THE DARK SIDE OF THE GOSPEL OF GRACE
Awed by the
power of his words, thrilled and terrified by his signs of healing, people were
drawn to Jesus from the moment he came out of the wilderness and began to
preach.
Men and women
left their daily chores, laid aside their worries, and came to hear a man who
gave them what no religious teacher had ever given: a taste of the World to
Come, God’s Kingdom.
When Jesus
said, “Your sins are forgiven,” all guilt vanished. When Jesus said, “Rise and walk,” or “Receive
your sight” the laws of this world gave way to the law of the World to Come.
When Jesus hung
on the cross, and the sky darkened and the earth began to tremble, only the eye
of God could see the evil, the corruption in us all funneling into his dying
body, opening the way for a world far better than this one: God’s Kingdom.
Three days
later the earth shook again and the stone that sealed his
tomb gave way. Jesus stepped into the
early dawn as the Firstborn of the New Creation. It was the beginning of the
End of the Age. Unspeakable power was at
work.
When the Spirit
fell on the believers on Pentecost they glorified God with new tongues, manifesting
to the startled onlookers the power of the world to come.
What was this
power?
The apostles
called it Grace, God’s unspeakable mercy, given to restore us all to what we
were meant to be.
Amazing
grace,
how
sweet the sound,
that
saved a wretch like me!
It’s all Grace. Jesus’ death on the cross, his resurrection,
the outpouring of the Spirit, the fact that you are reading these words----it’s
all God’s Grace!
Over the years
believers have perceived God’s Grace in different ways.
Infused Grace
But grace was given to each of us
according to the measure of Christ's gift.
Ephesians 4
In this view,
God puts his Grace into us as a kind of transfusion of divine life. Filled with this life, we are
able to bring hope to others, to make this world a better place.
This infusion
of Grace is a free gift, available to all who thirst
for it.
Predestined Grace
For
those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his
Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren.
And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also
justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Romans 8
In this view, Grace
is given to certain ones whom God chooses for reasons of his own. Once the elect ones
receive this gift of Grace it is theirs forever. It can never be lost. These favored ones are eternally secure in
God’s Grace.
Universal Grace
Behold
the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
John
1
In this view
God will see to it that everybody “makes it” in the end. There may be a season of purification for
many, but God’s Grace will ultimately bring the entire race out of darkness
into the light of his Kingdom.
After all,
didn’t Jesus die for us all?
“And
I, when I am lifted up from the earth (on the cross) will draw all people to
myself.”
John
12
All
people. Muslims, Buddhists, atheists,
anarchists. Somewhere, somehow, all are
drawn to the Fountain of Grace. That’s a
promise from the mouth of the Lord Jesus himself.
But
will we all be overwhelmed by Grace?
Will
we all walk the walk of Grace to the very end?
Are
we all destined for the City of
The Dark Side of the
Gospel of Grace
Coming from the
mouth of the Lord Jesus, the gospel of Grace has a dark side. If we overlook its dark side, the gospel of Grace
loses its power and becomes quite limp.
Consider, for
instance, the branch that fails to abide in the Vine.
“If
a person does not abide in me, they are cast forth as a branch and wither. And the branches are gathered, thrown into
the fire and burned.”
John 15
God’s Grace is
there for me. But if I fail to stay
connected to the Master, if I allow my own agenda to
draw me away from him, Grace in me withers; and I wither. That little thread that holds me to the Vine
is soon cut, and I’m on my own.
There is also
such a thing as Grace built on sand.
“And
every one who hears these words of mine and does not
do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand;
and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against
that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it."
Matthew
7
Jesus’ words
are pure Grace. Heaven and earth will
pass away, but those words will echo through eternity. But those words are of little use, if we fail to do what those words tell us to do.
But surely if I
perform signs and wonders, prophesy, and cast out demons in the name of Jesus,
I’m wrapped in God’s Grace! Again, the
dark side of the gospel of Grace warns me to be careful.
On
that day many will say to me, `Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name,
and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?'
And
then will I declare to them, `I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.'
Matthew
7
One way to understand the dark side of Grace
is to remember that Grace is holy. You
take off your shoes in its presence.
Once I open my heart
to God’s Grace, I am accountable to God in a way I never was before.
“If
I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin.”
John 15
It’s quite
simple.
I
have been forgiven. So
the Father expects me to forgive.
The
Lord Jesus has shown me unspeakable mercy.
So he expects me to live that mercy.
God
has been generous with me. Now he
expects me to be generous in my dealings with others.
When I not only
receive Grace, but live Grace, the power of the
I will live the
gospel of Grace in the place where God has put me. I will proclaim that Jesus is Lord (the
gospel of Grace) to all whom God sends across my path.
Now the fire
which the Lord Jesus ignited at
Then the End
will be upon us.
When the Last
Day arrives, I will be asked, not whether I subscribed to the gospel of Grace,
but whether I lived it.
"When
the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels
with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.
Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he
will separate them one from another as a shepherd
separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep at his right
hand, but the goats at the left.
Then the King will say to those at his right hand, `Come, O blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;
for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I
was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick
and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'
Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed
thee, or thirsty and give thee drink?
And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee,
or naked and clothe thee?
And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?'
And the King will answer them, `Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of
the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.'
Then he will say to those at his left hand, `Depart from me, you cursed, into
the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels;
for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no
drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not
clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'
Then
they also will answer, `Lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a
stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to thee?'
Then
he will answer them, `Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the
least of these, you did it not to me.'
And
they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal
life."
Matthew 25