The Impracticality of Grace
When you were a child and misbehaved, how did you learn not to do it again? Because you were punished. Punishment hurts us and teaches us not to do something again. In a sense, it functions like pain does: only a fool touches a hot stove after being burned the first time.
One of the hard things about being an adult is that there is no one to punish you. Of course, in some areas of life this isn’t true. If you murder someone, the law will take over and punish you. I’m talking instead about those many areas of our lives that the law doesn’t legislate.
Specifically, I’m talking about those actions that violate our moral creeds yet go unpunished. I’m talking about sin.
In his infinite wisdom, God answered our sin with his grace and mercy at the death of Christ. And grace it undoubtedly is, because I know full well that the wages of sin are death. Yet grace so often seems to fail me because I refuse to learn from my failures.
Is it that the sin is supposed to be punishment enough? Or is the punishment the chasm between me and God created by sin? Somehow nothing seems to fit. I find myself wanting someone to simply hit me when I commit a sin, so I know that I’ve done wrong.
Grace begins to seem impractical. What good does grace do me if my behavior doesn’t change?I suppose there is a reason the apostle Paul wrote “by grace… through faith.” I realize the need for grace, even if I can’t understand the sense in it. I must never disparage God’s grace in my life, so I’ll have to depend on God for the faith.
*hits you* I don’t know what sin I’m hitting you for, so I’ll let you decide where it’s applicable.
On a more serious note: While someone standing around to hit you when you sin doesn’t begin to answer our need for a bridge between who we’re created and who we’ve become, I think there’s an element of grace that is found in community. In Scripture, we find the call to Christ brings us into fellowship with His Church as well. And the faith we live is lived among people, some more dear to us than than others, but all made in His image. There’s no Jesus-and-me bubble.
I know that doesn’t begin to be an answer. I don’t have any answers, else I’d be a radically different person. But I’ve seen the shadows of love, grace, forgiveness in my companions that bear His name, and maybe somehow that’s a piece to the puzzle. At the end of the day, all I know is that I’m thankful I don’t have to live out my faith alone.
Let me know when you figure everything in life out.
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No sin in particular, just sin in general. Sometimes I find myself looking for answers and not finding many.
I do lean very much toward your answer concerning the body of Christ, but it only works if you bring your troubles before it.