GRACE WINSVoorbeeld

The greatest victory grace has ever won is a victory over death. Before the coming of Grace, Death was undefeated. Death had no foe that was strong enough. Like a prize fighter, Death reigned victorious against anyone it faced. Death defeated good works. Death defeated human invention. Death defeated science. Death defeated good intentions. Death defeated money. Death defeated power. Death defeated success. Death defeated fame. Death defeated authority. No matter what humanity has thrown into the ring against Death, it has always been a straight knock-out. As a funeral procession is heading one direction, Jesus is walking the other direction. Death is so arrogant after winning for thousands of years, it didn’t think to run the other direction. No matter, because this is why Jesus came to earth, and even if Death knew what was about to happen, Grace would have chased Death down. Round 1 was set: a young boy had been unfairly matched against Death, and would be another easy notch on the championship belt for Death—but all that was about to change. Grace spoke and Death was defeated. With one swing from Grace, sin was defeated and the young boy sat up. Death was shaking at the news of the boy speaking. For even his past victories were, now, about to be disqualified, and all past wins stripped away from him. This fight over the young boy was not yet the championship fight of Death vs. Grace, but in just a number of days that championship fight was set and Death began to tremble. A holy mystery swept over the crowd, for they had never seen Death lose a fight; little did they know this was just the beginning of many, many fights that Death would now lose. A new fighter was in town, and His name was Jesus—the unmatched, uncontested Victor over Death. Sin and death are no match for God’s aggressive forgiveness. Jesus became sin for you, and so He experienced your death. But because He is the Author of Life, Death could not hold Him down. So the resurrection of Jesus reveals that grace truly does win. It’s not a theory, but reality. The love of God conquered death itself through His unrelenting, aggressive forgiveness! Grace wins. - Josh Kelsey [Illustrations included in this devotional are not visible in this view. Illustrations are only supported in the Bible App for iOS, Android, and at Bible.com]