True Grace

“I have written and sent this short letter to you with the help of Silas, whom I commend to you as a faithful brother. My purpose in writing is to encourage you and assure you that what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you. Stand firm in this grace.” (1 Peter 5:12 NLT)

What first comes to mind when you see in print or hear the word “grace?”A workable definition is “an undeserved or unmerited favor of God.” Given that definition would you consider severe hardship and persecution a gift of grace? Likely not, yet that’s exactly the context of this letter written by Peter.

Like anyone else who loves and trusts the Lord Jesus, when we’re struggling it’s helpful to receive encouragement and assurance from someone whom we know understands what we’re going through. After my divorce, seriously wondering if the pain would ever stop, it was helpful when someone who had survived the trauma of divorce, would give me a word of encouragement.

On one occasion someone was seeking to encourage me, and their words were genuine and helpful, so I asked him how long he’d been divorced. “Five years,” he answered. My heart sank, uncertain how I was going to make it through the next five minutes. But the reality is, by God’s grace and with His help life does go on, one difficult and weary step at a time.

Suffering, in whatever form it comes, is hard and challenging, yet, Peter gives us some sound advice when he tells us: “what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you.” So, the logical question then becomes: “How can all this hardship and pain be an undeserved and unmerited favor of God?”

Thomas Brooks wrote: “True grace works the heart to the hatred of all sin, and to the love of all truth.” And some, if you’re tracking with me, may wonder – “what’s suffering have to do with ‘the hatred of sin and the love of all truth?’” Quite a lot actually. You see, we tend to believe that grace is the “dessert” of the Christian faith. It’s like ice cream and pie instead of fruit and veggies. In other words, we see grace as “easy to swallow,” as compared with taking medicine when we’re sick.

As I understand Scripture, grace is the gift of God in helping us to become more like Jesus, and the reality is, we can’t bypass suffering if we love Him and desire to grow in His likeness. And please don’t hear what I’m not saying. I’m not insinuating in any way that suffering is pleasant or even that it should be, but it is beneficial.

Like medicine when we’re sick, the Lord “gifts” us with opportunities to grow and develop our spiritual muscles when He puts us through the training of hardship, trials, and difficulties. These circumstances will either push us away from the Lord or draw us closer to Him, but they’ll never leave us the same. If we see them as the true grace gifts that they are, though we may be challenged in ways we can’t conceive how we’ll survive, if we understand they are from the Lord and are given for our good, we look for the “light” in the darkness.

We seek to be attentive to the voice of our Shepherd as He leads us through the darkness and pain. We look for the “breadcrumbs” He leaves us that confirm we’re on the right path. We hold tightly to the words He gives us – not the sermons, but the crisp and clear words of encouragement: “Hold on!” “I love you!” “You’re the apple of My eye!” “You’re precious to Me!” “I am with you!” “You’re going to make it!” “The best is yet to come!” “You’re almost there!”

These are the words of true grace.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