On Grace

What is grace?  As a follower of Jesus, it's something I think about a lot.  It comes up over and over again in his teachings, not to mention in all those great old songs. 

Did you know that in Koine Greek (the language in which the New Testament of the Bible was written) grace, favor, good-will, blessing, gratitude, joy, delight, and thankfulness are all the same word?  The word is charis.  It is a word of many conjugations and derivations, a word of rich, layered meaning, bringing to mind a gift, unearned and freely given.  And that's what grace is:  A gift, a source of joy and thankfulness, a state of living in delight and gratitude.  It's something I don't have to earn; I simply get to enjoy it.

Christians often equate grace with forgiveness, and rightfully so:  Forgiveness is not something one can earn; it is a gift to be given with sincerity and received with gratitude.  But grace is so much more than that.  Grace is the meadowlark singing out in my back pasture as I write this.  It's a hug from my daughter, a smile from my wife, an unexpected call from a friend.  Grace is a big laugh shared with my students, the memory of an amazing experience, a satisfying meal after a hard day of work.  Grace is sunrise on a mountain lake, the tug of a fish on the line, a glimpse of a fox in the tall grass. 

Grace is the freedom and safety I get to enjoy because of another's sacrifice.  Grace is a second chance, a redemption, an opportunity to right a wrong.  Grace is the calm assurance that there is absolutely no circumstance, no matter how difficult or painful, that God cannot turn into something beautiful.  It is the ability, indeed the responsibility, to live each day abundantly and let tomorrow worry about itself, to love those who would hurt me, to let go of resentment and fear.  It is faith, hope, and love.

Grace is the humble acceptance of all God's many gifts.  It is the narrow gate, the difficult path that leads to life.  Grace is the opposite of all that is selfish, proud, envious.  And yes, all those old songs are right on the money:  Grace is amazing.  It is wonderful.  It is all-sufficient; it reaches me; it is greater than all my sin and strife; it has brought me safe thus far, and it will lead me home.

Grace is the goodness of God, free and simple.  And I don't have to earn it.  I just have to trust in it.  I just get to enjoy it.

Comments

  1. EmilyMay 1, 2020 at 5:28 AM

    I like the look of the word in Greek: Χάρις

    A concept, or state of being, that is freely there, like oxygen. We are pretty good at accepting that state as infants, yet somehow--as we grow, and take on the complexities of life--we forget how to just breathe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. whistlingbadgerMay 1, 2020 at 8:36 AM

      I like that you figured out how to type in Greek. Truly, you have a dizzying intellect. Thanks for reading!

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

His Name is David...

His name is David. I only knew him for two and a half hours. And I miss him. He came over four months earlier than he should have. Mom was taxed beyond her physical limits, fighting a horrific combination of pain and infection from a burst appendix. Her body decided that it could not fight this battle and still continue to grow this child. And so, at 5:30 Saturday morning, amid great pain and horror, we had a baby. The nurse asked me, right there in the midst of battle, if I wanted to see him. I told her I didn't know. I was crying, but I could see lots of blood; I could hear my wife screaming in pain, and I had a mental image of those pre-term babies you sometimes see...the ones that look sort of like deformed fish. I did not want to remember him as anything other than a baby. Better not to remember at all. But I could see movement out of the corner of my eye. I could see these nurses--these beautiful, beautiful nurses--carefully cleaning the baby, wrapping hi
Read more

Same-Sex Marriage: A Few Thoughts from an American Christian

It is old news now that President Obama finally came right out and admitted what we all figured anyway, that he's in support of gay marriage.  I say "admitted" because I don't think he really wanted to say anything about it, at least not just yet.  Now, it looks like the argument, in various incarnations, is headed toward the Supreme Court.  I would hate for the Justices to have to debate this topic without first being made privy to my wisdom on the subject, so here it is. I have kicked this issue around for a long time, wondering how to reconcile my Christianity, which tells me that some things are right and some are wrong, with my libertarian streak, which tells me our country was founded on liberty, and people should pretty much be able to do whatever they want as long as they aren't hurting anyone else.  I have reached some conclusions, but I too am still "evolving" about what they mean.  Here are some of my thoughts.  As always, I would be inter
Read more

A Ruined Painting

Image
The Lord will accomplish what concerns me; Your lovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting. You will not forsake the works of Your hands. Psalm 138   Note:   I carried this lesson around with me for almost two years before I was ready to put it into words.   Thanks to Mara for letting us enjoy and learn from her art. I would like to share with you a parable of sorts. I have a friend in Sheridan named Mara Schasteen .   Among other things, Mara is a painter who creates still-lifes, landscapes, and portraits.   Her most magnificent work, in my opinion, involves aspen trees and chickens.   Yes, I said chickens.   Now, anyone who can make a chicken look magnificent (Really.   I mean it.   Stop that snickering . ) has some phenomenal talent and dedication.   Mara is becoming "kind of a big deal" in the art world.   She is also a wife and the mother of four children; her youngest, Emme, loves to play in the studio and watch Mom work. And finally, Mara
Read more

Aut Pax Aut Bellum

Image
Being a meditation on a Scottish Clan, a Wyoming Distance Race, and the Deeper Meanings Thereof In the extreme northeast corner of Scotland, there is an area of quiet farms and ranches, towering sea cliffs, and tiny fishing towns, where the sea is a constant presence and the wind is more a part of the landscape than a mere meteorological phenomenon.  These hills and coast-lands were once the home of a rather fierce group of Norse-Celtic people who called themselves clan Gunn.  And descended from that clan is a family called the Wilsons. My connection the Gunn clan is sketchy at best, more a matter of choice than historical certainty.  Even my brother, the history teacher, has been thwarted in his efforts to trace our ancestry:  "Wilson" is an absurdly common name, and there are simply too many on the books to sort them all out.  For all this, the Gunn lands felt like home when I visited years ago.  The story of the clan --from its Viking origins, to the grad
Read more

Why I am Not Pro-Choice

Image
There a bumper sticker often seen here in Lander, usually on gun-rack adorned pick up trucks. It says, "I'm pro-choice. I choose to hunt, fish, trap, eat meat, and wear fur." It's a fairly universal feeling around here, even among those who consider themselves liberal. This is Wyoming, after all. When it comes to abortion, the real decision about whether to take the pro-choice stand is a bit more serious. Both sides of the issue believe strongly, and argue vigorously, that lives and basic freedoms are at stake. The other day, a friend's Facebook picture showed an intelligent young lady at a pro-choice rally. She was wearing a shirt that said, "I trust women. Do you?" That sounds wonderful. But should trust be the main issue in this or any other legal issue? If it were, we could get rid of so many annoying and expensive constraints: speed limits ("I trust drivers. Do you?"), government oversight of our financial institutions ("
Read more