Thursday, March 8, 2007

The Freedom of Grace

Someone has said, "Grace is always amazing." Indeed, it is... and the more perfectionistic a person's personality, the greater the appreciation for the freedom of grace. Martin Luther would be an excellent case in point. So thoroughly consumed with the 'salvation by works' (regardless how much grace is mouthed) message of the Roman Catholic Church, Martin came to the edge of sanity in trying to appease God. Against this pitch black background of legalism, the apostle Paul's message of "the just shall live by faith" in Romans shown like a brilliant diamond of release. Luther reveled in grace for the rest of his days, saying "Love God, and sin on, bravely." For those who fear grace as a means to excuse sin, his words seem blasphemous... but for those who take God and His grace seriously, it is an appropriate expression of freedom in Christ. The judaizer focuses on "sin on, bravely", considering such a thought unbearable. Yet the primary emphasis is on "Love God." The only ones who truly love the God Who is are His children, since the lost person cannot do so. And the one who knows and loves the Father in spirit and in truth knows moment by moment that grace is truly amazing.

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