The Gospel, One Word at a Time | Grace

Big words can feel distant. But some words tell the story of what God has done for you.

On the other hand, there are some words we hear so often in church that we stop asking what they actually mean.

Grace is one of them.

We sing about it. We say it before meals. We even build entire theologies around it. If we’re honest, many of us are still trying to earn what grace has already given us.

So let’s slow down a bit.

Grace is God giving us what we do not deserve.

Grace means that God’s love for you is not based on your performance. It is not increased by your good days and decreased by your failures.

Grace is not God lowering the bar. It’s God meeting you when you cannot reach for it.

⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV

Grace is a gift.

Not a reward.
Not a transaction.
Not something we can pay back.

And yet, so many of us live as if grace has small, fine print.

We think:
“I need to do better so God will stay close.”
“I’ve messed up too much this time.”
“I’ll come back to God when I get my life together.”

Grace doesn’t wait for us to get our life together. Grace meets us in the middle of our mess. It comforts us in the middle of our doubt. It steadies us in the middle of our inconsistency.

In the midst of all our shortcomings grace says, “Come anyway.”

Through God’s steadfast love, grace changes us. Grace helps us realize that, in Christ, we never had to earn His love in the first place. He offered it to us freely before we ever thought to ask.

So today, don’t try to clean yourself up before coming to God.

Just come honestly, as you are. Grace is not just the beginning of your faith. It is the foundation of it.

Reflection

Where in your life are you still trying to earn what God has already given?

Be salty, stay lit.

Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™

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