Beyond the Naughty List: Why Grace is More Than We Deserve
The God of the "Report Card"
Growing up, I remember the "saints of God" constantly telling me how my actions were the reason for the hardships in my life. To many of them, God was a judge waiting to punish me for every mistake. If I fell and hurt myself, got a bad report card, or had a bad day, it was framed as a byproduct of my behavior. I was under the impression that if I just acted better, God would finally bless me with my heart's desires.
The challenge was simple: I could never be good enough. I would fall short, feel the weight of failure, and wait for the wrath to come.
Santa Claus vs. Jesus Christ
This mindset is especially fitting this time of year because of the competing ideas of the season: Jesus and Santa Claus. Santa is the jolly fellow who constantly looks in on you to ensure your good behavior, rewarding you with presents or threatening you with coal. Kids are under constant duress to "be good" to get blessed. The problem is that this "merit-based" system has nothing to do with Grace.
Grace is God’s unmerited favor toward humanity... realized through the covenant and fulfilled in Jesus Christ. — Eerdmans Bible Dictionary
In other words, there is nothing you can do to earn it. It is an undeserved gift that God willingly gives.
The Vision of St. Birgitta: The Weight of Despair
For many, Grace is hard to understand because we project our own limitations onto God. We think that if we wouldn’t forgive someone, there is no way God could, either.
This is reflected in a 14th-century account by St. Birgitta of Sweden. In one of her visions, Christ takes her to the depths of hell to see the state of Judas Iscariot. Judas is described as being in total darkness, tormented by the memory of his betrayal and the thirty pieces of silver weighing him down.
However, the vision suggests his punishment wasn't just for the betrayal, but for his despair. Judas felt his sins exceeded the love of Christ. I believe that if Judas had stayed alive, Christ would have restored him just as he restored Peter. His mistake was thinking that the weight of the silver was heavier than the weight of God’s love.
The Amazing Reality of Prevenient Grace
When we are caught in a cycle of judgment, we act as if Grace isn't available to us. But Romans 5:8 (NRSVUE) reminds us:
"But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us." This is what John Newton, the former slave ship captain, understood when he penned Amazing Grace. He realized that Grace doesn't wait for you to be "good"; it meets you in your mess.
John Wesley, the father of Methodism, called this "Prevenient Grace." It is the idea that even while we are still in our sin, God’s Grace is active in our lives, "wooing" us and calling us toward Him before we even know His name.
Breaking the Cycle
When I realized that I couldn't do anything to make God love me any more or less, I was finally free. That freedom allowed me to forgive myself and, in turn, forgive others. Often, we are quick to judge others because we are still judging ourselves.
This Christmas season, step out of that cycle. Understand that God loves you and longs for a relationship with you. There is nothing you can do to pay for this gift—it has already been paid for.
We extend grace to others not because they deserve it, but because we realize that we didn’t deserve it either; yet we receive it anyway. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us—and that is Good News.