Todd has written extensively on this site about grace. It has gotten me thinking about the nature of grace more often lately and it occurs to me that the idea of divine grace freaks most of us out.
Let me explain. A few years ago, I was passing out free water at a church outreach. It was during a street basketball tournament in the middle of summer when the temperature was approaching triple digits. Here I am with my shopping cart full of water bottles on the hottest day of the year and I had a seriously hard time giving them away! There were no strings attached. I wasn’t preaching at anyone or passing out tracts … I was simply trying to pass out free water. It became obvious right off the bat that the idea of accepting a free bottle of water from a stranger made people highly uncomfortable. Those that did take the water tried repeatedly to pay me or trade something for the drink. Once people realized what I was doing, there were even some that would hurry to the opposite side of the street to avoid being offered a drink.
People couldn’t understand why some stranger was offering them a free drink. They had to offer money for the water to make themselves feel better about taking it because they knew they hadn’t done anything to deserve it. In the back of their minds, I think they were wondering if there was something wrong with me for offering the water in the first place.
If free water freaked people out that much, how much does the concept of free grace (not to mention a Savior who died for them) freak them out. I think grace makes people as highly uncomfortable as my water did on that hot day. We know we don’t deserve it, but we try anyway. We try to trade our works for God’s grace only to realize later it isn’t a fair trade. I think we may even wonder at times what is wrong with the God who would offer His grace to miscreants like us in the first place. Often times, we reject His grace and replace it with false gods that don’t make us so uncomfortable. We would rather fool ourselves into believing in false gods than accept free grace from the true, living God …. we’re crossing to the other side of the street to avoid Him.
I noticed something when passing out water that applies here. There were three categories of people who had no problem accepting my water. Those that knew me took it quickly. They recognized I wasn’t some freak wandering the streets for no reason. They would take the water and chit-chat for a little bit with ease. They second group of people who took my water were the ones who were really thirsty. The ones that had just come off the basketball courts and were on the verge of passing out from heat exhaustion. Their need outweighed any uncomfortable feelings they had about accepting my water. They had to take the water to keep from passing out! The third group of people that accepted my water without a second thought were little kids. There were even some kids who came back for seconds and thirds … they recognized the value of free water on a hot day without worry because their lives hadn’t taught them to be suspicious of things that came with no cost.
If we approached God’s grace in the same way as these people approached my water, I think it would help us be less uncomfortable. First, we should get to know God a little more. Spend time with Him in conversation. Pray to Him and listen to Him. Secondly, we should recognize our thirst. We should realize that without His grace we’re going to die! We need His grace more than we need water on a hot day. Finally, we should approach Him like little children. Jesus himself said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” – (Matthew 18:3 NIV).
Perhaps then, God’s grace wouldn’t make us so uncomfortable.
Writer Clark D. Goble started this blog as a means to chronicle his imperfect walk with a Perfect Savior and invites you to join in on the conversation. He also invites you to check out the links to his work. Most often, Clark writes about Jesus and theology. He also enjoys writing fiction in a variety of genres.
Todd French is an information technology professional and a resident of Columbus, Ohio; where he shares a humble abode with his darling wife and beautiful daughters. His interests run the gambit from reading voraciously all forms of fiction to rooting for the Cleveland Browns.
Clark, as always, a fantastic post. I especially like this one for all the analogies that come to mind. Comparing acceptance of Christ (though more specifically God’s grace, in this case) to acceptance of water from a stranger is sheer genius.
That was a great analogy, Clark. It also made me think about the wastefulness of our reaction to grace – a free bottle of water might be half consumed and tossed (taken for granted once accepted), whereas one we paid for we’ll drink to the bottom. Many of us have a hard time with the value of what we’re being offered, not because of suspicion, necessarily, but because what is free is easily obtained and easily discarded. The range of reactions in your analogy crosses well into the spiritual territory being described. Thanks for a worthwhile thought! Steve
Steve, very good point about people not placing value on what is easily obtained!
Ty, as always, thanks for your comment. The compliment meant a lot to me … it put me in a good mood for days!