Psalm 103:7-14
The Lord is compassionate
and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor
will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or
repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the
earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from
the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has
compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for
he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.
These verses point out a powerful truth.
God sees us for who we are, and he is still loving and patient toward us
anyway. God forgives our sin quickly when we ask. He sends it “as far as the
east is from the west.”
As Christians, the grace (or unearned
favor) of God covers every part of our lives. We might overlook its power, but
God pours out His grace on us freely.
Everyday I don’t live up to God’s
perfection in some way. Some days I am short with my husband and get frustrated
too easily. At times, I have trouble forgiving when others hurt me, or I let a
bad attitude get the best of me. Don’t get me started on how easily frustrated
I get in traffic! But even on my worst day, when I am the farthest thing from
gracious, God still pours out His grace on my life. He chooses to see me for
the value I have in Him, and He forgives me and loves me because of that.
This is the beautiful part about grace.
There is nothing I can do to earn it. I can’t read my Bible enough, share my
faith enough, or make enough good choices to earn God’s approval. He loves me
because I belong to Him through Jesus. The minute we understand this fact and
start to live like it’s true, everything changes. Our relationship with God
becomes an actual relationship and not some spiritual gymnastics routine. When
we accept that there is nothing we can do to earn more of God’s favor we can
rest and feel secure in His love.
After we accept the grace of God in our
lives, the hard part which is also the best part begins. We have to give that
grace away to others. When we allow the grace of God into our lives, it must
flow out of our lives.
Stop and think about how you treat
others, are you forgiving and gracious toward them? Do you actively seek God’s
help to love others like God loves you?
I’ll be the first to admit that often I
am more selfish than I am gracious. I want to love others the way that God
loves me, but it’s hard. People are messy! Loving people is just as messy.
People are rude sometimes, or they don’t do the things we think they should.
Other times, people are hurtful and don’t have our best interest at heart.
Whatever the reason might be, loving others the way that God loves us isn’t an
easy thing to do. Most of us don’t have the strength to love others on our own.
That’s because we need God’s help. When we admit that our love for others is
imperfect, God will give us His love for others. His love for others will flow
through us for their sake.
We were bought with a
price that we could never pay, the sinless perfect life of Jesus. Because of
His sacrifice, God smiles on us and is gracious to us. God no longer condemns
us. This forgiveness comes freely to us, all we have to do is ask.
So if grace is given
to us freely we must give grace to others just as freely. Take a moment to ask
God for His help today. My simple prayer for you and I is:
Lord I want to understand your grace. I want to be confident
in your love for me. God give me eyes to see others the way you see them. You
see them for who they are and you still love them deeply. Help me to forgive
those who hurt me. Fill my heart with patience toward those who are different
than me, and please forgive me for the times that I fall short. Be glorified
God in all that I say and do. Amen.
No comments