Yesterday I watched a video clip of Max Lucado, he was talking
about God’s grace, a subject I have become very familiar with. I witnessed God’s
grace being given to my husband as he lay in a hospital bed with him knowing he was not
long for this world…knowing it, knowing his own deep loss and feeling his gain, all at
once. I have felt God’s grace myself,
His grace covering me, even though I didn’t deserve it, despite the fact that I messed up, yes, undeservedly, I have felt His grace, melted in it, rejoiced in it.
For years I have known about God’s grace, I've read about it, heard about it and sang about it…amazing grace how sweet the
sound that saved a wretch like me. I
always thought, yes, I know God’s grace.
But I never did, I never was taken in by it, overwhelmed fully by it or
so deeply affected by it…until now, until these days. Now I know it and I am astounded, amazed, in
awe and totally taken in.
God’s Grace,
Max Lucado says it is for whoever, whenever, however…true.
I have been studying in a book called the Grace of God by
Andy Stanley; he says,
“Grace is the offer of exactly what we do not
deserve.Thus it cannot be recognized
until we are aware of precisely how undeserving we really are. It is the knowledge of what we do not deserve
that allows us to receive grace for what it is. Unmerited.Unearned.Undeserved. For that reason, grace can only be experienced by those who acknowledge
they are undeserving.”
True.
This may exactly be the reason why King David reacts to the
death of his infant son the way he does; there was nothing he could do. God’s grace covers him even though he
knows he doesn’t deserve it.
He doesn’t
deserve it.
After all the despicable things
David does, we would expect that God would withdraw His grace but He doesn’t,
He gives it all the more…amazing grace.
Rahab, the prostitute, she knows she doesn’t deserve it, she knows all
too well why, yet God gives her grace.
Judah falls short, he betrays his brother Joseph, Tamar is his breaking
point and he knows he doesn’t deserve it…but he gets grace despite what he has
done in his lifetime…God’s grace.
We all have our messes, but the truth is God does not give
out grace according to those messes, He gives despite those messes. Look around you; do you see that person whom
you think is too messy to receive God’s grace?
Look again you will see that he is David, she is Rahab and that one over there is Judah. We give up on
people too soon…God does not.
God’s grace is given freely despite our actions; God’s grace
does not depend on us. Andy Stanley says
that God’s promise and the grace given to David stands, “For it was not anchored by
the behavior of the recipient, but by the grace of the one who had given the
promise”
As it is with us, Gods promise is given, unmerited,
unearned, undeserved for whoever, whenever, however. And the truth that Max Lacado shares in one
of his stories is what God wants us to know…”no matter how far you have fallen,
no matter where you’ve been, I still love you, please come home…this is the
message of grace.”
As messy as we are, the message of grace is for you and for
me.
I love that.
