What is grace....

What is grace, really?  After a discussion in small group, I started thinking about what grace really means.  Is there a difference between grace given to us by God and grace that we show to one another?  What does it look like to give too much grace, or not enough?  I can I improve on the grace I show to others?  

First, God’s grace is generally accepted to be unmerited and undeserved favor, kindness, forgiveness and acceptance.  To some, grace is at the center of their faith and relationship with the Lord.  I even wear a bracelet with the inscription “Saved by grace through faith on 5/29/2011 Ephesians 2:8”.  But, what does the gift of God’s grace really mean?  Is it a gift or a given?  For some, it’s a get out of jail free card.  A free pass of sorts.  They can sin, mess up, wrong God and others and EXPECT God to extend grace to them and their actions.  Then, they repeat the same sins and the cycle continues.  To others, it’s viewed as the greatest gift that God could give them.  After all, isn’t Jesus grace in the flesh?  Wasn’t His enormous act of sacrifice the greatest example of grace that we can point to in history?  

What is grace between those of us non-celestial beings then?  If we’re striving to be like Jesus, shouldn’t we show grace too?  What does that look like?  How should it be done?  Can we give too much grace?  Someone could take advantage of that.  They could treat us poorly, over and over, knowing we will continue to forgive.  We may grow accustom to turning a blind eye to clear problems.  What about the opposite?  Not enough grace can be just as harmful.  The person who doesn’t provide enough grace can become judgmental, arrogant, and infallible in their own eyes.  

What if there was and should be a happy medium?  When Jesus met a prostitute or thief who asked for forgiveness, did he give it freely without pointing out what they did and how it was wrong?  No.  What he did do was call attention to their wrong doings, forgave them and extended grace with the expectation that they would not repeat the same sin knowingly.  He didn’t walk around passing out free passes to sin.  So, shouldn’t we do the same?  If a friend of mine is sinning, no matter how small or large, am I showing grace or by not calling them out when they ask for my opinion or when they affect me personally?  Am I doing any favors to my friend by just letting it go?  No, I don’t think so.  At the same time, being harsh and not accepting an apology or the believing notion that the foul was intentional despite being told differently is also wrong.  That is not what Jesus would do either.  

So, after some reflection and prayer, I know where I am weakest in regards to grace.  I know the area’s that I need to improve on because I certainly lean towards the harsher side of grace.  I could give it more freely and push my own selfish emotions to the side for the greater good.  As I learn and grow, I hope that others extend that same gift of grace to me, knowing that I am far from perfect but understanding that I am a work in progress.  How are you doing with grace?