Undeserving Gift of Grace

The Meaning of Grace

According to the Bible, grace is a gift from God we don’t deserve. It is God’s favour to the undeserving or to those deemed unworthy. One cannot earn it, pay for it, or give it back. Grace is given absolutely free with no strings attached.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV)

We did nothing to deserve grace, yet through the cross, God gave us everything. Through the death of His Son, Jesus, on the cross, our sins are forgiven;through His resurrection, we have eternal life, securing a place in heaven. All given to us by God’s mercy and grace not due to human efforts. While salvation by grace is given freely to all mankind, we must not forget that the Saviour paid the price through His suffering and death. Jesus Christ’s selfless sacrifice on the cross to pay the penalty for sins on our behalf was the greatest demonstration of grace the world has ever seen.

Jesus: Our Model of Grace

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.(John 1:17 NIV)

Using the Mosaic Law, the Pharisees introduced rules and regulations that emphasised duty and external conduct obsessively. They became too legalistic, promoting a system of right and wrong so restrictive and demanding that there was no room for joy in their religious practices.

But when Jesus, fully God and fully man, came with His grace and truth, He taught about love, compassion and faith. Throughout His life on earth, Jesus was a perfect model of grace, dispensing grace everywhere He went. He healed the sick, the lame, the blind, and the lepers together with those who were deemed undeserving by the culture of His day.

In one of His last acts before His death, Jesus forgave a thief who was hanging on a cross next to Him. The thief simply said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” and Jesus, seeing his faith, promised, “… today you will be with Me in paradise”. (Luke 23:42-43 NIV)

Jesus, knowing full well that the thief could never make amends for all the wrongs he had done, forgave him his sins. Even while hanging on the cross, it was grace within Him that asked His Father to forgive the people who wounded and crucified Him because “they do not know what they are doing”. (Luke 23:34 NIV)

Jesus Talks with a Samaritan Woman

Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman (John 4:4-26 NIV) showed us that there should be no social prejudices when we dispense God’s grace and share the Gospel. During Jesus’ days, the Jews and the Samaritans did not associate with one another. The Samaritans were not welcomed in the Jewish community. In those days it was frowned upon when a man was seen talking to a woman in public, especially this particular Samaritan woman who was known to have had five husbands and living with one she was not married to.

Jesus’ interaction with the Samaritan woman broke the barriers between the Samaritans and the Jews and between the woman and the people in her village. By preaching to the Samaritan woman, Jesus showed us that kindness is universal and salvation is available to everyone regardless of their skin colour, moral character, or religious beliefs.Jesus chose to take down those barriers to show us that everyone deserves God’s grace.

Try your best to live in peace with everyone. Try hard to be holy. Without holiness no one will see the Lord. Be sure that no one misses out on God’s grace. (Hebrews 12:14-15 NIRV)

Jesus Heals a Leper

A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. (Mark 1:40-41 NLT)

In the early days, lepers were considered unclean and were despised, rejected and physically tormented by society. But Jesus acted against the social norm. Moved with compassion for the man kneeling before Him, and touched by his faith,Jesus stretched out His hand, saying, “I am willing; be clean!”

Instead of keeping a social distance of at least six feet away from the leper, Jesus moved closer, touched the man and healed him completely. He then told the man to show himself to a priest so that he could be confirmed by the priest that he was healed and be officially accepted by his family, friends, and the community.

Jesus’ act of grace taught us to have compassion for the marginalised, the outcasts, and cultural rejects of our society. These are the people who need grace extended to them the most.

The Power of God’s Grace

Grace is most needed and best understood in the midst of our suffering and brokenness. My friend, Lena (not her real name), shared how God’s grace helped her survived the sudden loss of her husband. His death was so sudden and unexpected, Lena was totally unprepared. Overnight she had to assume the role of father and mother to her eldest son who was studying overseas and her two younger children who were both still in school. She had to learn how to send money using a bank draft to support her son overseas and how to pay all the household bills all of which were previously handled by her husband.

The darkest and most terrifying time was when her youngest son had a mental breakdown triggered off by the sudden loss of his father. Lena shared that there were many times she cried in the bathroom to hide her fears and tears from her children. But she prayed and trusted the Lord. In her darkest hour of need, the grace of God walked her through this dark season of her life. Her fellow Christians rallied round and accompanied her through every of her needs until she was capable of handling matters on her own. She believes that God kept His promises and His grace was sufficient, for His power was made perfect in her weakness, giving her the strength to weather the storm (2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV).

God’s grace works best when we are weak because then we have to rely on Him and not on our own strength. Grace is the power from God that gives us both the desire and the ability to obey His will. Grace is thus a force that changes our capacities, enabling us to work harder to overcome our adversities.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16 ESV)

To Live by God’s Grace

Jesus came to pay the penalty for our sin, in our place. He paid the price for our redemption to reconcile us to God by bearing our sins Himself. When we accept Him as Lord and Saviour, we are saved by grace through faith. By choosing Him to be our Master instead of letting sin master us, we are freed from the bondage of sin. He gave us the freedom to obey Him voluntarily and live a life with Christ within through the Holy Spirit.

But thanks be to God that though you were slaves to sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. (Romans 6:17-18 NASB)

As followers of Jesus, we should live as models of grace the way Jesus did. He taught us to be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as God has forgiven us through Him (Ephesians 4:32). Forgiving those who do not deserve forgiveness is extending grace to them. When someone has hurt us, forgive them with grace instead of cutting ties with them altogether. We must also continually strive to have a humble attitude towards others in order for God’s grace to be available to us. And when we are humble, we are much more inclined to extend grace to others too.

Showing grace to someone is showing them kindness they haven’t earned or deserved. Teach our children to be kind to those who are less fortunate. Extend grace to the needy who are in financial distress or victims of natural disasters. Let us be constantly reminded to extend grace to everyone we encounter, especially to those who are physically challenged. We are not only recipients of God’s grace but also instruments of God’s grace to others. Grace gives us the power of God’s presence that sustains and nourishes us through our daily lives.