Ephesians 6:12
For our
struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual
forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
In his
letter to the Ephesians, Paul reminded the believers that our fight is not
against other people, but against the spiritual forces of darkness. The people
all around us long for grace, not condemnation. Most people are struggling to
find meaning and purpose in life. They want to be loved. They want to be known.
They want to experience grace. Too often what they have received from the
church is condemnation and ridicule.
Jesus
was strongly criticized for extending grace to “publicans and sinners.” The
religious people of his day saw this as a violation of their faith. They wanted
nothing to do with sinners, yet Jesus intentionally extended grace to them.
Because of that amazing grace, the early church turned their world upside down.
Could that happen again? Is it possible for us to turn the tide and become a
people of grace again?
Former
President Donald Trump used as his campaign slogan; Let’s make America great
again. I think he missed the point, at least from a Christian perspective. I
think our slogan should be; Let’s make the Church grace-filled again. Instead
of arrogance, this will take humility. Instead of militant aggression it will
take self-effacing service. As Jesus told His disciples, if you want to be
great you have to be the servant of all. (Matthew 20:25-28)
Jesus
set the standard for us when he told the parable of the Good Samaritan. (Luke
10:25-37) Jesus was dialoging with a religious leader. The religious leader summed
up what it means to truly be a child of God by saying that we are to love God
with our heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. Then
Luke records, the man, wanting to justify himself, asked, who is my neighbor?
Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan. Our neighbor is anyone
who crosses our path, no matter what they ethnic or social status is.
We do
not have to compromise our faith in order to be grace-filled believers. Instead,
we need to learn to extend the love and grace of God to all those who God
brings into our circle of influence. We need to learn to look beyond the outward
actions and attitudes that tend to dominate our vision. Instead, we need to
look at their heart; to see them as people for whom Christ died. As the Bible
tells us, they are lost in their sin and they don’t even realize it. (2
Corinthians 4:4) Condemning them will only push them farther into the darkness.
Instead, we need to learn to disarm them with love and compassion. (Romans
12:17-21)
Yancey
points to two ways that we can begin to dispense grace to those around us.
First, find the common ground between us. Where are the areas of life that we
can connect in a positive way? Second, listen to their story. Everyone,
everyone wants to be heard. When someone honestly listens to us, we feel
valued. If we would listen more than we pontificate, we would make a much
greater impact on our world.
As one
individual, we cannot change our society. But we can impact another life. We
can share the grace of God with those around us. We can love those whom God
have placed in our path. Jesus said that others will know that we are His
disciples if we love one another. If we want to turn our society upside down,
we need to work much harder at being a people of grace. Those people around us
who we disagree with are not the enemy, they are lost souls for whom Christ
died.
Mark 12:30-31
Love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and
with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
There is no commandment greater than these."
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