that salvation is of faith, not of works, so everyone can have equal access, and so that no one can boast and say they did it better than others.
Much love!
Hebrews 2:10 Jesus tasted death for every man yet every man will not be saved for every man will not obey Christ (Hebrews 5:9).
Christ's death provided a path to salvation for man but it is up to man to obediently take that path. If Christ built the ark for man, as you say, then it is up to man to obediently board that ark to be saved.
"
And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" Jesus is the Lord of those who do what He says.
Obedience to God's will is works of merit (Eph 2:9), for obedience does not earn salvation as proven by Noah's work in building the ark in order to receive grace not earn grace.
Paul's point in ROmans 6 is that grace alone does not save, that is, since Christians are saved by grace does not give the Christian the right to sin. Therefore the Christian must have "obedience UNTO righteousness" else he is serving "sin unto death" Romans 6:16. Therefore grace and obedience go hand in hand.