Ephesians 3:8 reads, “To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given.”
One day the Pharisees caught a woman in the act of adultery. The law of Moses was clear; she must be stoned. And the Pharisees were ready to do it. This woman probably thought that Jesus, being righteous, would agree. She had no lawyer to defend her, not even a character witness! But suddenly Jesus stoops and begins to write in the sand. Some scholars think that perhaps He wrote down their sins, including times and places, etc.
When He looks up, the woman’s accusers have gone. He says to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more” (John 8:11). That day Jesus lifted her from a position of undeniable guilt to one of unconditional pardon. She didn’t deserve it; she didn’t even know it was possible. And that’s your story, too, isn’t it?
One day Abraham Lincoln watched a plantation owner bidding for a slave girl. Figuring he was going to buy her and abuse her, Lincoln paid the price to set her free. “Does this mean I can go wherever I want to go?” she asked. Lincoln said, “Yes, you’re free!” With tears streaming down her face she replied, “Then sir, I will go with you.”
The word “grace” is so important Paul mentions it 3 times more than any other writer. Remembering the violent life he lived, he writes, “To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given.” The word “grace” comes from the Greek word “charis,” meaning “pure joy.” Although you don’t deserve it, God considers saving you to be a “pure joy.”
© 2018 CE