“Grace so amazing is with us each day; for this great love I could never repay…” We are free to love God because of His grace.

19 As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart [Jesus’ life reflects God’s love for us].

Continuing our journey into worship, we have looked at Recognition of God’s Character (Adoration), Acknowledgement of Our Character (Confession) and today we delve into Affirmation of Grace in Christ (Assurance).

Lee Strobel wrote, “Justice is getting what you deserve (punishment). Mercy is not getting what you deserve (no punishment). Grace is getting what you don’t deserve (salvation).” It may not be original with him, but he pegged it with the added definitions. The grace of God is giving us Jesus Christ as the propitiation (substitute) for our sin debt. There’s a song that was popular in the 80’s that goes,

He paid a debt He did not owe, I owed a debt I could not pay,
I needed someone to wash my sins away;
And now I sing a brand new song, “Amazing Grace,” all day long,
Christ Jesus paid the debt that I could never pay.

When we sing Christmas carols about His birth, we celebrate His sacrifice of the glory of heaven for us. When we sing about the blood of Jesus, we celebrate the sacrifice of His life for us. When we sing about His resurrection, we celebrate the new life we have in Christ. When we sing of heaven, we celebrate our future with Him in glory. When we read any of these passages in Scripture, call them in prayer, and allow them to be the foundation of our lives, we celebrate Christ in us. When we do it together, we call it “church.”

The message of grace is summed up very succinctly in the song, “Lord, I Lift Your Name on High,”

You came from heaven to earth to show the way,
From the earth to the cross my debt to pay,
From the cross to the grave, from the grave to the sky,
Lord, I lift Your name on high.

May we never forget His great sacrifice so that we could be born again AND adopted in the family of God. Bill and Gloria (Gaither) got it right:

I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God,
I’ve been washed in the fountain, cleansed by His blood;
Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod,
For I’m part of the family, the family of God.

I pray that one of these songs will come to mind today as we ponder and meditate on the grace of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Abba, thank You that people take scriptural truths and put them to music. They become ingrained in our minds and hearts, which is a good thing. Drive deep within us Your message of grace, O Lord. You don’t need us, but You want us. Why? Because You love us. May we love You with all our hearts, Abba. Amen.