I demonstrate forgiveness, mercy, and generosity to others, even when they have offended me.
“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Colossians 3:13
Imagine having a coworker who constantly messes up. They’re regularly late, they miss deadlines, they’re consistently inconsistent, and they’re overall difficult to work with. One morning you walk into the office to see their desk has been cleared. You reasonably assume that they’ve been fired, but to your bewilderment, you learn that they’ve been promoted to an executive position that includes a pay raise. How would you feel?
Nobody minds when people get what they deserve. Good people earn good things, and bad people earn bad things; it’s only fair. But what about when someone gets something they haven’t earned? It seems natural to call “foul” in such situations, but believers in God ought to appreciate such a situation better than anyone. When we get what we don’t deserve, we’re recipients of grace. We should be regularly reminding ourselves of God’s grace toward us as we grow in our faith.
Here are a few helpful things to remember as we consider what grace is:
Grace Is Necessary
Scripture tells us in Romans 3:23 that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We are, by virtue of being born into a fallen world, sinners; all of us are born with a debt we owe. Likewise, everyone has failed to uphold the law of God at some point. Scripture tells us that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Thankfully, though, God paid that debt through the person of Jesus so that we can be fully redeemed.
Grace Is Free
God sent his son Jesus to pay the debt of sin for anyone who would believe (John 3:16). Because Jesus was without sin he was able to adequately pay the cost of sin for the world (2 Corinthians 5:21). In doing so, he provided a path to righteousness for anyone who places their faith in him. The Bible says, “all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24).
Grace Is for Sharing
When we act graciously to others we honor God. In fact, God’s expectation is that those who are recipients of his grace would demonstrate it to others. We’re told to “be merciful just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36) and to let our speech “always be gracious” (Colossians 4:6). We’re told to clothe ourselves with “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience” and to “forgive as the Lord forgave” us (Colossians 3:12-13). Grace given to us is meant to be shown through us.
Life will never be short on moments when someone wrongs us. Our sinful world is unsurprisingly filled with sinners. But when Christians choose to extend grace to someone who has wronged them, and we forfeit our right to be angry, we give a broken world a glimpse of the perfect love that is in Christ Jesus.
PRAYER
God, thank you for your grace that never runs out. Thank you for demonstrating your love for me through the sacrifice of Jesus. As I embrace today, I ask your Spirit to show me ways I can demonstrate grace to others. Help me to earnestly forgive others, to speak kindly to everyone I encounter, and to be increasingly patient when I experience trials. I pray that in my demonstrations of grace you will be glorified, I will be encouraged, and a hurting world will be brought closer to you. Amen.