As You’ve Received, So Give.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” Ephesians 2:8-10. (ESV).
Life has a way of revealing mysteries. One such mystery is finding yourself at the crossroads of life, whether the end of a marriage, a first baby, ministry collapsing, career halt etc. and learning you can’t do it alone. You need help! Some of life’s mysteries can cause you to question your identity, and others can stretch you to doubt the reason for your existence. All the same, the mysteries of life are precisely that, mysteries. Yet, the greatest gift these life mysteries present us is an opportunity to rethink our posture. As life becomes cumbersome and busyness consumes our time and strength, we lose focus on the most important existential focus as Christ followers. We ought to pause and ask, what made me necessary? Why did God send His only Son from glory to take on my sinful nature, to die in my place? Why do I live?
The answer is simple. We live because God intended for us to live. We are here because in His master plan, somehow, we fit. God sent His only Son so that we do not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16 NIV). But most importantly, we live because ‘Grace abounds much.’ Rarely do we embrace this privilege.
Paul writes to emphasize that we, as believers in Christ Jesus, are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for good works (Ephesians 8:10). God saves us not merely to save us from the wrath we rightly deserve but also to make something beautiful of us. This is a gift. It is not something we worked, performed or begged for, but rather, freely given to us because God loves us. Scripture continues to say that God has already prepared the good works beforehand for us to walk in them. This is grace at work! Through Christ, we are taught and shown how to receive and extend grace to others.
I have heard it said, ‘Healed people heal people.” We have been healed from the depths of death for a divine appointment. Thus, in rethinking life, we should embrace three postures to freely understand the grace God has shown through Jesus and extend it to those we encounter.
1 The Posture to Learn
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. ” Philippians 4:9 (NIV).
Albert Einstein said, “Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” We give to others according to the measure we know to give. We cannot give beyond what we know. Paul has spent his life with the Lord Jesus, following him wholeheartedly and learning to be Christ’s representative on earth. He does not merely know God; instead, he understands the depth of who God is. Paul had the integrity to present himself as all things to the Philippians and can proclaim worthy of following because he followed Jesus. For us to be people who can exemplify Christ as Christ exemplify God the Father, we must be people willing to learn. Learn who He is, what He did and does and how He operates. Just like the quote, wisdom is a lifelong attempt at pursuit. How can we give of something we do not know?
A moment of reflection:
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When was the last time you asked God to teach you His ways?
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Have you learned all there is to know about God that you feel there is nothing else to learn?
2. The Posture to Lean in.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight,” Proverbs 3:5- 6. (ESV). To be a people full of grace and, in turn, give grace, we must depend wholeheartedly on God. It sounds simple enough! To depend on God, we must let go of ourselves, our wants, and desires and be clothed with Christ. This is the biggest challenge for any flesh and blood. We are not a people willing to give up our wants and allow the Holy Spirit to channel His desires through us. We want control! The fact is that those who truly understand the free gift of grace and the depth of unmerited, undeserving favour are well secured in their spiritual and physical status. In this posture of being secure, our total reliance on God, we can give without reproach to others.
A moment of reflection:
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How secure are you in letting God steer the wheel of your life?
3: The Posture to Love well
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13.(ESV) To freely give the grace God gave us through Christ Jesus, we must regard the worth of the love rendered for our sake and only in that worth can we love others even to the point of death. Jesus cared that His followers love one another and that they do so according to the measure He has loved and shown them love. The measure and quality of His love were to put His life as a ransom. He gave up all He had.
Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
A moment of reflection:
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Do you have anyone in your life at the moment you love as Christ loves you?