Unmerited Grace

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There is a story that I have wanted to write for a while. I have told the story many times but have never written it down. Today seems like a good day to do it. My husband and I have done what we can to prepare for an ice storm forecast for our area and so we are just waiting for what is coming. 

This story is about the grace and love of God. 

We know that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him has everlasting life (John 3:16). If we believe this, and I do, it is obvious that God gives grace - His undeserved love towards mankind. Yet it’s easy to add to this truth of God’s grace in the way we view others, and that addition isn’t always kind. For example, we know that God will not turn away those that come to Him and He will in no way cast them out (John 6:37) - yet - we tend to sort people into value categories, or at least I have. And I did that with my father-in-law. 

It was February of 1998 and my father-in-law was very sick. He had been treated for high blood pressure for a long time and had more recently developed complications which resulted in congestive heart failure and a need to go on dialysis. He was in and out of the hospital receiving various treatments. My mother-in-law was a gentle, caring spouse and she took very good care of him. But that did not seem to have any effect on my father-in-law’s demeanor while he was in the hospital. In fact, he was quite difficult to the nursing staff and others who ventured into his room to perform the various tasks associated with patient care. I did not understand this. In fact, there were other things about my father-in-law that I did not understand and quite frankly, resented. I saw him as a difficult person. And he was. There were family dynamics that were less than ideal and some of those dynamics had spilled over into my experience with my husband and I had made a value determination regarding my father-in-law and I did not consider him with the love I should have.

But how did God see him?

After some further health events that brought my father-in-law to the day before he passed away, I was at the hospital with my mother-in-law. We did not know it was the day before but we knew he was very sick. And as we sat with him in the hospital room, the Holy Spirit filled the room, and it was with unconditional love. The atmosphere in the room was holy. God allowed me to catch a glimpse of a truth about His love and it in no way involves the sizing up of people by another human. It is from another place. It is from heaven and not this earth. It transcends human valuation. It exists free of human critique. This remains the single greatest experience of my life with the Holy Spirit after my salvation. I treasure it.

Yesterday I had a reminder of that sorting by others, against me, and that’s OK because I know something and it’s beautiful. I am not defined by the valuation of others. I know that God is the final sorter and He sorts us into His kingdom with love so complete and powerful that all the assignment of man of a human’s value melts away, into eternity.

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.”  Psalm 139:13-14