Thought for Today
Jeremiah 31:2 Thus says the LORD: The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness; when Israel sought for rest,
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth … 16 From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—
“Grace (Gr. charis, Lat. gratia, ‘favor,’ ‘kindness’) Unmerited favor. God’s grace is extended to sinful humanity in providing salvation and forgiveness through Jesus Christ that is not deserved, and withholding the judgement that is deserved.” (Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms, pg. 120)
The theme this week for the devotionals in These Days is “Called and Claimed by Grace.” I was surprised this morning to find that the word translated as grace appears more than 100 times in the Bible, yet in only three verses in the Old Testament. A cursory glance at the results of a search in my Bible software suggests that grace was particularly significant to the apostle Paul. How often do you ever consider grace?
Right now, we see and hear much about the coming Winter Olympics. The U.S. figure skating team was selected this weekend. Since 3 members are from New England, there has been much television coverage of the selection. Inevitably, as one watches or even thinks about figure skating, the word graceful comes to mind. Ice skating is defined by gracefulness. In one sense, almost all professional and competition athletic contests involve gracefulness, even professional football.
The word graceful literally means ‘full of grace.’ What the world considers ‘grace’ in this sense is much more about esthetics than theology. “Grace: 1a: ease and fluidity of movement or manner; b: a pleasing appearance of effect; 2a: a sense of propriety or right; b: a controlled, polite and pleasant way of behaving; c: plural: skills employed when behaving politely in social situations: good manners; 3 Christianity a: God-given help or kindness; b: a state of acceptance by God . . . “ (www.merriam-webster.com)
We’re still left with that question, “How often do you ever consider grace?” Irrespective of which definition considered, does grace enter into your own thoughts on a regular basis? As I look at the world around us, other than Sunday mornings, I don’t see much consideration of grace or of anyone or anything being full of grace. As parents, we teach our children to be obedient, maybe to be studious, maybe (but rarely?) to be polite. We teach our children to be self-confident, to know their own self-worth. But do we teach them to be full of grace?
I cannot think of a single time I ever heard a politician or business leader described as being full of grace, especially in the theological sense. Can you imagine a political campaign based on a candidate’s being full of grace? One does not have to be a mathematician to calculate the odds of such a candidate being elected.
I found it interesting that even in this morning’s devotional in These Days, given the stated theme, the author does not address God’s grace. The discussion, while interesting and valid, does not even include the word grace. The devotional is about our laboring in God’s service. I was intrigued by the author’s words, “Scripture reminds us: our reward is not in outcomes. Our reward is God.” All very true.
But, this morning, and frequently, I find myself thinking about Paul’s words to the Ephesians, “For by grace you have been saved through faith.” When I think on those words, I hear that pronoun ‘you’ as being in the singular, addressing me personally. I cannot speak for God’s other children, but for me, individually, my salvation is truly a gift from my Creator God given me, individually and personally, solely as a result of my faith and belief in Jesus as the Christ. I do not and have not earned my salvation, except through that faith. Those words from that devotional do still ring true, my “reward is not in outcomes.” My “reward is God.” My reward is my restored relationship with God, through my faith in God’s Son.
No one has ever referred to me as full of grace in the worldly sense of “ease and fluidity of movement or manner.” But, I am truly and thankfully full of God’s grace through my faith in God’s Son. Maybe we should all think about grace a lot more often. What might our world be like if we understood our state of grace in the sense of our relationship with God?
Stay safe, be grace-filled, trust God,
Pastor Ray