Quick question: when was the last time someone gave you something of great value freely, without any expectation on your part, and it came as a surprise to you? Tough question to answer? Maybe, like me, you have a hard time answering that because it just doesn't happen very often.
There are lots of sayings that describe the lack of grace in our world. "There's no such thing as a free lunch." "What's the catch?" As a society, we actually get really suspicious when someone offers to simply give us something with no strings attached. If it's too good to be true, it probably isn't, right?
That same kind of thinking then enters our minds when we think about God's grace. I've heard various reasons why God doesn't simply give His forgiveness or salvation freely from people. Answers such as "If it's a free gift, then you don't value it." This makes it seem as though the only things we value in life are the things that cost us quite a bit. And from a human standpoint, that does seem to make sense.
But that's also where we need to take a look at the situation from God's point of view. God did pay a very high, dear price to be able to give us His gift of grace (here I'm referencing His specific, salvation type of grace). He paid the price with His own Son. He gave His Son into the hands of people who would not believe in His words about God's grace, who would plot against Him, and finally, nail Him to a cross. That price was multiplied when God Himself poured out all wrath at sin and wrongdoing upon His own Son as He hung there on the cross.
Grace, from God's point of view, is costly. And because He chose to pay such a high price, He values that gift of grace very highly. It isn't God's problem when we fail to value His gift of grace, it is ours. It's that we so often fail to see the cost of that grace. We sometimes cannot get over the fact that it's a gift, that it doesn't require specific works or ways of thinking or lifestyles, but instead, simple trust that it is a gift from God.
My hope and prayer is that each of you comes to realize the cost of God's grace, and that His free gift is then one that you value greatly.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Accessing Grace
"...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift..." Romans 3:23-24.
God's grace is a gift. This is one of the points that the apostle Paul makes repeatedly throughout his letters to the various churches and people in the New Testament time. And as a man who received what he knew about God's grace directly from Jesus Himself, we could say that Paul stands as an authority on matters of God's grace.
But this seems to present an interesting question. If God's grace is a gift, how does He give us that gift? Over the centuries since Jesus walked the Israeli countryside, that question has been answered in many ways. Quite a few have said that it requires repentance, and by that word mean specific acts or words which demonstrate sorrow over sin. Others have said penitence, which means acknowledgment of sin, reception of forgiveness, but then works of atonement. Yet others have said that it really isn't a gift, but is something that we humans strive for, either by making sure that we do enough good in God's eyes, or, at the very least, having the good in our lives outweigh the bad.
Yet, in my studies of God's Word, I find myself very thankful for the faith that I have been raised in over and over again. When I look through God's Word, I find three ways in which God has said we can reliably receive this specific grace of salvation through Jesus. The first one is the gift that God has given to His church, which is the authority to announce the forgiveness of sins. While many find great comfort in hearing those words of forgiveness from the pastor as though from God Himself (John 20:21-23), that same gift is given anytime one of Jesus' followers tells another that they are forgiven.
The other two involve God tying a physical element to His word of forgiveness. When Jesus was celebrating the Passover with His disciples on the night He was betrayed, He broke the bread and passed it around to them. He then included these words: Take this and eat. This is my body, given for you for the forgiveness of sins. Also, with the cup served after the meal, He passed it to them and said: This is my blood of the new covenant, shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. God's grace coming to His followers and believers in the event known as the Lord's Supper.
We see Jesus tying God's grace to another action in Matthew 28:19-20. As He sent His disciples to take His message of forgiveness to the world, He gave them the task of baptizing and teaching. Later, in Acts 2:38-39, Peter says that such an action is a promise of the forgiveness of sins and the receiving of the Holy Spirit. God gives His grace through the means of the event known as baptism.
God does not want His grace to be something that we are unfamiliar with. That's part of the reason He uses common, everyday things to communicate that grace to us. And God makes the promise, not just in these few verses mentioned, but throughout His Word, that when He ties Himself to certain actions and words, His grace is accessible there, and He would love for nothing more than that all the people of the world come there to receive that great gift of grace.
God's grace is a gift. This is one of the points that the apostle Paul makes repeatedly throughout his letters to the various churches and people in the New Testament time. And as a man who received what he knew about God's grace directly from Jesus Himself, we could say that Paul stands as an authority on matters of God's grace.
But this seems to present an interesting question. If God's grace is a gift, how does He give us that gift? Over the centuries since Jesus walked the Israeli countryside, that question has been answered in many ways. Quite a few have said that it requires repentance, and by that word mean specific acts or words which demonstrate sorrow over sin. Others have said penitence, which means acknowledgment of sin, reception of forgiveness, but then works of atonement. Yet others have said that it really isn't a gift, but is something that we humans strive for, either by making sure that we do enough good in God's eyes, or, at the very least, having the good in our lives outweigh the bad.
