Uncensored Grace
When I was growing up I spent a lot of time in a small Reformed Christian Church in Grand Haven Michigan. It was an old church but it was filled with a lots of good memories. However, there were many things that were never mentioned when I was growing up, grace was one of them.
Flash forward to the summer of 2007. I started working at Central Christian Church and was wrapped into a world of love and grace I had never experienced before. I have been all over the world doing missions, working for non-profits and working for worthy causes, but never before have I seen this level of grace and compassion towards the broken and brokenhearted.
I find it interesting that the word Grace is used ( in the NIV) . . .
11 times in the Old Testament
116 times in the New Testament
but only 2 times in the Gospels: Luke 2:40 and the first chapter of John.
Luke 2:40 says “And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.” This verse is about Jesus. The grace of God was upon him. Over and over in the book of Acts the same phrase is used, the grace of God.
My parents did a tremendous job of raising me, but one thing my church failed to teach me was grace. I am so grateful to have a place like Central so I can learn more about what it really means to show the grace of God.
Why is this so important?
Author Gordon MacDonald hits the nail on the head in his book, Rebuilding Your Broken World, “Broken-world experiences happen to almost all of us. . . Ultimately, rebuilding broken worlds can never happen alone. It is a team effort, and it has to be accomplished in concert with those who can give grace and affirm progress.”
Amen.
For more information on radical grace check out this site
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