Tag: Grace

Posted on

Grace Upon Grace: An Exploration Of God’s Love And How To Receive It

Grace Upon Grace: An Exploration Of God’s Love And How To Receive It2

Grace Upon Grace: An Exploration Of God’s Love And How To Receive It

“For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace”

(Romans 6:14 ESV).

We are created with a deep need to be loved.  There are two radically different kinds of love: conditional and unconditional. Conditional love involves bargaining and there are conditions that we must meet in order to receive love from others. Such conditional living is exhausting, involving a treadmill of constant doing in order to earn and maintain love.

Unconditional love is radically different, involving a conversion of our motives. The Christian dynamic is “not that we loved God, but that He loved us” (1 John 4:10). Unconditional love is a gift in which the initiative is God’s — and not ours. Human love always expects something in return, yet God’s love does not. Grace is the name for God’s incredible love. God loves us because of who God is; not because of who we are or what we have done.

There is nothing we can do to earn or lose God’s grace.  It is freely given. In fact, God has given us an abundance of grace. “For from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” (John 1:16). This grace is so large that “nothing can separate us from the love of God” (Romans 8:35-39).  This is astonishing, and I encourage you to pause and think about this.

Now that we have received God’s grace, what is our response?  First, never let your hearts be troubled.  Be confident and courageous and know that God’s favor is upon you. Second, extend grace to others. A few examples are teaching Sunday school, be involved in Christian service, give a full tithe to your church, pray for your pastor and the church, witness your faith and be engaged in the Bible daily and show compassion to the hungry.

Whenever you help the poor, incarcerated, homeless, and marginalized, you are helping our Lord. “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’” (Matthew 25:40). Go with the knowledge and confidence that God’s grace is forever upon you. Be blessed.

Prayer:  Dear God, Thank you for pouring out grace upon grace upon us even though we do not deserve it. Help us to realize that Your grace is not to kept to ourselves but to share with others.  Amen.

Meet the Author

Todd Shupe is a Men’s Ministry Specialist through the General Commission of United Methodist Men and is in training to be a Certified Lay Minister through the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. He currently serves as the President of the Baton Rouge District of United Methodist Men and is a Board Member for Gulf South Men and serves on the Action Team for The Kingdom Group. He is a volunteer for the Walk to Emmaus, Grace Camp, and Iron Sharpens Iron. Todd resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

We welcome your comments below.

Thank you for visiting. We trust that you have enjoyed reading our articles.

Liked this post?

Read more below or search for more topics…

  • What Motivates You?


    What Motivates You?
    What Motivates You?
    “All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord”  (Proverbs 16:2 NIV).
    We typically won’t do anything unless we are motivated to do so.  We take action based on a variety of motivations.  Our motivations can be positive or negative.  Some of the common negative motivators include pride, anger, revenge, entitlement, or the desire for approval or to impress others. These motivations are clearly negative and come from a sinful flesh and do not honor God (Romans 8:8).
    Nothing is hidden from our Lord.  He even evaluates the motivation of our hearts when we give offerings to…
    Read More

  • We Grow In The Light


    We Grow In The Light
    We Grow In The Light
    “But if we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other. Then the blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from every sin. If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:7-8 NCV).
    Light is essential for all life on earth.  Many plants will alter their growth to maximize the amount of light that their leaves can capture.  I love watching sunflowers move as the sun changes positions in the sky.
    The secular world thinks intimacy occurs in…
    Read More

  • Judge Others or Pray?


    Judge Others or Pray?
    Judge Others or Pray?
    “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin”  (John 8:11).It is so very tempting to judge others as we can go about our day.  We often do not say anything negative but in our minds, we condemn others.  Some of us will pass judgment when we see someone smoking cigarettes.  Others will pass judgment when they see a person with multiple tattoos and piercings.  We can even quote Scripture to support our case.  Don’t they know that their bodies are a “holy temple”?  (1…
    Read More

Posted on

Judgment or Grace?

Judgment or Grace?

Judgment or Grace?

“…Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin”  (John 8:11 NIV).

John 8:1-11 tells us the story of a woman caught in adultery.  The religious leaders, the Pharisees, tried to use her sin to force Jesus to support their decision to stone her to death, which was in accordance with Mosaic law.

“1 Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, 2 but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. 3 As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.

4 “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”

6 They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. 7 They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”8 Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.

9 When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. 10 Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

11 “No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

I think this is very powerful scripture and conveys an example of prevenient grace.  I have struggled with this scripture because I felt that it contradicted Matthew 5:17-19.

“17 Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. 19 So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Upon deeper reflection, we see that Jesus “did not come to abolish the law of Moses.”  Therefore, shouldn’t He support the stoning of the woman?  However, He gives us some insight as to the purpose of His coming when He states, “I came to accomplish their purpose.”  So, this raises the question, what was their purpose?  Not to be overly simplistic, but I feel their purpose was to prepare the way for Jesus who offers a new covenant based on grace.  The epistles of Paul clearly indicate that Christians are no longer under the rule of the Mosaic law.  This is clearly stated in Rom. 6:14; 7:1-14; Gal. 3:10-13, 24-25; 4:21; 5:1; 13; 2 Cor. 3:7-18.   It is interesting to note that the Ten Commandments were certainly a component of the law of Moses, but most modern Christians, including myself, believe they are still relevant today.

So, back to the woman that committed adultery.  Jesus did not enforce the law of Moses but showed her grace.  However, He did not condone her sin.  I think it is noteworthy that His last words to her were “Go and sin no more.”  Imagine a world in which we all offer grace to sinners (each other) and encouragement rather than judgment.  To me, this would be the answer to the Lord’s Prayer in which we pray “your kingdom come” (Matthew 6:10).

Prayer:  Dear God:  Thank you for the daily grace that you offer us.  Please give us the wisdom and courage to offer grace to others.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Meet the Author

Todd Shupe is a Men’s Ministry Specialist through the General Commission of United Methodist Men and is in training to be a Certified Lay Minister through the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. He currently serves as the President of the Baton Rouge District of United Methodist Men and is a Board Member for Gulf South Men and serves on the Action Team for The Kingdom Group. He is a volunteer for the Walk to Emmaus, Grace Camp, and Iron Sharpens Iron. Todd resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

We welcome your comments below.

Thank you for visiting. We trust that you have enjoyed reading our articles.

Liked this post?

Read more below or search for more topics…

  • Present but Absent



    Present but Absent
    “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2 ESV).
    Many men are inherently competitive.  We want to be the best at what we do.  It pushes us to harvest the largest buck deer, catch the biggest fish, or grow the largest tomato.  We even compete in fantasy football.  A competitive nature helps us climb the ladder at work.   This inner drive has helped us to be financial providers for our…
    Read More

  • My Dream That Carried A Message from God



    Read More

  • Making a Difference in the Lives of Men



    Making a Difference in the Lives of Men
    I encourage you to prayerfully consider joining me in donating to Rev. Mark Lubbock’s ministry – Gulf South Men. Please visit Gulf South Men’s website and GSMen.org to get a glimpse of the scope and impact of this ministry or give Mark a call at (225)252-3331. Mark’s ministry helps men become Disciples that are servant leaders as modeled by Jesus. His work cuts across boundaries of denomination, race, age, etc. His goal is to raise up Godly men that bring Christ into their homes and families and then out into the world. There…
    Read More