Yet, in my studies of God's Word, I find myself very thankful for the faith that I have been raised in over and over again. When I look through God's Word, I find three ways in which God has said we can reliably receive this specific grace of salvation through Jesus. The first one is the gift that God has given to His church, which is the authority to announce the forgiveness of sins. While many find great comfort in hearing those words of forgiveness from the pastor as though from God Himself (John 20:21-23), that same gift is given anytime one of Jesus' followers tells another that they are forgiven.
The other two involve God tying a physical element to His word of forgiveness. When Jesus was celebrating the Passover with His disciples on the night He was betrayed, He broke the bread and passed it around to them. He then included these words: Take this and eat. This is my body, given for you for the forgiveness of sins. Also, with the cup served after the meal, He passed it to them and said: This is my blood of the new covenant, shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. God's grace coming to His followers and believers in the event known as the Lord's Supper.
We see Jesus tying God's grace to another action in Matthew 28:19-20. As He sent His disciples to take His message of forgiveness to the world, He gave them the task of baptizing and teaching. Later, in Acts 2:38-39, Peter says that such an action is a promise of the forgiveness of sins and the receiving of the Holy Spirit. God gives His grace through the means of the event known as baptism.
God does not want His grace to be something that we are unfamiliar with. That's part of the reason He uses common, everyday things to communicate that grace to us. And God makes the promise, not just in these few verses mentioned, but throughout His Word, that when He ties Himself to certain actions and words, His grace is accessible there, and He would love for nothing more than that all the people of the world come there to receive that great gift of grace.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
A More Specific Grace
"...by grace you have been saved..." Ephesians 2:5, 8
Yesterday, I shared a few thoughts on God's general grace, a grace which He shows to the whole world, providing the things needed to support this body and life, and giving to everyone, regardless of their beliefs, thoughts, lifestyles, etc. But this also isn't the only kind of grace spoken of in the Bible. Today, we're going to look at one that gets quite a bit more specific: saving grace.
The above phrase, from Paul's letter to the Christians in Ephesus, appears to be relatively easy to understand. God's grace is what saves us. Not some decision on our part, not a number of good actions, not having the good in our life outweigh the bad. It's completely up to God to give it to us as a gift. This forms the basis for what I am calling 'saving grace.'
Saving grace is much more specific than God's general grace. Saving grace is what assures a person of God's favor. Saving grace grants a person a place with God, both while living in this world, and then, in the life to come when that person leaves this world through the doorway of death. Saving grace is shown by Jesus' perfect life, sacrificial death on the cross, and victorious resurrection from the dead.
In other words, saving grace is what assures us of life with God when we depart from this world. And since it is grace, that means that we cannot earn it, achieve it, or do anything in God's eyes that would make Him have to give it to us, as though it were our wages for doing what He wants. It comes as a gift, and is the kind of gift that God wants to give to every single person in this world.
Tomorrow I'll talk a little bit about what God says in the Bible about how we have access to this saving grace. But the good news is that this saving grace is not overly difficult to receive, nor does God make it hard to find. But more on that over the rest of the week! God's grace be with you today!
Yesterday, I shared a few thoughts on God's general grace, a grace which He shows to the whole world, providing the things needed to support this body and life, and giving to everyone, regardless of their beliefs, thoughts, lifestyles, etc. But this also isn't the only kind of grace spoken of in the Bible. Today, we're going to look at one that gets quite a bit more specific: saving grace.
The above phrase, from Paul's letter to the Christians in Ephesus, appears to be relatively easy to understand. God's grace is what saves us. Not some decision on our part, not a number of good actions, not having the good in our life outweigh the bad. It's completely up to God to give it to us as a gift. This forms the basis for what I am calling 'saving grace.'
Saving grace is much more specific than God's general grace. Saving grace is what assures a person of God's favor. Saving grace grants a person a place with God, both while living in this world, and then, in the life to come when that person leaves this world through the doorway of death. Saving grace is shown by Jesus' perfect life, sacrificial death on the cross, and victorious resurrection from the dead.
In other words, saving grace is what assures us of life with God when we depart from this world. And since it is grace, that means that we cannot earn it, achieve it, or do anything in God's eyes that would make Him have to give it to us, as though it were our wages for doing what He wants. It comes as a gift, and is the kind of gift that God wants to give to every single person in this world.
Tomorrow I'll talk a little bit about what God says in the Bible about how we have access to this saving grace. But the good news is that this saving grace is not overly difficult to receive, nor does God make it hard to find. But more on that over the rest of the week! God's grace be with you today!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
God's General Grace
Perhaps the most well-known Bible verse is John 3:16. There we hear about how much God loves the whole world. This verse also shows us that there are multiple layers of God's grace. The first one I want to talk about today is God's general grace.
