Did the gospel of grace exist in the early chapters of Acts right after the cross?
No. Although grace as an attribute began at the cross, the context states there was still no gospel of grace in the early chapters of Acts. It cannot be found there. It appears only after Paul’s Damascus road conversion and commission, when God sent him to Gentiles with a message different from Judaism.
Les explains that even though one of the best study Bibles says in its footnotes that grace began with the cross, that is true only as an attribute. In experience, however, there is still no gospel of grace in the early chapters of Acts—you cannot find it. The change comes once the apostle Paul is converted on the road to Damascus and appears before Ananias. The first thing God reveals is that He will send this man to the Gentiles. Since an apostle to the Gentiles could not promote the law of Israel, which was only for the nation of Israel, Paul must go with something totally different than Judaism, even though he goes first to the Jew and then to the Gentile. Les ties this to the dividing of law and grace and directs listeners to Galatians chapter two.