Do not forget the Grace that God hands to us so Graciously

Do not forget the Grace that God hands to us so Graciously

O’  if the gifts from God were to be counted by our thankfulness each day, how quickly the memory would dissipate since our self-reliance might get in the way.  Jesus told his disciples to “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”  (Mt 7: 7 - 8).

It is no mystery how generous God is to his children; created out of love, redeemed from the evil of life, and welcomed into his eternal destiny out of compassion.  Then why do any of us fail to see that God’s answers to what we pray for are real and without any requirement except to accept them as graciously as he is when he gives them to us?

Perhaps all of us need a lesson in recognizing just what his Grace is all about.  It reminds us; “For I know my offense;  my sin is always before me.”  (Ps 51: 5).   “There is no one just, not one, there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks God.”  (Rom 3: 10 - 11).

Cleansing from our failures:  “But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin.”  (1 Jn 1: 7).

We find his grace is a gift:  “But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.  Therefore, it says: He ascended on high and took prisoners captive; he gave gifts to men.”  (Eph 4: 7 - 8).  

Justification apart from the Law:  “They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus, whom God sent forth as an expiation, through faith, by his blood, to prove his righteousness because of the forgiveness of sins previously committed, through the forbearance of God - to prove his righteousness in the present time, that he might be righteous and justify the one who has his faith in Jesus.”  (Eph 3: 24 - 26).

How easy it becomes to take the gift of Grace for granted without understanding how many attributes are describing God’s descriptions of such a gift.  But, God does not give us a failing grade in this lesson; he continues to add the blessings of increasing our faith by pouring more grace into our souls through our sense of seeing this as a completeness of his presence.

Ralph B. Hathaway