We are now in a devotional journey focused around portions of Carl E. Braaten’s book “Justification.”
There are many synonyms of grace, words such as kindness, goodness, lovingkindness, mercy, favor, goodwill, and generosity. But the best attempt at defining grace has been made by focusing on the peculiar New Testament idea of love. The Greek word is agape. In fact, to distinguish the biblical concept of love from grace would be difficult. They both express God’s fundamental attitude revealed in the gospel narrative about Jesus of Nazareth.
This week I was working with the confirmation students on the second article of the Apostles’ Creed. It is all about Jesus. I was praying that we would come to some understanding of the fact that Jesus’ life was filled with acts of radical love…a love that really gives us a human eye view of the love of God…the grace of God. One of the most difficult things to grasp is the notion that when we say “he shall come to judge the living and the dead,” we must carry with us into the image of judging that of a Lord whose judging is ruled by a radical notion of love for us…it is not rational…it is in fact, to us, irrational. It is the love of God…the grace of God that bursts into the open throughout the stories of Jesus and throughout the stories of God’s radically, loving way of staying with people who keep turning their back on God’s never-failing love/grace. I may sound so simple to come down to the notion of love…but then again, to love unconditionally is so out of the norm and even out of our power, it demands the power of the Holy Spirit to make it come to life…and that is often through death first.
Connection: So, what does this notion of God’s love going to do to us today…and when will it do it…and with whom. This love stuff can get a bit risky…but it is always the way of peace.
Lord of Love, you bring us peace as you love overwhelms us and pulls us into your gracious domain. Encourage us to leap into the land of your promises and let our lives be shaped by them. Amen.
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