Gracious

Philippians 1:27-28 “Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God.”

As Christians, what should our conduct with others be like? I recently read that since we know that we have a Gospel of grace and that we are living in the Age of grace, our lives should be gracious. The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines the word ”grace” as: Favor; good will; kindness; disposition to oblige another; as a grant made as an act of grace. Appropriately, the free unmerited love and favor of God, the spring and source of all the benefits men receive from him. Favorable influence of God; divine influence or the influence of the spirit, in renewing the heart and restraining from sin. The application of Christ's righteousness to the sinner. Where mercy is not getting what we deserve; grace is getting what we do not serve. God’s grace is unearned, undeserved, cannot be paid for and, therefore unmerited.

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Pastor Kennedy writes that many live lives which are unjust and unfair; they take advantage of people in business or they act unlawfully and unjustly. But, there are others who would never think of doing a thing like that and they operate on the principle of equity; of doing the fair thing, of being correct and honest in dealing with people – a quid pro quo (this for that) kind of conduct. However, when somebody crosses then and does not deal with t hem right, then sometimes these people deal with them like a judge, and they would punish them in some way for their conduct. But, that is not the principle of grace.

Romans 12:19 “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

Kennedy clarifies that we can be less than fair, but we can also be more than fair, and it is in that area that the Gospel is not merely fair, it is greater  and vastly higher than merely fair. God’s Gospel of grace is wonderfully high and that means that we need to learn to deal with people graciously, and that we are going to go the extra mile with them. We are going to treat them lovingly, even if that treat us badly, and in that way will adorn the Gospel and be consistent with the Gospel of Christ  which we live and witness to.

Ephesians 2:8 “ For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

God of grace and mercy, give me strength for today whereby I may show grace to others. I praise You for Your Mercy and Your grace in our lives. I pray that You will help us to act and be be gracious in our dealings with others. Let us give more than is expected, beyond the call, as we reflect the light of Christ in the world.

Blessings.