The Beauty of Grace
The beauty of God’s grace is immeasurable. In Ephesians 1:8, Paul wrote that in Christ God has lavished grace upon us. This is not just a teaspoon of grace given to God’s redeemed. This is abundant grace. As former rebels against God we all carry the guilt of our former lives before Christ. But this is a weight that God does not intend for His children to carry.
Part of this lavish grace is that we are set free from the shackles of our past sins. The main character, Christian, in John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress displays this reality in great detail. Before his sins were forgiven, Christian carried an extremely heavy bag on his back that was representative of his burdens over sin. When Christian finally made his way to Christ, his burden fell from his back and tumbled down the hill out of his sight. This is the beauty of grace.
In Christ, our burden’s and grief over past sins is gone. Psalm 103:12 says that God casts our sinful pasts as far as the east is from the west. Yet so many believers who are set free from their past spend much time gazing behind in attempts to locate the burdens that God separated from them. Instead of running forward in the newness of Christ, they remain stuck in place, acting as if they are still under the weight of sin. Oh how easily we forget the beauty of His grace.
We all like the Apostle Paul can lament that we were worthy of the title ‘Chief of sinners’ as we recount our many transgressions. And looking back at our lives before Christ can at times become paralyzing as we sink lower into the heartbreak and guilt of the sinful ways that we once walked in. This is a tool of Satan, to cause Christians to forget the abundance of grace God has bestowed upon them in Christ, and to become stuck in regrets of the past. For the redeemed in Christ, there is no more guilt or shame. Because they are literally not the same person as they once were.
“Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.” Isaiah 54:4.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17.
“He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:19.
If God has cast our former sins into the depths, then what right do we have to look back to them in guilt? To His elect, Christ has made them into literal new creations. Ezekiel 36 tells us that God has given the Christian a new heart that is filled with new desires that reflect Christ. In Christ, the old nature is gone and He has replaced it with a new nature that desires His ways.
Yes, when we think back to our sins before Christ there is hurt and regret. But Jesus took those sins to the cross and paid the price for them. In Jesus, there is no more condemnation! In Christ, there is no more shame. In Christ, there is no more guilt. Our sins have been paid for in full and crucified with Christ our Savior. Christian, realize that you are not the same person as you were before. You have been made new and completely different in Christ. You are redeemed and washed clean in His blood. In Christ, you are spotless and without blemish (Song of Songs 4:7). Therefore there is no need to look back except to glory in His amazing grace and marvel at the new nature that He has given you.
““Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:18-19.
“Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.” Isaiah 42:9.
This is abundant, lavish grace. God is doing a work in all of His children, that is on going and supernatural. Consider for a moment the stars in the night sky. Where do they go in the day time? They don’t go anywhere, but we cannot see them for all the light. It is only against the black backdrop of night that the stars shine so brightly. In like manner, our former shame only serves to magnify the grace of God in our lives. The blackness of our former sins only serve to make His grace more precious to us who are now made new through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
As we look back to our former lives without Christ, the only tears that should flow are tears of joy regarding the work of Jesus in our lives. And because we are so moved by His grace towards us, we now strive to live our lives to make Him known! Paul Washer was once asked how he is so devoted to Christ with such passion and zeal to make Him known. His answer was, “Because He saved me!”
How precious is your salvation? How amazed by grace and by your own redemption are you? If someone professes Christ as Lord yet have no desire to walk in His ways, no repulsion over their past sins, and no desire to make Him known, then that person has no understanding of grace. The abundant grace of God produces a heart of extreme gratitude in believers. And this grace causes believer to forget the former things and strain forward to the glory that lies ahead.
“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,” Philippians 3:13.
In Christ, our past shames become trophies of His grace. Our guilts become a testimony of His amazing grace. And our hurts become beautiful scars that point to the nail scared hands and feet of Jesus, who bore the guilt, shame, and pain of our sins. It is no longer ours to carry, our sins have been crucified with Christ. And He has cast them as far as the east is from the west. We are new creations in Christ, no longer chained to our former ways, but set free from our burdens of sin so that we may run forward in the freedom and joy of our Lord. This is one of the many beauties of God’s grace.
