Good Grace
The grace of God is the great equalizer. “But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). As a local ministry so aptly expresses it, one died for all. The oneness expressed in God and Christ gives way to the us and we that permeates this verse, illuminating the greatest reality of life. We all stand equally guilty before an equitable God in a position to receive His grace.
Life, as they say, “is a mixed bag.” Even the purest of human intentions can be diluted by sin, and sin has a way of reverberating. It is impossible to compartmentalize. Its consequences traverse time and space effortlessly. The impact is not self-contained. Its consequences float like embers in the wind.
We don’t live our lives as independent automatons. It’s unrealistic for even the most dedicated isolationist. We’re dynamic beings who make choices, and those choices inevitably impact the lives of others. Sin is ultimately against God, but it spills into the lives of others. That’s why the Lord hates the way of the wicked but loves the one who pursues righteousness (Proverbs 15:9). Notice He hates the way of the wicked and loves the person in pursuit of righteousness. We have all gone the way of the wicked, but praise God in Jesus, we’ve been declared righteous. It’s not fair; it’s grace.
I’ve always held justice as a high value. Justice is getting what is due. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. When there is a discrepancy in equity, my inner passion is quick to call foul. This inequity ought not be this way! It’s just not fair! And that’s just it. To achieve justice, there had to be something greater, reaching into the depths of our iniquity. If inequity is a moral lapse, iniquity is the fundamental flaw of our human state. The Biblical word iniquity expresses the idea of something being distorted or twisted. It’s the human condition apart from Christ. But for God’s grace!
I’ve been in a season of learning how to receive from the Lord. It sounds elementary, but I have a difficult time receiving His grace and a harder time extending His grace to others. Grace is the great equalizer, and I don’t always like that reality. Justice demands that someone must pay! Someone did pay. Jesus paid it all and all to Him I owe.
God has extended His grace to me through Jesus. It’s a truth I’m learning how to embrace daily. It’s not disconnected from the grace I extend to others. We are all a mixed bag, and missing the mark of God’s holiness isn’t a matter of degrees. It’s all or nothing. I’m reminded of the parable in which a servant is forgiven a large debt only to demand payment from another. It makes me furious every time I read it until I am reminded that it is me. It is the undeserved favor of God that washes us all clean. The great equalizer of God’s grace that takes what is distorted and twisted and squares it to the perfection of Christ.
How are we doing on receiving and extending God’s grace? God made us alive together with Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:5)! The power of sin has been deactivated, and we have been set free. It’s all the work of Christ. We kneel before our King equally, no matter what our history of iniquity may be. Sin no longer defines our story. But we never lose sight of the price that was paid. Dead to sin; alive to Christ. Receiving and extending God’s grace.