As I talk about the word grace, I'm going by the meaning of undeserved love and favor. There is a general sense in which this grace from God applies to everyone in the world. God loves the world. It isn't that the world is filled with a bunch of lovable people, but that God looks beyond our sinfulness and shows His love to us. This general grace comes out in several ways.
Martin Luther explained the first part of the Apostles' Creed (a brief explanation of what Christians believe from the Bible) in this way. "I believe God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have." This describes a general sense of grace, in which God gives all people everything that they need for life in this world.
This grace is shown to the world because God truly loves everything that He has made. He sends rain down, and it falls upon the wicked and the righteous. He makes His sun to shine, and it covers the whole earth, regardless of the faith and belief of each person upon whom it falls. In this way, we see that God has a general sense of grace which He shows to the people of the world.
As I talk about the word grace, I'm going by the meaning of undeserved love and favor. There is a general sense in which this grace from God applies to everyone in the world. God loves the world. It isn't that the world is filled with a bunch of lovable people, but that God looks beyond our sinfulness and shows His love to us. This general grace comes out in several ways.
Martin Luther explained the first part of the Apostles' Creed (a brief explanation of what Christians believe from the Bible) in this way. "I believe God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have." This describes a general sense of grace, in which God gives all people everything that they need for life in this world.
This grace is shown to the world because God truly loves everything that He has made. He sends rain down, and it falls upon the wicked and the righteous. He makes His sun to shine, and it covers the whole earth, regardless of the faith and belief of each person upon whom it falls. In this way, we see that God has a general sense of grace which He shows to the people of the world.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Amazin' Grace
Perhaps one of the best loved Christian hymns of all time is "Amazing Grace." Tears may flow as you sing the hymn, or you may find yourself thinking about it at different times in life. I know it's a regular staple at funerals, especially as people realize that only God can overcome the sting and finality of something as sinister as death.
But here's a thought. Does the word 'grace' still carry the same meaning as it did when that hymn was composed? Words change in their definitions over time. Their use changes, and this then affects what we think of when we hear a particular word. With that in mind, I want to spend a few posts talking about this word grace.
I grew up hearing that grace was defined as this: undeserved love. In a biblical sense, it describes God's love to us. In life around us, it's when someone does something for no apparent reason. Grace isn't something that is earned, or it would be more like being nice to someone because they were first nice to you.
I've also heard grace talked about in a number of different ways. When someone falls or trips, we may sarcastically say that they were really graceful. What does that use of the word mean? I also know more than a few people who bear the name Grace. While I'm not saying that I think this is inappropriate, we do also start to tie what we think of a name with the person who bears that name (do you know any good people named Judas?).
Hopefully, over the next few posts, we'll dig a little deeper into this word 'grace.' I welcome your thoughts, analysis of my thinking, critique, or whatever else you may have to offer along the way.
But here's a thought. Does the word 'grace' still carry the same meaning as it did when that hymn was composed? Words change in their definitions over time. Their use changes, and this then affects what we think of when we hear a particular word. With that in mind, I want to spend a few posts talking about this word grace.
I grew up hearing that grace was defined as this: undeserved love. In a biblical sense, it describes God's love to us. In life around us, it's when someone does something for no apparent reason. Grace isn't something that is earned, or it would be more like being nice to someone because they were first nice to you.
I've also heard grace talked about in a number of different ways. When someone falls or trips, we may sarcastically say that they were really graceful. What does that use of the word mean? I also know more than a few people who bear the name Grace. While I'm not saying that I think this is inappropriate, we do also start to tie what we think of a name with the person who bears that name (do you know any good people named Judas?).
Hopefully, over the next few posts, we'll dig a little deeper into this word 'grace.' I welcome your thoughts, analysis of my thinking, critique, or whatever else you may have to offer along the way.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Being a Whole Person
Physical. Spiritual. Mental. Emotional. Each of these is a vital part of how God created us as humans. When one of these is out of line, hurt, damaged, or lacks maturity, the others are all affected.
Over the last two plus weeks, I have been sharing my thoughts on how these areas affect us as humans, but also providing some thoughts on how to grow in greater discipline in these areas. I really need to stress that developing a greater discipline with each of these does NOT bring us any closer to earning or meriting God's grace. God's grace will always be just that: grace, free and undeserved. However, growing in our discipline of each of these will help us to be a more complete person, just as God created and designed for us to be.
The flip side of that coin is that we will never be able to fully mature in all of these. First, we simply do not know what full maturity looks like, in God's eyes. We do know that it requires perfection, which none of us are capable of. Then, if we focus too much on one area, the others likely will suffer. Only God can fully live these out perfectly, which He did in Jesus.