“Grace, Grace, God’s Grace. Grace that will pardon and cleanse within. Grace, Grace, God’s Grace.
Grace that is greater than all our sin.”
Part of this lavish grace is that we are set free from the shackles of our past sins. The main character, Christian, in John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress displays this reality in great detail. Before his sins were forgiven, Christian carried an extremely heavy bag on his back that was representative of his burdens over sin. When Christian finally made his way to Christ, his burden fell from his back and tumbled down the hill out of his sight. This is the beauty of grace.
In Christ, our burden’s and grief over past sins is gone. Psalm 103:12 says that God casts our sinful pasts as far as the east is from the west. Yet so many believers who are set free from their past spend much time gazing behind in attempts to locate the burdens that God separated from them. Instead of running forward in the newness of Christ, they remain stuck in place, acting as if they are still under the weight of sin. Oh how easily we forget the beauty of His grace.
We all like the Apostle Paul can lament that we were worthy of the title ‘Chief of sinners’ as we recount our many transgressions. And looking back at our lives before Christ can at times become paralyzing as we sink lower into the heartbreak and guilt of the sinful ways that we once walked in. This is a tool of Satan, to cause Christians to forget the abundance of grace God has bestowed upon them in Christ, and to become stuck in regrets of the past. For the redeemed in Christ, there is no more guilt or shame. Because they are literally not the same person as they once were.
“Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.” Isaiah 54:4.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17.
“He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:19.
If God has cast our former sins into the depths, then what right do we have to look back to them in guilt? To His elect, Christ has made them into literal new creations. Ezekiel 36 tells us that God has given the Christian a new heart that is filled with new desires that reflect Christ. In Christ, the old nature is gone and He has replaced it with a new nature that desires His ways.
Yes, when we think back to our sins before Christ there is hurt and regret. But Jesus took those sins to the cross and paid the price for them. In Jesus, there is no more condemnation! In Christ, there is no more shame. In Christ, there is no more guilt. Our sins have been paid for in full and crucified with Christ our Savior. Christian, realize that you are not the same person as you were before. You have been made new and completely different in Christ. You are redeemed and washed clean in His blood. In Christ, you are spotless and without blemish (Song of Songs 4:7). Therefore there is no need to look back except to glory in His amazing grace and marvel at the new nature that He has given you.
““Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:18-19.
“Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.” Isaiah 42:9.
This is abundant, lavish grace. God is doing a work in all of His children, that is on going and supernatural. Consider for a moment the stars in the night sky. Where do they go in the day time? They don’t go anywhere, but we cannot see them for all the light. It is only against the black backdrop of night that the stars shine so brightly. In like manner, our former shame only serves to magnify the grace of God in our lives. The blackness of our former sins only serve to make His grace more precious to us who are now made new through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
As we look back to our former lives without Christ, the only tears that should flow are tears of joy regarding the work of Jesus in our lives. And because we are so moved by His grace towards us, we now strive to live our lives to make Him known! Paul Washer was once asked how he is so devoted to Christ with such passion and zeal to make Him known. His answer was, “Because He saved me!”
How precious is your salvation? How amazed by grace and by your own redemption are you? If someone professes Christ as Lord yet have no desire to walk in His ways, no repulsion over their past sins, and no desire to make Him known, then that person has no understanding of grace. The abundant grace of God produces a heart of extreme gratitude in believers. And this grace causes believer to forget the former things and strain forward to the glory that lies ahead.
“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,” Philippians 3:13.
In Christ, our past shames become trophies of His grace. Our guilts become a testimony of His amazing grace. And our hurts become beautiful scars that point to the nail scared hands and feet of Jesus, who bore the guilt, shame, and pain of our sins. It is no longer ours to carry, our sins have been crucified with Christ. And He has cast them as far as the east is from the west. We are new creations in Christ, no longer chained to our former ways, but set free from our burdens of sin so that we may run forward in the freedom and joy of our Lord. This is one of the many beauties of God’s grace.
“Grace, Grace, God’s Grace. Grace that will pardon and cleanse within. Grace, Grace, God’s Grace.
Grace that is greater than all our sin.”
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