Sunday, June 18, 2023

Theme:

It is faith in Christ that opens the door to the wonderful unmerited grace of God. As recipients of that grace and followers of Christ, we are called to extend grace to all people.

Reflections:

A central theme of Paul’s theology is “justification by faith” and Paul dedicates the first 5 chapters of Romans to the development of this theology. Consequently, justification by faith is a central theme of our reformed and Presbyterian faith. Paul clearly teaches that we are justified or made right with God by God’s grace, through our faith in Jesus Christ and apart from the works of the law. It is our faith that opens the door, that gives us access to God’s grace.

Grace is God’s unmerited favor and unconditional love toward humanity. Grace is not something we hope for but something we already possess. Grace leads us down a path of forgiveness, mercy, and love for all of humanity. Grace is the declaration that you are welcomed into fellowship regardless of your baggage, regardless of your messiness, and regardless of your sin. Grace says we will not judge you and that we will walk together with you in this journey of life and faith. Grace says we are equal regardless of social or economic status, our gender, or our race. Grace says that we are loved by God, and we are all God’s children.

As recipients to God’s unmerited grace, and as followers of Christ, we are called to be purveyors of God’s grace in this world. We must extend the same grace to the world that God has graciously extended to us. This means we must accept people where they are in their journey and not judge them. We must judge less and love more. That is the Jesus way.

Questions:

1. What does God’s grace look like in your life? How do you experience God’s grace?
2. Why do you find it so easy to judge others?
3. How can we extend grace to others? What does this look like in real and tangible ways?
4. What would the world be like if we judged less and loved more?