Grace

Behold how the manifold grace of God, which is being showered from the clouds of Divine glory, hath, in this day, encompassed the world. For whereas in days past every lover besought and searched after his Beloved, it is the Beloved Himself Who now is calling His lovers and is inviting them to attain His presence. Take heed lest ye forfeit so precious a favor; beware lest ye belittle so remarkable a token of His grace. Abandon not the incorruptible benefits, and be not content with that which perisheth. Lift up the veil that obscureth your vision, and dispel the darkness with which it is enveloped, that ye may gaze on the naked beauty of the Beloved's face, may behold that which no eye hath beheld, and hear that which no ear hath heard.

Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 320

The whole duty of man in this Day is to attain that share of the flood of grace which God poureth forth for him. Let none, therefore, consider the largeness or smallness of the receptacle. The portion of some might lie in the palm of a man's hand, the portion of others might fill a cup, and of others even a gallon-measure.

Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 8

Consider not thy capacity and merit, nay rather consider the grace of thy Lord, the Clement, the Merciful. Verily, thy Lord confirmeth whomsoever He willeth of His servants, through the glad-tidings of the Kingdom, the signals of clemency and the spiritual fragrances.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá v3, p. 607-609

For love of God and spiritual attraction do cleanse and purify the human heart and dress and adorn it with the spotless garment of holiness; and once the heart is entirely attached to the Lord, and bound over to the Blessed Perfection, then will the grace of God be revealed.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 202-203

God's grace is like the rain that cometh down from heaven: the water is not bounded by the limitations of form, yet on whatever place it poureth down, it taketh on limitations -- dimensions, appearance, shape -- according to the characteristics of that place. In a square pool, the water, previously unconfined, becometh a square; in a six-sided pool it becometh a hexagon, in an eight-sided pool an octagon, and so forth. The rain itself hath no geometry, no limits, no form, but it taketh on one form or another, according to the restrictions of its vessel. In the same way, the Holy Essence of the Lord God is boundless, immeasurable, but His graces and splendours become finite in the creatures, because of their limitations, wherefore the prayers of given persons will receive favourable answers in certain cases.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 161

It is evident that the souls receive grace from the bounty of the Holy Spirit which appears in the Manifestations of God, and not from the personality of the Manifestation. Therefore, if a soul does not receive grace from the bounties of the Holy Spirit, he remains deprived of the divine gift, and the banishment itself puts the soul beyond the reach of pardon.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 127-128

Just as the reality of divinity is limitless, likewise his grace and bounties are limitless.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Divine Philosophy, p. 169

Only he who is severed from the world shall achieve this ultimate grace, he who is a captive of divine love, empty of passion and self, from every aspect true unto his God, humble, lowly, supplicating, in tears, submissive in the presence of the Lord.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 242

These tests, even as thou didst write, do but cleanse the spotting of self from off the mirror of the heart, till the Sun of Truth can cast its rays thereon; for there is no veil more obstructive that the self, and however tenuous that veil may be, at the last it will completely shut a person out, and deprive him of his portion of eternal grace.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 182

No matter how strong the measure of Divine grace, unless supplemented by personal, sustained and intelligent effort it cannot become fully effective and be of any real and abiding advantage.

Shoghi Effendi, The Compilation of Compilations vol II, p. 7