Lord's Day Devotion - God's Amazing Grace

I often think of God's amazing grace. It has been changing "wretches such as me" since God began"Time".  John Newton, the 'wretch' (his words) who wrote the now very well-known song, "Amazing Grace," was one such who was notably changed.

Incidentally, I just heard the song hummed by a family member of another patient in the palliative care ward, yesterday.  What a comfort.

No doubt many of you know the story behind those lyrics. Newton had been the captain of a slave ship plying the waters between England and America carrying his "cargo" to new masters awaiting at voyage end.

You can imagine the ill-treatment perpetrated upon those poor souls, chained below decks, as if they were some sort of ferocious, jungle beasts or notorious criminals.  Perhaps Newton even had a "hands-on" input in directly heaping extra misery upon their heads. 

To make a long story short, he was converted during a storm at sea which had nearly shipwrecked all aboard.  He had a gradual transformation (progressive sanctification) and eventually became an Anglican minister who eventually renounced his "slaving" days in general, and the practice of enslaving folks, in particular.

He influenced the renown Wilbur Wilberforce, a member of British parliament, who was the driving force behind the abolishment of slavery in Britain.  All this, by God's grace being instrumental in the life of John Newton.

Thus, somewhere along the line, Newton, grateful and amazed by God's grace in his life, penned the now very familiar song, "Amazing Grace".

God is in the business of changing lives.  He changed a wild man such as Newton to be his instrument of grace.  God still changes and transforms lives.

There's a list that the apostle Paul enumerated in one of his letters, telling the recipients they were once such wretches who were once engaged in such as:  

"...sexually immoral...idolaters, adulterers...men who practice homosexuality, thieves, the greedy, drunkards...swindlers..." (1 Corinthians 6:9-11 ESV).

Praise God, they were then,

"...washed...sanctified...justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:11 ESV).

Transformation by the amazing grace of God!  We can experience such change too.  A teenage student and her sister were recently commended to their father at a parents' - teachers' day, with the comment, "You have good girls".  The elder teen grinned and said, "When we came to this school we were quite the opposite."  The grace of God had been at work in their lives.  What an Almighty God to serve, worship and honor!

As we remember Jesus each Lord's Day morning, think on His grace and how it has been at work in your life as the bread and wine are passed from one sister and brother to the next.  It is because of His sacrifice for you.  Give thanks with a grateful heart.

Grace does have an amazingly sweet sound.

                                                   ~ERC November 2019~

Here's a very interesting story about Amazing Grace as told and sung by Wintley Phipps, at a Bill and Gloria Gaither gathering.