Lord's Day Devotion - Act of Grace

 

The poet Thomas Kelly once penned, 

"'Grace' is the sweetest sound That ever reached our ears..."

When you think of it, is 'grace' a sound?  If it is, then it's pleasant and yes, 'sweet' because of all that God's act of grace accomplished.

God's grace of giving grace 'removed our fears,' as Kelly put it.  Our fear of death, our fear of standing before the Great White Throne of God on Judgment Day and the place you'd end up for eternity.

As a child I used to be terrified of the idea of hell and it's fires even though I'd accepted Christ.  This fear can be relinquished for any follower of Jesus Christ because of God's act of grace.  Sweet, isn't it!

Someday, because of God's grace in our lives we will reign with Him.  He is our King and we His children.  He will...

"...live with us and walk among us, being our God and we his people" (see 2 Corinthians 6:16).

  This is what He has wanted with us since forever.

Walking with God, God walking with you, being in his company enjoying the pleasantness of the time spent with Him.  This is His 'amazing grace' and John Newton concurs with Kelly,

"how sweet the sound" 

he wrote is his well-known hymn.  We will sing in wondrous joy with Him, as we reign with Him.  Sound sweet to you?

I love this last stanza of Kelly's poem-hymn,

"Then shall we see His face,

With all the saints above 

And sing for ever of His grace,

Forever of His love."

As we remember our God and how He sent Jesus Christ to die for us - His death and resurrection - meditate upon other aspects too that are the result of God's grace, His act of grace and His grace of giving.  God's grace secured our salvation, forgiveness of sins, and eternal life, among those pinpointed out earlier.

Partake of the broken bread and drink of the cup of wine - symbols of this act of grace and grace-giving, this Lord's Day.

Have grateful, thankful hearts full of praise and adoration.  Then go out in grace yourself, imitating your Lord and Savior.  Be a grace-giver doing many acts of grace.

                                           ~ERC  April 2023~

Based on 2 Corinthiasn 8:6, 7 and Thomas Kelly's Poem/hymn, Grace is the Sweetest Sound.