AMAZING
GRACE - THE BEAUTY OF GRACE
By
Isabella Kang (with permission)
"Amazing Grace,
how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch
like me.
I once was lost but
now am found,
Was blind, but now I see."
These
words to the well-known hymn were written by John Newtown, a former slave
trader who sold and bartered human lives. By today's standards, his crimes
would rank high on the hierarchy of immorality and his behavior would be
condemned by society. Yet, how does a person go from inflicting misery onto others
to humbling themselves before their Creator, and acknowledging their
wrongdoing, branding themselves a "wretch"?
John
Newtown is one of many sinners who became transformed by the power of a gift,
something that cannot be bought or quantified.
Grace
is one of the most beautiful words I have ever come across in the English
language. Other words that stem from it such as graceful and gracious all
contain positive connotations to the listener of the word. Unlike other words
that have been tarnished by vulgar use, "grace" has not been
cheapened.
Unlike
other ideologies or religions which emphasize doing good works and being able
to go to heaven via human strength, Christianity offers us the way to eternal
life- it is through God's grace and through our FAITH that we can be saved.
Indeed, by mere mortal power it would be impossible.
So
why is grace so beautiful?
*Grace
is a beautiful gift- a genuine gift is given often without an expectation that
it will be reciprocated. When a gift is given, it comes from the generosity and
the love of the donor to the recipient. We are undeserving of grace but God is
ready to give it to our broken, sinful
*Grace
is relational- In order for grace to be a gift, it is a two-way street. There
has to be a giver, and a recipient. Grace needs to be accepted, before it is
activated into our lives.
*Grace
is immeasurable- you cannot quantify grace according to a number or based on
the degree of the sin's severity. God's grace is unchanging- it is there 24/7.
God doesn't say "I'll give X% grace to Y because they committed murder and
I'll give Y% grace to Z because they lied." His grace stands still for
everyone regardless of their sin.
*Grace
is priceless- grace cannot be purchased with money or attained by virtue of
one's social class, position, prestige or wealth.
*Grace
sets us free- Prior to grace, there was the law. The existence of the law bound
people to tradition, to rules and to legalism which led to acts of piety or
religiosity. But grace got rid of the hypocrisy that was embedded into
religiosity as opposed to living a life of a faith. Now, we can live in freedom
with certainty that we will have eternal life as opposed to adhering to a set
of rules hoping we will got o heaven.
Irrespective
of the amount of wrongs we have committed, the degree of criminality that is
attributed to our personal records, we have all sinned and fallen short of the
glory of God.
Just
as
Have
you ever heard a sweeter word than grace?