"When [Barnabas] arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts." Acts 11:23
Grace is perhaps the greatest stumbling block in my faith, as odd as that may seem. To this die-hard perfectionist and Enneagram 1, grace seems nearly illogical, at odds with my hard-wired need to measure up. I think of grace and I feel this sense of ambiguity and uncertainty, like I don't have anything firm on which to stand. Judgment and punishment I understand. Striving and earning I understand. But grace? Unmerited kindness and favor with no strings attached? Inconceivable. I recently received a text message from an ex-boyfriend, fully anticipating his censure and criticism on a particular matter. Instead, I was met with compassion and grace. It left me entirely bewildered, befuddled, and humbled, scratching my head wondering why on earth he responded with such kindness I felt I didn't deserve.
I respond similarly to God's grace. It is no small understatement when I say that I generally come before him in prayer believing he is perpetually disappointed with me and all that I am lacking. I approach him like a dog, stooping low with her tail tucked between her legs in submission, fear, and hesitation. I anticipate his censure and criticism, and instead I'm met with compassion and grace. Yet again, I'm left bewildered, befuddled, and humbled. This thing of grace is a mystery to me, even after nearly three decades of walking with Christ.
As much as it is hard for me to receive grace, it is perhaps equally hard for me to extend grace to others, to see the evidence of it in the world around me. I can find fault with the best of them, which is nothing of which to be proud.
What happens, though, when I go looking for grace? What happens when I choose to see through the lens of unmerited kindness and favor? I become like Barnabas in Acts 11:23, when he is sent off to Antioch to encourage the fledgling church that was exploding in numbers as a result of persecution.
"When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts."
Barnabas saw the grace of what God had done even amidst hardship and suffering. He looked with his eyes and saw the evidence of God's unmerited kindness.
And his response?
Gladness.
What happens when our eyes look for grace?
We see it.
What happens when our minds are fixed on grace, like Peter talks about in 1 Peter 1:13, "Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming"?
We are filled with the hope and promise of Christ.
What happens when our mouths speak grace, like Paul talks about is Colossians 4:6. "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone"?
We are prepared with answers for questioning world, speaking words of life, full of grace.
What happens when our spiritual muscles are exercised through grace, like Paul shares in 2 Timothy 2:1, "You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus"?
We find our strength in Christ Jesus.
What happens when our legs stand on grace, like Paul declares in Romans 5:1-2, "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God"?
 |
| My very crude drawing of the body of grace |
What happens when we have feet that carry grace, like Paul and Barnabas did in Acts 14:3, "So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders"?
We offer the hope of the gospel to a lost and broken world.
What happens when we have hands that extend grace, like Peter exhorted in 1 Peter 4:10, "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms"?
We use our gifts to serve others, acting a faithful stewards.
What happens when we have ears that hear grace, like Paul shares in 2 Corinthians 4:15, "All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God"?
We offer up thanksgiving to the glory of God.
Eyes that recognize grace.
A mind that reasons with grace.
A mouth that speaks grace.
Muscles strengthened by grace.
Legs that run toward grace.
Feet that carry grace.
Ears that receive grace.
A heart filled with grace.
Hands that extend grace.
Breath that inhales grace.
From head to toe, a body of grace.
And all because of blood-bought grace, blood that declared, "For it by grace you have been saved..." (Ephesians 2:8).
In the physical body, none of the parts work without blood flowing through veins and arteries. Similarly, nothing in my life or yours works apart from God's grace flowing through us. It is by his grace and his grace alone that we are saved. We will strive and toil to earn, attempting to achieve and obtain that which is impossible on our own. The mystery of grace will likely always remain a mystery to us in some fashion, for it is far too wide and wild to be conceived in its entirety by any human mind.
We have a body that was saved and created by God's grace in order to display God's grace in accordance with the riches of God's grace.
You're covered head to toe.
