For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
(Luke 19:10 NIV)
One summer I started reading daily devotions from a book of Martin Luther’s writings, “Faith Alone,” edited by James C. Galvin. I wanted to better understand the Lutheran theology that’s so influenced our world and the heritage passed down to the church our family joined at the time. Plus I recognized Luther as a great biblical scholar and theologian and I wanted some good substance to read.
One day I came to line I couldn’t quite get past; I was “stuck” there. I share it with you as a prayer – that God would help us to really, truly, fully “get” this thing called grace.…”If we’re to receive it at all, God’s grace and his kingdom with all its virtues must come to us. We will never be able to go to him. In the same way, Christ came to us – from heaven down to earth. We didn’t go up to him from earth to heaven…” (August 14) We can’t do anything to make God love us, but Christ came to die for us anyway. God’s love is so vast that Jesus came from the heavenly realms, gave up his divine nature, and came to earth to show us the love of the Father.
One modern version of Ephesians puts it this way:
But God still loved us with such great love. He is so rich in compassion and mercy. 5 Even when we were dead and doomed in our many sins, he united us into the very life of Christ and saved us by his wonderful grace! 6 He raised us up with Christ the exalted One, and we ascended with him into the glorious perfection and authority of the heavenly realm, for we are now co-seated as one with Christ!
7 Throughout the coming ages we will be the visible display of the infinite riches of his grace and kindness, which was showered upon us in Jesus Christ. 8 For by grace you have been saved by faith. Nothing you did could ever earn this salvation, for it was the love gift from God that brought us to Christ! 9 So no one will ever be able to boast, for salvation is never a reward for good works or human striving.
10 We have become his poetry, a re-created people that will fulfill the destiny he has given each of us, for we are joined to Jesus, the Anointed One. Even before we were born, God planned in advance our destiny and the good works we would do to fulfill it! (Ephesians 2:4-10 TPT)
We have become his poetry!! God has planned the good works we do to fulfill the destiny he has given each of us when we are joined to Jesus!
Grace. It’s a good thing to get stuck on.
God of Grace and God of Glory,
Thank you for the gift of grace and mercy that you gave to us in the form of Jesus Christ, our Savior. Thank you that he came to seek and save we who were lost and to give us your vast grace. Thank you that we can get “stuck” in that grace – extravagant, lush, undeserved, but still full of your purposes and plans for our lives. Help us to honor you in all we do so that our lives are beautiful poetry and sweetly glorifying to you. In Jesus’s name we pray, Amen.