By His Grace: Giving Up the Grind and Embracing God's Grace This EasterPrøve

Day 2

You don't deserve grace; that's the point.

Some days, I don’t feel worthy of calling myself a mother, wife, or teacher-- let alone a Christian! I go through the day without opening my Bible, even though I know I should. I am short with my children or unforgiving towards my husband. I let my feelings justify actions that I know are not Christ-like. And as the cherry on top, on days like these, I often find myself avoiding prayer. Why? Because the wrong that I have done and the right that I have left undone leave me feeling ashamed and too embarrassed to approach Christ.

There is a degree to which it is healthy to be upset by our sin. In fact, repentance requires that we see our sin and are so disgusted by it that we turn our backs on it. However, there is also an unhealthy amount of shame that we can feel over our sins. When we feel so ashamed that our guilt is further separating us from Christ rather than turning us back towards him, as it is designed to do, we are in trouble! We are letting sin have the final word in our lives rather than accepting Christ, who says that his grace is sufficient, at his word.

Read Luke 7:36-50. In this story, a Pharisee erroneously underestimated Jesus’ grace. In his efforts to do what was right according to God’s law, he mistakenly internalized the lie that Jesus would want nothing to do with people who didn’t keep the law. He believed that if Jesus knew that the sinful woman who approached him was a sinner, he would have left her to her own devices rather than associate with her. However, not only did Jesus embrace the sinful woman who came to his table, but he did not let her go without speaking forgiveness and a blessing of peace over her!

If Jesus demanded perfection from his followers, there would be no Christians because all people have sinned and fallen short of the glory of Christ. Jesus does not expect you to maintain perfect righteousness every day, but he does expect that your faith in his character will drive you back into his arms to receive his righteousness when you come up short. You don’t need to achieve some standard of goodness to deserve God’s presence, as the Pharisees believed. You only need faith to believe that when God looks at you in your sin, he will greet you with grace, lavishing love on the unlovely and transforming your temptations into triumphs.

Reflection

Read Luke 7:36-50 slowly and carefully. Reflect on what you have read and consider the following questions:

1. Is your internal critic serving you or hurting you? Is your sin driving you to Jesus for strength and healing or is it driving you away from him? If your shame is driving you away, do you think that sounds like the work of the Holy Spirit or the work of the enemy? How can you combat internal assault?

2. How do you think the sinful woman in this passage felt when Jesus told her to go in peace? Think about the last time you experienced a great sense of unmerited favor or unexpected relief. Do you believe that those feelings of peace, relief, and freedom are the ones Jesus intends for you to live in?

Response

Pray, and tell God what you have learned from reading this Bible passage. Ask God for illumination regarding anything that was difficult for you to grasp. Consider what you have learned about God today, and use those things to direct you worship.