Grace Period
Ezekiel 16:5-6 (New International Version)
5 No one looked on you with pity or had compassion enough to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out into the open field, for on the day you were born you were despised.
6 " 'Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, "Live!"
This morning a friend called me to tell me about someone who had been going through a rough time, condemning herself for something she had done wrong, which she could not go back and change.
We talked about grace and the term "grace period."
According to http://www.thefreedictionary.com/ , one meaning of the term "grace period" is:
1. A period in which a debt may be paid without accruing further interest or penalty.
That sounded pretty good to me--a relief from the punishment for debt. But my friend said that she realized that the grace that the Bible speaks of is even better that this, in that instead of a "grace period," it tells us of grace--period! That was the grace her other friend needed to realize was available in Christ. Grace. Period.
Dear Lord, this so goes against our grain in a world where we earn consequences and mete them out to others. Thank you for the gift of your grace--the pure free gift that we have only to receive. Help us to lift up our empty hands and hearts and receive it.
Psalm 40:1-2 (New International Version)
1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
5 No one looked on you with pity or had compassion enough to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out into the open field, for on the day you were born you were despised.
6 " 'Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, "Live!"
This morning a friend called me to tell me about someone who had been going through a rough time, condemning herself for something she had done wrong, which she could not go back and change.
We talked about grace and the term "grace period."
According to http://www.thefreedictionary.com/ , one meaning of the term "grace period" is:
1. A period in which a debt may be paid without accruing further interest or penalty.
That sounded pretty good to me--a relief from the punishment for debt. But my friend said that she realized that the grace that the Bible speaks of is even better that this, in that instead of a "grace period," it tells us of grace--period! That was the grace her other friend needed to realize was available in Christ. Grace. Period.
Dear Lord, this so goes against our grain in a world where we earn consequences and mete them out to others. Thank you for the gift of your grace--the pure free gift that we have only to receive. Help us to lift up our empty hands and hearts and receive it.
Psalm 40:1-2 (New International Version)
1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
Ephesians 2:4-5 (New International Version)
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved
Comments