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presented by Lisa Bishop
When was the last time you received a letter in the mail? I’m not talking about a letter from the city outlining your parking violation or a dreaded collection notice. I’m talking about a heart-felt, handwritten letter from a friend or loved one. It’s so rare these days to get anything but junk mail, isn’t it?
Over the past month I’ve been reading the New Testament. As I was reading the Apostle Paul’s letters, I noticed he opens each letter with some form of the following greeting. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Have you ever stopped to think about what Paul means when he addresses the recipients of his letters with those words? It must be important since Paul used grace and peace as common greetings. He is reminding all who are in Christ Jesus we are recipients of free, undeserved, and unearned mercy from God through Jesus. Along with God’s kindness and compassion, peace is also ours in Christ and is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Paul is reminding us of who God is, and as we receive grace and peace, we are to release grace and peace to everyone around us.
We can often blow past Paul’s poignantly penned greeting and miss its meaning. David Guzik, an author and Bible commentator, says this about Paul’s words. “…Grace means, among other things, that God’s attitude towards us is gracious, it’s filled with favor. You see, when God sees us, …he sees beauty in us because we’re in Jesus. To put it plainly, standing in grace means that God doesn’t only love us, He likes us. It can be difficult for us to understand that God likes us, that he’s well pleased with us in Jesus. We often suffer under the thought that God barely tolerates us because we’re unworthy, or that, most of the time, God is irritated with us. You see, we’re so familiar with our own sins and shortcomings we are easily convinced that God is always half-angry with us, and he’s always disappointed in us because we’re unworthy.
“Brothers and sisters,…your position before God is a standing of favor,…not one of unworthiness or irritation or mere toleration…Your standing in grace is only because of God’s freely given favor in Jesus Christ.”[1]
Don’t you just love that reminder?
As we wrap up our week together, receive this blessing.
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. And as you have received God’s grace, go and be grace in the workplace.
[1] Guzik, D. (2018, January 12). Part 3 – What Does Living in Grace Look Like? by David Guzik. Blue Letter Bible. https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/GettingGrace/GettingGrace/Part-3-What-Does-Living-in-Grace-Look-Like.cfm
