Gracious Enough to Forgive

Halle Coble — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 11:51:52 +0000

As we wrap up our theme for the month, I want to share with you one more idea. It is such a selfless thing that for me, would be so hard to do. Jesus asked God to forgive the ones that put Him on the cross, the ones who wanted Him to die instead of a murderer, when He had done nothing wrong. I know that sometimes we see some sins as “little sins”, but in God’s eyes, they’re all the same. Sin is sin. It doesn’t matter how big or small we may think it is. Think about the murderers and criminals that are in the world today. If one of them was taught the truth and became a Christian, would we be able to forgive them of their past wrongs? What about someone that became a Christian after having a past of lying? Which person would be easier to forgive? In my opinion, it would be the liar because it seems like one of those “little sins”. Jesus saw all sins as the same. He was able to forgive the ones who put Him on the cross. Grace is a part of forgiveness. This does not mean that we don’t let them receive the punishment they deserve, but we forgive them if they ask. They may not deserve that, but we forgive anyway. The Bible says in Matthew 6:14,15…

“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Matthew 6:14,15 NKJV

This is verse tells us that if we don’t forgive someone, God won’t forgive us (show us grace). If we do forgive, God will forgive us.Think about this as you go throughout your week. Maybe there’s someone you need to show some grace and forgive. It can be a hard process, but it can be accomplished with God’s help.

The post Gracious Enough to Forgive appeared first on Growing in Grace.

Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound

Halle Coble — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 18:32:58 +0000

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!” Whether it be at a worship service or even a piece of paper hanging on your grandma’s wall, I’m sure we’ve all seen these words before. Taking just a few minutes of your time, I want to look a little more closely at these words and dig into the topic of “grace”.

First of all, what is grace? To put it in simple terms, grace means getting something we don’t deserve. We all have things that we received without doing anything to earn it. Our God and Father in Heaven is the master of grace. He gave us so much that we don’t deserve. Why? Because He loves each and every one of us. He is the master of grace because He sent His only begotten Son to die for us while we were still sinners.

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8 NKJV

We didn’t deserve that sacrifice, but out of love, He showed grace on us. Isn’t that a comforting thought? Paul, in 1 Timothy 1:15, says that he is the chief of sinners.

“This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”
1 Timothy 1:15 NKJV

Paul went around murdering and persecuting Christians and God still had mercy on him and showed grace by forgiving him of his wrongs when he became a Christian (Acts 9:1-22). We need God’s grace. It is the only way we can be saved.

In conclusion, I know that we all like it when people show grace to us. Another popular passage is Matthew 7:12, the golden rule.

“Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 7:12 NKJV

I believe that if we want people to show grace to us, we must show it to them as well. After all, it’s just a kind thing to do, right? Although sometimes hard to do, the goal can be reached of, “Growing in Grace”.

The post Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound appeared first on Growing in Grace.

Grace Archives - Growing in Grace

Gracious Enough to Forgive

Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound