Cheap Grace

Cheap Grace

My oldest son came to me with what he explained was something from God. It was this idea about a devotion, and I couldn't have been more proud of him. The following was his idea, he just asked me to make a devotion out of it.

Have you ever noticed that in a lot of families there is a certain order to which things are done? My son is 12, so he has more chores than my 7 year old daughter, who has more chores than my 4 year old son. Year by year, they are expected to help out a little more. This doesn't always go over so well. I hear a lot that "he doesn't have to help", or "I do allllll the work". I am sure that you have observed something similar in your own families or amongst your friends' kids. Without fail, though, amongst our kids, the youngest has got it figured out.

You will often find him mysteriously quiet about the time I have handed orders out. Most of the time, there is a time limit. Or maybe they won't be able to do something until all the work is done. When my older 2 are scrambling to make the deadline, the youngest develops a strange case of "I need help picking up" syndrome. I always have two eager faces running up to tell me they are done, before the third decides to start. It is amazing how much of a mess one little boy can make, all by himself too. But when it comes to cleaning it up, he suddenly has no strength to go on. So inevitably, he gets help. You can hear a defeated sigh come from my oldest, as he patiently starts picking up hot wheel cars. When they are finally finished, Kolt hops up with a huge grin on his face, ready to play! It works every time!

Cheap Grace.

What does that mean? Ever make a mess and just take for granted that someone else will be right there to clean it up for you? You start taking for granted that all the pieces will get picked up! You even start using that person just a little bit here and there; to better fit your schedule.

Have you ever stopped and thought about the fact that that person may feel used? Ever wonder if that person will ever just say, "Enough! I won't do it anymore?"

Jesus fills those shoes, doesn't He? He offers us "grace" to make it through our day. He offers comfort and joy, laughter and tears. He stands beside us as we get bogged down with too much stuff to do, and cleans up the mess as we go onto the next project. The only difference that I have found in my life is that Jesus NEVER gives up.

It's something that I think I will never understand. How can He continually pick up my scattered pieces and put everything back together again? How many times have I done something with the thought that I know He will forgive me? What a dangerous mindset to be in. It is at this point that we just cheapened the Grace that He gives and have taken Jesus Christ for granted!

He had nails piercing His Hands and Feet. He hung on a cross with His Blood dripping off of Him. He was beaten beyond human recognition. He did that for me? He died so that I could live? And we choose to live lives full of sin and unrepentance because we know He will always take us back.

Can we for a minute fathom a life without God's Help? That's what Grace is, you know. God's Help. He offers it to us pretty much free. He already paid the price for us to have it. He got to have a front row seat to watch His ONLY Child suffer. He did the unthinkable for us! Then He gets to sit in that same front row and watch us trample all over His sacrifice! He watches us cheapen what He did for us. He pursues us and calls us back to Him, wanting so badly for us to live a life that brings Glory to His Name. Sadly, half the time (or more), He is left cleaning up after the messes we make.

What is your choice going to be? Who is ready to step up to the plate? Anyone feel like they live a life that cheapens the sacrifice that was paid? I dare you right now, to fall on your knees and repent of the attitude that so many of us fall prey to. The attitude of forgetfulness! Do whatever it takes every morning to remember the price it took to give you a ticket into Heaven. Don't fall prey to the lifestyle of cheapening it! Grace came after a pretty hefty price was paid! It's time that we repay Him with our lives! Take a good look at who you are and what you have become. Ask Him to give you a new and clean heart. Renew your Spirit! He will do it, every time! How great would He feel to find us trying hard not to make a mess in the first place! Imagine His delight to finding you cleaning up after yourself! Life is not about us and our pleasures and comforts. Life is about Him. He doesn't owe us anything; we owe Him SO very much! Let's just make sure we don't get that confused. Grace comes because He wants to give it to us. Let's accept the gift out of a humble heart, rather than an expectant one. We aren't the ones with a crown on our heads; let's not act like we deserve anything.

Grace came at such a cost, let's not get caught cheapening it!