Grace – The Supreme “Balancer”

SUN., FEB. 14, 1993, 6:28 AM
FARM, STUDY

The sermon this morning should deal, in some way with grace. I have taught you much about grace, and you have accepted this gift in your life rather well. It may seem redundant, but it is so important that I shall speak to this, yet again.

Grace is rather unique as a religious concept and a spiritual fact. All of the great spiritual traditions (and in some ways I have encouraged each one, in its development and practice) have recommended spiritual practices. You cannot be a good __________ unless you do __________ and do not do __________. Discipline, courage, sacrifice… all are required in order to be judged worthy. To live a selfless life (which, of course, I recommend) is a supreme goal, one that requires constant vigilance and much effort… and the attempt usually is ruined by this very effort.

The Sermon on the Mount, the focus, hopefully, of your mid-week study, is a prescription for spiritual growth with its recommended practices and even thoughts. While I was sincere as I offered this prescription I also knew that My creation, humans, could never measure up to all of these “standards,” all of the time. If this was to be the way into heaven, to eternal fellowship with Me, then I would be alone throughout eternity.

As Jesus I could only hint at the solution to this dilemma… and only John in his Gospel, included this attempt of Mine. Thus the 5th, 6th, and 7th chapters of Matthew are mystically balanced by the 14th, 15th, and 16th chapters of John.

The unique aspect of grace is that “I did it for you.” You are not perfected by what you do… or don’t do… and what you think or intend. You have been perfected by My sacrifice for you… even you, by what I did, nearly 2,000 years ago. The grace is offered free. All you have to do is accept it, every day, every minute of your life. Is grace cheap? Well, it is free, and that’s pretty cheap. You don’t have to do anything or be anybody to be a “recipient” of this grace. You don’t have to stand in line and have your credentials checked.

Remember the process by which you got your faculty position at Stanford. Remember… there was none, except your indication of interest. Then came the telegram that said, in effect, “Do you accept… you have been chosen.” (That analogy is only partially a good one, for you had proven yourself in the 3 years you had been there previously.) Nevertheless, in the process you were not aware of competing. The position was just given to you.

Now the relevance of the admonitions in My Sermon is thus: when you have accepted My grace, freely given and freely received, your actions will tend to be as these. Because I gave My life in love, you will live your life in love, and your actions will approximate those I extolled. When you fail to measure up you are not dropped. Grace is not some cosmic yoyo, where you are alternately saved and lost, saved and lost, loved and rejected… I have done it for you, and I am faithful to this gift.

Now there can be a yoyo effect, because you may vacillate in your acceptance of My grace. You may turn away and forget, for a time, this covenant, made in My flesh and blood. But I am always there when you turn again. Finally you realize that it’s foolish to keep turning away.