“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down
from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow of
turning.”—James 1:7
The world often distorts the Lord’s
character. To the unbelieving eyes, God
can appear as a harsh ruler who is quick to condemn any disobedience. Somehow that false view has infected our
churches as well. There are believers
who approach the Lord as if He were a stingy old man doling out shreds of love,
grace, and forgiveness, little by little.
But spiritual poverty is not the
Father’s plan for His children!
At salvation, we received every good
gift that God intends to give to us; forgiveness, redemption, righteousness, a
place in His family, and much more.
There is a misguided notion among some believers that the Lord’s grace
to us increases as our faith matures. If
that were accurate, we would be earning His blessing through works. The truth is that spiritual growth broadens
our capacity to recognize and enjoy His grace in our lives.
Sadly, plenty of people feel
unworthy to enjoy the Lord’s blessings.
Thankfully, we do not have to merit His goodness, because none of us
would be able to do so. In fact,
Ephesians 2:8-9, (“For by grace you have
been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is a gift of God, not
of works, lest anyone should boast”) underscores the fact that God operates
on the basis of His grace rather than our works. Think of how big, wide and deep His love
is—He adores, blesses, and showers us with grace because He wants to and not
because we have earned it.
Our heavenly Father is not stingy. He opens His hand wide to pour out grace upon
us. Instead of sampling meager bites of
His Word and His presence on Sunday, we ought to devour whole “meals” every
day. Follow the psalmist’s advice to “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm
34:8).
Prayer—Father
I thank You that I do not have to earn Your grace and that it is freely given
to me. I purpose in my heart to be more aware
of Your grace at work in my life, in Jesus Name. Amen.
