The grace of God is for me, the most beautiful thing I have ever known. When I became a Christian I was an angry, aggressive youth, with a lot to be ashamed of, and when God finally caught up with me, the depth of his grace astounded me and has continued to do so every day since.
I was taught from a young age that Christ died so that we could be forgiven, and when I became a Christian this astounded me. That Christ could forgive me, when he was so perfect, so loving, so infinitely good and I, sinner that I am, repeatedly threw it all in his face, that in itself amazed me however forgiveness does not really adequately describe the grace of God. It is not big enough, not incredible enough, forgiveness is such a human sized feat and God’s grace is so much bigger.
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 [NIV]
This is more than forgiveness. Forgiveness is something we can grasp, the idea that you see the sin, you let it go, you don’t hold it against someone, that I can kind of grasp. But the idea that God looks on me, with all my sin, my fallen-ness, my shame, and sees me as righteous through what his son has done. It’s more than removal, it’s a renewing, we are not simply made neutral, our entire charge is reversed, the stain is not simply removed we are re-clothed in righteousness as Isaiah says.
The idea that God in all his beauty and splendour could forgive me is incredible, but the idea that when he sees me, he sees the righteousness of Christ, that is grace like no other.
Tim Holt
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