Yet, that does not take away from our desire to be a more whole, healthy person. Doing so not only has some great benefits to us while we live this life God has given, but it also serves to help us develop greater and deeper relationships with others. This is especially important when we think of taking the Christian message to those whose spiritual natures may truly be out of line with God.
My encouragement to you as I bring this series to a close is to never stop growing in health and discipline as a whole person. It won't make you more 'godly', but I believe you will discover much more in life because of it.
Over the last two plus weeks, I have been sharing my thoughts on how these areas affect us as humans, but also providing some thoughts on how to grow in greater discipline in these areas. I really need to stress that developing a greater discipline with each of these does NOT bring us any closer to earning or meriting God's grace. God's grace will always be just that: grace, free and undeserved. However, growing in our discipline of each of these will help us to be a more complete person, just as God created and designed for us to be.
The flip side of that coin is that we will never be able to fully mature in all of these. First, we simply do not know what full maturity looks like, in God's eyes. We do know that it requires perfection, which none of us are capable of. Then, if we focus too much on one area, the others likely will suffer. Only God can fully live these out perfectly, which He did in Jesus.
Yet, that does not take away from our desire to be a more whole, healthy person. Doing so not only has some great benefits to us while we live this life God has given, but it also serves to help us develop greater and deeper relationships with others. This is especially important when we think of taking the Christian message to those whose spiritual natures may truly be out of line with God.
My encouragement to you as I bring this series to a close is to never stop growing in health and discipline as a whole person. It won't make you more 'godly', but I believe you will discover much more in life because of it.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Emotion, Faith, and Discipline
"Be angry and do not sin..." Paul writes these words in his letter to the Ephesians, quoting from Psalm 4 (a Psalm that I am really familiar with, as it formed the basis of one of my doctoral papers). That short little statement brings to mind three things which fit in with my thoughts on discipline and the various areas of life in which God desires for us to be disciplined.
First, our emotions. As people who were created in God's image, despite losing the perfection of that image, we still share some characteristics with Him. Our emotional being is one of those characteristics. Yes, God's emotional state is perfect, unlike ours. And that is why discipline is needed in our emotional well-being. We live in full forgiveness for our inability and sinfulness in terms of our emotions, and yet, in response to God's good news, we also strive to keep from sinning in our emotions. "...do not sin..."
Next, our faith. As a gift from God, we believe not only in our forgiveness through Jesus and the cross, but also that God created and designed us according to His design. What God says about our emotions is what is best for our well-being, and His divine expectation. We aren't able to live up to that expectation, and thus cling to the forgiveness of the cross and Christ's perfect life (and perfect emotional state) as God's means of bringing us to His eternal presence, where our emotional state will be perfected completely. And, as a response to God's gifts of grace, we then also strive to bring our emotions in line with what He says.
Discipline. Because we are not perfect or sinless, true, perfect discipline is impossible for us. We will deny our emotions, or at times, let them get the best of us. As a Christian response, not out of obligation or the hope of perfection, but as a response to God's goodness and grace, we strive for emotional discipline. And, let's face it. Being emotionally disciplined also helps to create better relationships with our fellow man (which, incidentally, is one means in which God spreads His message of Good News!).
So how do we become more disciplined in our emotional well-being. Tune in tomorrow for thoughts and discussion!
First, our emotions. As people who were created in God's image, despite losing the perfection of that image, we still share some characteristics with Him. Our emotional being is one of those characteristics. Yes, God's emotional state is perfect, unlike ours. And that is why discipline is needed in our emotional well-being. We live in full forgiveness for our inability and sinfulness in terms of our emotions, and yet, in response to God's good news, we also strive to keep from sinning in our emotions. "...do not sin..."
Next, our faith. As a gift from God, we believe not only in our forgiveness through Jesus and the cross, but also that God created and designed us according to His design. What God says about our emotions is what is best for our well-being, and His divine expectation. We aren't able to live up to that expectation, and thus cling to the forgiveness of the cross and Christ's perfect life (and perfect emotional state) as God's means of bringing us to His eternal presence, where our emotional state will be perfected completely. And, as a response to God's gifts of grace, we then also strive to bring our emotions in line with what He says.
Discipline. Because we are not perfect or sinless, true, perfect discipline is impossible for us. We will deny our emotions, or at times, let them get the best of us. As a Christian response, not out of obligation or the hope of perfection, but as a response to God's goodness and grace, we strive for emotional discipline. And, let's face it. Being emotionally disciplined also helps to create better relationships with our fellow man (which, incidentally, is one means in which God spreads His message of Good News!).
So how do we become more disciplined in our emotional well-being. Tune in tomorrow for thoughts and discussion!
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