Introduction
The topic of Grace is not one of those burning issues that Christians just love to sit around and discuss over dinner. It’s not really controversial and it’s a premise that is pretty much universally accepted across all Christian denominations. That is good for the most part because for all of our perceived divisive theological differences there is at least some common ground for all of us to come together on. However, it also makes this topic easy to take for granted. Do we really understand and appreciate the Grace that God has extended toward us? I doubt it. I know I have taken the concept for granted over most of my own Christian life. It makes for a good song to sing during church but as far as really pondering its meaning in my life, I can’t say that I have dwelled too much on it.
That’s a real shame. How about this? – let’s explore this concept that is Grace and resolve not to take it for granted any more. Sound good?
What is Grace?
I guess before we explore this concept, we must first come to some understanding of what Grace really is. We have all heard the classical definition that explains Grace as “love shown to us when we have done nothing to earn or deserve it”. That’s a pretty good definition and it does accurately describe Grace, but it is incomplete. In my book, this definition only describes part of the Grace that God has shown us.
Let me explain. Let’s go back to our beginning – Genesis chapter 1. Why were we made? I think it is generally accepted that the main reason God created mankind was for fellowship. God wanted someone he could share life with. Yes, there is a service aspect of our relationship with God, but he had the angels to do whatever bidding he wanted. We were created for much more than just service. Unfortunately, we learn in Genesis that instead of walking with God as he wished, we actually betrayed Him and rebelled against his word.
So given our rebellion, what is it we deserve? Punishment, pure and simple – right? But what happened instead? God made a way to restore the fellowship that He wanted with us all along. His son, Jesus took our punishment instead.
Now, so far this story does fit the classical definition of Grace. But let’s revise the definition a bit and see how it fits our story. Let’s say this – Grace is God’s love reaching out to us when we actually deserve his anger. Grace isn’t just God giving us what we don’t deserve, it’s also God not giving us what we do deserve.
Those are great words sure, but it still doesn’t pack the punch I would like for them to. So let’s see if we can understand the Grace of God through an example. Let’s say that one day you are getting ready to sit down to your evening supper. You hear a knock at the door and open it to see a dirty, smelly, unkempt homeless person at your door. This person asks you if you could spare a meal and feed him. So you take pity on him and sit him down at your table and let him eat your meal. Sounds like God’s Grace, right? Well yes, but it is not complete.
So, let’s revise the story somewhat. Let’s say you’re getting ready to eat and you hear a knock on the door and open it to find the same person on the other side. Only this time, you know beyond any shadow of any doubt, that this is the person that robbed your house last week. I mean, he has your coat on, your shoes on, maybe he even drove up in your car. He asks the same question – can he eat? Instead of calling the police to come grab the bum and throw him jail, you, without hesitation, take him in and feed him your meal. Wow – God’s Grace, right? Well, yes – but to me this is still not the complete picture of the Grace that God showed us.
So, one more time, let’s revise the story. You come home from work. You discover to your horror that your house has been robbed. All of your most prized possessions are gone – forever. What do you do? It becomes your obsession – you don’t eat, you don’t sleep, you don’t rest – until you find the person responsible for this crime against you. You search high and low through the most miserable sess pools of human existence. And when you find him, you forcefully lay hold of him with both of your hands, refusing to let him go, and you beg him to come home with you so that you can give him food to eat and a place to live. And you promise that as long as he lives with you, he will never want for anything ever again. Whoa!! That is the Grace that God has shown to us!
In essence, we personally walked up to God, creator of the universe, and spit in His face. Instead of punishing us, He gave up his most prized possession so that we could have eternal life with Him. That is the Grace of God that is now present in our lives.
So how does Grace show itself in our lives? Well, the most obvious way is that we have salvation. But there are many other tangible results of God’s Grace at work in our lives. Think of the gift of the Holy Spirit; your family and friends; your church; all of the physical possessions that you own; the food you eat; even your own talents and abilities. What makes us think that we really earned or deserved any of these things? They are all given to us by God in his Grace. He has provided us our wants as well as our needs.
Grace In Action
We who have accepted the Grace that God has given us are truly blessed to have discovered this ultimate gift. But what now? Now that we have His Grace do we sit on it and be content that we are so much more fortunate than those who are living outside the full measure of God’s Grace? Obviously the answer is “No”. We can actually share with others the Grace that God has extended to us. And the truth of the matter is that God expects us to do so. In 1 Peter 4:10, God’s word states:
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. (NIV)
Clearly, as Christians we have been given a gift in Grace and we are plainly instructed to use it to minister to others needs. Furthermore, in Matthew 5:44, Jesus went even further and said:
But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. (NASB)
And in Romans 12:20 God’s word says:
But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink. (NASB)
Whoa! This Grace stuff is starting to sound like a lot of responsibility. And that is exactly what comes with this gift. After all, isn’t this what God did for us? He loved us and took care of our needs when we were His enemies. But now, by His Grace we are redeemed. So if we accept God’s Grace but just sit on it, we rob others of the Grace who desperately need it just as much as we did. In fact, I John 3:17 says:
If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?(NIV)
So if I don’t have an outward reach with the Grace that I have been given, the Bible calls into question my very salvation! If I fail to show the love of God and withhold this gift that was freely given to me, how can God’s love be in me? How is that? Because God is love and love does not sit idly by while a need goes unmet. In this manner, the Grace of God is very much an action that expresses His love to those who need it most.
Final Thought
If you are still struggling with what Grace really means to you, think on this. Let’s look at the book of Revelation where we are given a glimpse into the period of time before our beginnings in Genesis. Revelation 12:7-8 tells us:
And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. (NIV)
So, Lucifer along with 1/3 of the angels in heaven, rebelled against God and actually warred against Him. Of course, they lost.
Now, fast-forward to our beginning in Genesis. Man also rebelled against God. And when you consider it, our rebellion was much worse than the angels’ rebellion. Why? Because, as stated earlier, we were not just servants. We were created for His fellowship – that was what God wanted from us from the beginning. Our rebellion must have hurt God on a level that Lucifer’s rebellion never could have reached.
Now compare the outcomes of both scenarios. In the aftermath of the angels’ rebellion, God made hell for them and sentenced them to eternal punishment. For man’s rebellion, God sent his one and only son to die and take our punishment so that the fellowship that he had always wanted from us could be restored. We really deserved a much worse punishment than what the angels received. But instead, we were given eternal life with the Father. You see, God did not send Jesus to die for the angels – He sent Jesus to die for us. This was His love for us. This is His Grace extended toward us.
Next time you hear the word “Grace”, please don’t take it for granted. Take a moment to remember what it really means to you – and what you really mean to God.
John 3:16.
© Gregory M. Watson, 2008 (see Copyright Page for details)
