Grace Equations

“It's not what you thought

When you first began it

You got what you want

Now you can hardly stand it

Though by now you know

It's not going to stop

It's not going to stop

It's not going to stop

Till you wise up

…so just give up.”

Wise Up by Aimee Mann

It’s a remarkable experience to get what you want only to find frustration, pain, fear, or regret. There are times I can find myself relentlessly chasing or holding on to the very thing that is or will cause me harm. Like a matador flashing his red cape and the bull charges in just to be wounded by the sword. Sin has a way of playing us this way. The adversary inflames our wants, desires, or pain and then uses them to accuse and trap us in fear, guilt, and judgment (James 1:14-15). Thankfully God has made a way for us to avoid and escape this trap through His grace. 

In Genesis 3 we see the story of the fall of humankind.  After Adam and Eve have sinned and they are confronted by God, they choose to do three things: cover (Vs.7), hide (Vs.8), and blame (Vs.11-13).  I believe in these short lines of Genesis 3 we can see one of most fundamental life lessons in human nature and the human predicament. We see the connection between grace and judgment in how one chooses to respond to God. So why did they respond this way?

One reason is fear (Vs.9) and the other is pride (Vs.4-5). The nature of the adversary is pride and his main weapon is fear. And in between fear and pride is where the bulk of covering, hiding, and blaming originate. It was so back then and it has been so ever since. The big problem with this is, if we cover, hide, and blame we won’t get help, grace, and mercy. They did not ask for mercy and repent and because of that, they got judgment.  When God is asking them “what have you done?” they do not confess, but instead they start pointing the blame at each other and at God (Vs.11-13). This hiding, covering and blaming is not the nature of God. This is when humanity took on the fallen nature of the evil one which has been passed on to us today.

In Luke 15:11-32 Jesus tells the parable of the prodigal son. This story can serve as insight into the heart of God as a gracious Father and also a way of seeing how to receive grace. We see someone driven by desire to make reckless and immoral decisions. When confronted with the light and consequence of his situation, the son chooses to do three things, face reality (Luke15:17), turn around and draw near toward the Father (Luke15:20), and confess and own up to what he had done (Luke15:21).

What he finds instead of judgment is that his Father is looking and waiting to embrace, restore, and celebrate his son’s return. Because the son was able to let go of his pride and fear and humble himself, he receives grace. The story ends with the Father declaring the restorative power of the miracle of grace as he says, ”We had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found..” Luke 15:32NIV

James 4:6 AMP But He gives us more and more grace (power of the Holy Spirit, to meet this evil tendency and all others fully). That is why He says, God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, but gives grace [continually] to the lowly (those who are humble enough to receive it).

How can we be saved if we won’t admit we are lost? How can we have restoration if we can’t admit we have made a mistake? We don’t need mercy if we feel we haven’t failed. That is pride and the proud do not receive grace. If we are in trouble, the best thing we can do is humble ourselves and own up to what we’ve done. Don’t point at your wife, husband, coworker, your boss, democrats, republicans, the president, not even the devil. Nobody made us do anything. We can’t receive grace while pointing blame or hiding.

The amazing thing is in humbling ourselves the door is open for God to lift us up. The humble receive the grace! That is amazingly good news to some and a great offense to others. When we find ourselves in the trap of sin and we have fallen into what seems like an impossible situation, remember there is always a way out. When we accept the gift of grace, we are taking a step away from darkness and a step towards God’s life giving light. You can do that today by recognizing your need and asking for God’s grace. Wise up, give up, and be lifted up!

James 4:10 CEB:

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.”

Jason Wilson