by Andy Stanley
Grace is what we crave the most when our guilt is exposed. The very thing I am hesitant to extend when I am confronted with the guilt of others, especially if my family has been affected. However, we must realize grace is much bigger than forgiveness. You can no more deserve grace than plan your own surprise birthday party. In the same way that planning voids the idea of surprise, so claiming to deserve grace voids the very idea of grace. You can ask for it and you can even plead for it, but the minute you think you deserve it, it is no longer grace because it is now something you think you have earned. Grace can’t be earned. Grace is birthed from hopeless inequity, it is exactly what we don’t deserve. It is unmerited, unearned, and undeserved. For this reason, grace can only be experienced by those who acknowledge they are undeserving. The presence of grace means that sometimes we don’t get the consequences we deserve. In essence, God punishes sin and He extends grace to sinners. So, regardless of what you have done, regardless of how far you have strayed, regardless of how long it’s been since you addressed God directly, regardless of what you have been told by the devil, regardless of how you feel, grace awaits you. Grace is far greater than all of your sin. So, what is preventing you from talking to God today?
Showing grace to others is a struggle with. We desire and cherish grace but many times because of our flesh or worldly mind works against us. The Bible is very specific that we must forgive others as God forgives us.