Anthem of GraceSample

My favorite thing about following Jesus is also my least favorite thing about following Jesus. Let me explain… I love that God invited me into His family. I didn’t deserve any of it. All I deserved was judgment for the sins in my life, and there was nothing I could do to fix it. It was like I couldn’t get into the club… the cover charge was too high… and then God stepped in and paid my way. That’s grace. But here’s the thing… God’s grace is for everyone, including those people who make your life difficult. We all have people in our lives who tear us down, rub us the wrong way, and generally just drive us crazy. Maybe it’s someone you know personally. Or maybe it’s someone online. A lot of times in our world today, the people who bother us the most are those we’ve never even met; a public figure, a political party, an influencer on TikTok. Whoever it is, the common thread is that when someone offends us, they become a “them.” As in, you can’t reason with them. You can’t talk to them. You can’t respect them. You can’t love them. Humans have a knack for labeling and condemning people – often entire groups of people – using a standard we would never even use to judge ourselves. I do it. I bet you do too. Praise God that He doesn’t! Because the thing about grace is that we all need it. And having received it, God calls you and me to extend His amazing grace to others. Colossians 3:13 says, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” God didn’t owe me His love. He didn’t owe me forgiveness. He didn’t owe me a relationship with Him or the promise of eternal life in heaven. All of that is just pure grace. So, the question we must ask ourselves is: how can we receive such amazing grace from God and not offer it to others? Grace doesn’t mean you agree with everything someone says or does. Grace doesn’t mean you dismiss sin in the world. Grace doesn’t mean you don’t stand up for what is right. Grace means you don’t condemn someone or withhold your love because they’ve offended you or even done something wrong. Why? Because that’s how God loves you… and that’s how God loves them. Blessings, Nick Hall