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In The Beginning, Grace

Wednesday October 18, 2015

I cannot define Gods grace I can only explain it, nor do I fully understand it. I can only share with you what I have experienced and consequently learned about it. The more I study and experience grace, the more I realize it is beyond my ability to comprehend. Grace in fact, is bigger than creation itself. Creation after all only exists because of Gods grace.

Then God said, “Let the earth produce every sort of animal, each producing offspring of the same kind—livestock, small animals that scurry along the ground, and wild animals”. And that is what happened. God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind. And God saw that it was good. – Genesis 1:24-25 NLT

Following Gods creation of the world, heavens, the moon, and the stars, He then created mankind. However, before He placed us on earth, He loaded it up with all sorts of animals, plants, and vegetation. Then He stopped to admire His creation and saw that it was good. But, good for whom?

Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. – Genesis 1:26-28 NLT

And God saw that it was good. Good for whom? Good for you and for me. Notice what it says in the last verse, “then God blessed them”. Upon the completion of His majestic creation, God turned it over to us and told us to govern it. This is what grace looks like, God giving us what we could never deserve or earn on our own. Our understanding of grace is hindered by the method of operating to which we have grown accustomed. We are use to a merit system, good kid gets a reward, do well in school and you will land a good job and if you are good on that job you will get a bonus. There is nothing wrong with operating on a merit system. However, if you can earn it, then it cannot be considered grace. Reread the last verse again, after God had created everything He blessed them.

I ask: what did humans do to earn such an incredible blessing? Absolutely nothing! This precisely is what grace is, God granting us what no merit system can ever award us. I have nothing against hard work, on the contrary, the Bible teaches us to be diligent workers especially in light of the incredible blessing and responsibility He has placed in our hands. Truth be told, good things are not the byproduct of our efforts, they are a byproduct of the grace of God, which has been present since the beginning.

Heavenly Father from the very beginning your grace has been with me. I cannot define your grace but oh have I experienced it! Help me to live a grateful life always remembering that everything I have is because of who you are.