Beautifully Broken by the Greatness of Grace

How do you define grace? If I were to give you a biblical definition of grace, it might be this:

“Grace may be defined as the unmerited or undeserving favor of God to those who are under condemnation.”

However, I believe for us to fully comprehend grace, we must experience grace. If you have not felt or recognized grace in your life yet, looking at other people’s stories, will give you the desire to search for God’s grace in your story.

Today, we are going to look at three stories of grace from the Old Testament.

The Story of Adam and Eve as Seen with the Eyes of Grace

Adam and Eve are living in the Garden of Eden and have been told to never eat from the tree of knowledge. They disobey God and eat from the tree of knowledge, bringing about what we call the “fall of man.”  God then ushers them out of the Garden and places cherubim to guard it. Why did He do this? It might seem too harsh to be an act of grace.

And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. Genesis 3:22-24

In this story of the garden and trees, we often overlook the fact that there was a second tree, the tree of life. Had Adam and Eve, or us as humankind, entered back into the Garden of Eden, we would have been allowed to eat of the tree of life, you see, it was not forbidden. It was only the tree of knowledge that was forbidden.

Had we, after having ushered sin into this world, taken from the tree of life, the tree that would have allowed us to become immortal. We would be immortal beings walking around without the hope of ever being free of our sins, our shame, and our sorrows. For so long, I believed being banished from the garden was a punishment, when, in fact, it was grace.

God, in His mercy – right from the beginning, is planning to break the curse of Adam, by dying as the perfect sacrifice.

The Story of Hagar as Seen with the Eyes of Grace

Abram and Sarai want desperately to have a child. However, as the years tick by, no children appear. But the Lord makes a promise to Abram, that he and Sarai will have descendants as numerous as the stars. 

A lack of faith on the part of Abram and Sarai brings about a series of problems for not only them but their maidservant Hagar. Although God had promised them they would have a child of their own; they try to force God’s promise to come true. Sarai gave Hagar to Abram as a substitute wife, and as soon as Hagar becomes pregnant, the war begins between wife and maidservant. 

Hagar flees the scene because of Sarai’s jealousy and envy. As she is sitting by the river between Kadesh and Bered, an angel of the Lord appears. Hagar is so grateful for the God that sees and hears her in her distress, that she names the river Beer Lahai Roi, which represents the “God who sees me.”

We see God work His grace in all three of these people’s lives. Sarai and Abram still receive their own son, despite trying to take matters into their own hands. And Hagar, even though she tried to run away from her problems, can say, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”

The Story of Hosea and Gomer as Seen with the Eyes of Grace

Hosea is a prophet to Israel, and God speaks to him and tells him to go and marry a promiscuous woman named Gomer. After marriage, the only thing that changes is her title from prostitute to adulteress. They have three children together, none of whom are guaranteed to be the seed of Hosea. However, Hosea claims them and names them as the Lord instructs.

We also see in this book the story of Israel’s exile and return. We hear of a nation that turned its back on God, but also how God still loved His people and accepted them back.

“The Lord said to me, ‘Go show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.” Hosea 3:1

We see Gomer enslaved to prostitution again and Hosea chasing her down and buying her back!

These first three chapters of Hosea are that of two stories told in unison. The story of Hosea and Gomer is a reflection of the story of Israel and God’s unrelenting love for her as a nation. It is a reflection of yet a third story—ours.

How often have we cheated on God? Perhaps we have traded our time in the Word for time watching Netflix. Or we have given our passions over to a lover who will never love us back as God does. No matter how far we sink, no matter how deep a pit we dig for ourselves, God is willing to buy us back and bring us into a relationship with Him.

What does grace feel like?

What does grace feel like to you? Imagine receiving a gift of great value, a gift that you could never afford to give. Perhaps a car, or a mansion? You might say, “No, I couldn’t. I don’t deserve this.” Perhaps when you think about God’s grace for you, you might respond, “not after what I have done.” Or when you see God’s grace toward others, you might think, “not after what they have done to me.”

Each of the stories I shared today is an example of God’s unsettling grace. Just like in the story of Jonah and the Ninevites, as I write about HERE, God’s grace is a two-sided coin. God lavishly applies grace both after what we have done and after what has been done to us.

God’s extravagant grace is for each of us.

You do not deserve this gift.

You cannot earn this gift.

The gift is not for sale.

How does grace feel to you? Please leave me a comment below and share with us a bit of your story or how you would describe grace.

Heavenly Father who is full of grace and truth, we may say “not after what I have done,” but you lavish your grace upon us anyway, when we are unsettled by your grace and want to respond “not after what they have done to me,” help us to walk in forgiveness and know that you are the God who sees us. We are thankful that grace is in your character and your actions. We sing your praises for it is good to praise you! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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