Grace
Grace and Ministry
Ephesians 4:29
Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only
such as is good for edifying, as fits the occasion, that it may impart
grace to those who hear.
RSV
Our human pride dislikes such conclusions, but this is the clear teaching of Scripture. We are taught to “go the extra mile.”
Matthew 5:38-46
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An
eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not
to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek,
turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away
your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you
to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from
him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. 43 “You have
heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate
your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those
who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who
spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your
Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good,
and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those
who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do
the same?
How unnatural such actions seem to us. We live in a society that says we must protect ourselves, we must look out for number one! Yet, Jesus says, we are to go the opposite direction. And, notice verse 45 – we are to express such love as a part of our imitation of God’s grace – His common grace at that! Our daily lives are to be an expression of grace.
Romans 12:1
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies
of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable
to God, which is your reasonable service.
Hebrews 12:28
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom
which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God
acceptably with reverence and godly fear.
Worship is an outpouring of grace, love is an outpouring of grace, our actions are to be an outpouring of grace. Indeed, the point we miss is that our entire life from the date of our conversion forward should be an outpouring of grace. If God’s grace is displayed in the work of Jesus on the Cross, we should struggle to display this same grace in our own lives.
