Not Deserving, but Always Loved

Whatever he became, according to his very own statement, Paul owed it all to “the grace of God.” When I contemplate the words from that grand apostle, I come up with what we would call his credo.

we will be able to reduce it to 3 single-syllable statements, the 1st composed from only 8 words ; the second, 10 words ; and the 3rd, 12. Sometimes , it helps to take a surpassing, multifaceted theological truth and outline it in easy, nontechnical terms.

First statement : God does what He does by His grace. Humanly talking, Paul should have been made to endure phenomenal suffering for all of the agony and heart-ache he had caused others. But he did not, because God exhibited His grace. That leads us to the second statement : I’m what I’m by the grace of the Lord God. It is like he were admitting, “If there is any goodness now found in me, I merit not one of the glory ; grace gets the credit.”.

What number of people who reach the top of their career say to the WSJ newshound or in an interview in Business Week, “I am what I’m by the grace of God”? How many athletes would say that sort of thing at a party in their honor? What a shocker it’d be today if somebody were to assert, “Don’t be impressed at all with me. My only claim to celebrity is the unjustified grace of God.” Such fairness is rare. There is a 3rd statement, which looks to be implied in Paul’s closing statement : I let you be what you are by the grace of The Lord God. Grace isn’t something simply to be claimed ; it is supposed to be demonstrated. It is to be shared, used as a basis for friendships, and drawn on for sustained relations.

Jesus spoke of an abounding life that we enter into when we claim the liberty He provides by His grace.

Would it be superb if folks cooperated with His game plan? There’s nada to be compared to grace when it comes to freeing others from bondage.