Graced!

Most of the time, people become a part of some great plan because of their talent, their intelligence, their skill or their hard work. NASA does not look over its list of candidates and then select several of them for the space program just on the basis of grace. I would doubt that NASA has the word “grace” in their vocabulary. You will also not find it in the policy manuals of the Fortune 500 companies or the National Football League. Who ever drew a starting assignment for a Super Bowl contender on the basis of grace?

But here is the remarkable message of the gospel: It is by grace that we are all included in God’s great plan and are put on the most important team on earth. If you thought you were on God’s team because of your intelligence, I would like to burst your bubble. If you thought it was because of your beauty or your personality or your physical strength, I need to tell you the truth. If you thought you got on the team the old-fashioned way, by earning your spot with hard work, I must tell you that your theology is a mess. No one is included in God’s plan because of merit or performance.

If you are on the team today and fulfilling the plan of God here is why: God gave you his grace and you put your faith in his gift . Paul goes out of his way to describe grace in extraordinary terms. Why did Paul feel compelled to give such prominence to grace?   We can’t see into Paul’s mind, but here are four reasons why grace needs great emphasis: (1) “salvation by grace” is the very heart of the gospel; (2) some people have a tendency to think that they deserve to be a part of God’s plan or a tendency to teach that you must earn your place in it; (3) other people see their weaknesses clearly and thus have trouble believing that they can be a part of God’s plan at all; and (4) it is grace that unites the church because it keeps us all dealing with each other from a position of humility.

A perfect plan for imperfect people starts with amazing grace.