Jesus Christ paid the same price for all of us, from the addict to the nun, to the faithful housewife, to the adulterous wife etc. We all fall short of the grace of God by default and that is because Jesus did not deal with the sinful acts but with the sin nature inherent in every Human.
As Christians, we all come from different backgrounds and are raised under different conditions. Some from broken homes and others from stable homes.
You would think it is harder for a person coming from a broken home, deprived of love, affection, attention and care to receive the grace of God through the Gospel but it might be the exact opposite.
Let us consider two fictive characters Brian and Sylvia. Brian is a young guy from a broken home raised with 4 siblings from different fathers by his single mother battling depression and various addictions. She always failed to give him the attention and love every child craves for and deserves. Since they lived in extreme poverty, Brian had to start providing for his needs and those of his other siblings at a very young age and this caused him to indulge into various illegal activities. By the age of 21, Brian was arrested and sentenced to 5 years of imprisonment. He heard the gospel for the first time while in prison and gave his life to the Lord Jesus Christ. He grew in his knowledge of God and in the transformation of his mind, he was changed and was determined to live a new life. After he left prison, his fire for God kept increasing, he started preaching the gospel to youths from broken homes, got a good job at an auto mobile company and God gave him the grace to rise to a managerial position really fast.
In their local church, Brian and Sylvia both met and it was love at first sight. Sylvia is a young bi-racial woman with an African mother and an American father. She was privileged to be raised with her brother in a Christian home, full of love, values, care and financial abundance. She had the opportunity to travel round the world, experience different cultures, practice various sports, make a lot of friends and attend good schools. Sylvia is truly a nice God fearing young woman, who is loving and caring to others and this played a significant role in her decision to accept Brian as husband despite his chaotic past.
2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV) –“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new”
A few years after they got married and 2 kids later, Sylvia had to help Brian as his wife by endorsing a motherly role in the lives of the children from broken homes he helped. Unknown to them, the Lord was using this to refine Sylvia. Sylvia has always thought of herself as a kind, patient and tolerant person, she was beautiful, intelligent and loved by her entourage. She always served the Lord in her church and often received the commendation and accolades of people around her. Despite all these, the Lord started exposing her self-righteousness to both Brian and her. Sylvia had a hard time tolerating the misbehaviour of the children and was glad her own children were better than them. Also, she found comfort in knowing that she was nothing like the single mothers of these children who couldn’t teach them good manners, the right and wrong, not to talk about leading them into the way of the Lord. Brian on the other hand had always been patient with the shortcomings of the children and parents and kept providing them with financial support and love even when they rejected the gospel vehemently. Sylvia always felt the need to be perfect, do things perfectly and outshine others. She has a hard time forgiving herself every time she makes a mistake in their home. He was saddened to see his wife quick to give up and give no grace to both the parents and children by always emphasizing their mistakes.
Brian took this issue in prayer to the Lord and the Lord showed him that this underlying issue had always been there but was just revealed in their marriage. The Lord encouraged Him to be patient with Sylvia as He worked on her. From that moment, Brian took it at heart to intercede for his wife while the Lord worked on her instead of getting into arguments that caused tensions in their home.
The Lord made him understand that by default, it was easier for him to give grace and love to these people because of where he came from. He was very aware that by his own strength he could have never deserved the forgiveness and love of God because of the kind of home he came from and chaotic past. On the other hand, his wife Sylvia had always been good at everything she did, well behaved, beautiful, intelligent and always surrounded with individuals from a similar background as hers. This had shielded her from the reality of the world and her own limitations. Although she was grateful to God for everything she had, she felt like that was what she deserved in life for being a God-fearing woman, straight A student, diligent employee, and devoted wife and mother.
Romans 3:23,24 (KJV)–“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”
The only way the Lord could heal her was by exposing her to environments where she would be forced to come out of her comfort zone and face her limitations. First, her marriage, and second the children from broken homes and their parents were the tools used by the Lord. He revealed all the underlying weaknesses in her to heal her and make her grow for what He had purposed for her life.
John 15:2 (KJV) – “Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.”
Yes she had accepted the grace of God through Jesus Christ by salvation but she unconsciously always felt like she was among those that were easier to save than others. This however is not true, Jesus Christ paid the same price for all of us, from the addict to the nun, to the faithful housewife, to the adulterous wife etc. We all fall short of the grace of God by default and that is because Jesus did not deal with the sinful acts but with the sin nature inherent in every Human.
Hebrews 4:16 (KJV)–“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
We are raised into a system that values merit and so if we are doing well in life we believe we have actively contributed to being blessed and if things don’t go well we also believe we don’t do enough. This is not to say that we have no responsibility in life because we really do, but we should always keep in mind that the truth is every blessing is a product of grace. Yes you studied hard for that degree, but the life that enabled you to pursue that course is from God, the mental coordination and intelligence you have is from God. Yes you birthed and raised this beautiful child, but his health, intelligence, beauty and good behaviour are a product of the grace of God. I could go on and on and on but we must always acknowledge the hand and grace of God in everything we have. Those who are not fortunate to be healthy, financially stable, good at school, from stable homes didn’t fail at an exam others passed and nobody should never regard themselves as more deserving of any blessing than another.
Responsibility is the power given to us by God to make good choices in order to walk in the life and blessings He has made available to us but it is never the cause for our blessing. Responsibility is only valid because the conditions for a blessing are guaranteed by God. Responsibility is doing our due diligence so that God through His blessings, favor or even principles established work on our behalf.
Luke 5: 4-6 (KJV) – “ Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.; And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.; And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.”
When you’ve always done good enough on your own it is difficult for you to accept the grace of God through the gospel, the 100% because of Jesus and 0% because of me. Just like Jacob (Jacob 32:24-30) who had to be hit by the angel and go limping, God had to confront him with his weakness in order for him to accept everything from God and nothing from his own strength. Jacob was never stronger than the angel, the angel only had to hit him in order to reveal his weakness to him and let him be reminded of it forever. Just like with Jacob, God cures our self-righteousness, not by creating weaknesses in us because they were always there, but by exposing them to us. In this way, just like Jacob, we will forever be reminded that it is never because of us nor by our own strength but always by the grace of our God through Jesus Christ His Son.
Hebrews 10:22 (KJV)–“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”
🎵SONG RECOMMENDATION: The Blood – Bethel Music, David Funk
Salvation Prayer (Please say it out loud wherever you are): - Romans 10:9,10
Lord Jesus, I recognize that you are the Son of God, that you came on earth, died for my sins on the cross, resurrected on the third day and You are now seated at the right hand of God the Father. I acknowledge that I cannot be righteous by my self and accept the righteousness purchased by your precious blood on the cross for me. I proclaim that by this I have now defeated Satan, hell and the grave. I ask you Lord Jesus to fill me with your Holy Spirit now.
Congratulations brethren and welcome to God’s family!
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