Ugly Grace, by Casey Ferguson
In our vocabulary the word ‘grace’ typically has a very positive feel to it and the word ‘debt’ has a very negative one. Whereas grace describes a beautiful movement or a person with elegance, debt refers to something owed, to a lack sometimes impossible to fill.
With the economy like it is the word ‘debt’ is thrown around more and more often, and any grace shown for large corporations struggling in financial crisis is received with a groan as the taxpaying public laments the fact their taxes are financing these huge bailouts.
Typically, in our society, justice is something we feel we deserve… as long as it is others who are brought to it. Big companies with deep pockets who have been irresponsible with their resources, we feel they should be held responsible for their actions. For them to be forgiven so great a debt puts a bad taste in our mouth. Such grace is an outrage, right?
In Luke chapter 7, verses 41-43, Jesus illustrates the idea of grace to a group of people with whom he was eating:
41“A creditor had two debtors. One owed 500 denarii, and the other 50. 42 Since they could not pay it back, he graciously forgave them both. So, which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon answered, “I suppose the one he forgave more.”
It’s not difficult to see why one man loved his creditor more. He was forgiven more. Two things not outlined in this passage of scripture, though, are these: 1) Without the debt the love wouldn’t have meant near as much, period. 2) We don’t know if either men remained debt free after being forgiven.
Why is this left out? Jesus chose to focus on the grace of the creditor rather than the debt of the debtors.
Growing up in church, I remember a chorus which went like this:
He paid a debt He did not owe;
I owed a debt I could not pay;
I needed someone to wash my sins away.
And now I sing a brand new song,
“Amazing Grace” all day long.
Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay.
Because we are all sinners, we’re all indebted to God for having trespassed against his law. In the same way swiping a credit card violates the zero balance and demands reimbursement, sinning dips below the dividing line between righteousness and unrighteousness.
The fact is, we often overlook our own sin and need for grace when we demand someone else be brought to justice. That doesn’t negate the fact that we are in need of it, though. And the amazing thing is that our debt to God is one thing that causes God’s love to be so significant. He loves not because of our righteousness but in spite of our sin. And that’s huge.
Regardless of the fact you or I have messed up, that’s not the issue for God. All he sees is a debt we’re not able to repay and all he wants to do is foot the bill for us. Let’s embrace that fact today.
One Response to “Ugly Grace, by Casey Ferguson”
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Good word man. Good thing God doesn’t base his love or grace on our past or future debts.