Grace: The Great Equalizer

If you know me, you know I love talking about & (trying) to apply God's grace. A primary passion God has put on my heart is to see disciples of Jesus motivated chiefly by Grace in seeking to become more like him. Anywho, It's often said that death is the "great equalizer" -- bringing people of great & little wealth, great & little social status, great & little anything to a place of equal standing.

I had lunch with a godly gentleman from our church yesterday. He and I were both discussing how when we're low, God's grace reminds us that we matter to Him -- which was ultimately expressed through the cross. Then we also spoke of when we're feeling high/good about ourselves -- perhaps overly good about ourselves. It is then that God patiently reminds us, that all the feel-goods and the successes are a product of His sufficient grace. Grace is the great equalizer in life.

Probably my favorite living pastor (dead pastors are best...because they can no longer do anything to surprisingly disappoint), Tim Keller of Redeemer Pres. Church in NYC, puts this idea very nicely in his book The Reason for God. He uses "gospel" instead of "grace," but you get the picture:

When my own personal grasp of the gospel was very weak, my self-view swung wildly between two poles. When I was performing up to my standards--in academic work, professional achievement, or relationships--I felt confident but not humble. I was likely to be proud and unsympathetic to failing people. When I was not living up to standards, I felt humble but not confident, a failure. I discovered, however, that the gospel contained the resources to build a unique identity. In Christ I could know I was accepted by grace not only despite my flaws, but because I was willing to admit them. The Christian gospel is that I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me, yet I am so loved and valued and that Jesus was glad to die for me. This leads to deep humility and deep confidence at the same time. It undermines both swaggering and sniveling.

I'm continually thankful for the gospel of grace -- God's great equalizer -- as I often seem to go from swaggering to sniveling and back again at a rate of 60 mph (or, in the Cayman Islands, 40 mph on our only "highway").