The Stuttering Believer

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV)

Godliness
Redemption
Abundance
Compassion
Eternity

A quick search on Google defines grace as “smoothness and elegance of movement, courteous good will and the act of bringing honour or credit to (someone or something) by one’s attendance or participation.” The Greek word for grace, “charis”, loosely translates to. graciousness, benefit, favour, gift, good-will or thanks. It is generally used in relation to favour given to someone deemed as undeserving. My first encounter with this thing called grace was in the form of a small prayer of thanksgiving that was said before each meal. When I was growing up in Jamaica, not saying grace before a meal was a sure way of getting scolded or otherwise disciplined by the nearest adult. Grace was also a fairly common female name when I was a kid, this usage of the word derived in large part from Greek mythology in which Grace refers to the three Charities or Graces – goddesses of charm, beauty, and creativity. Then there is Grace Kennedy Limited, a renowned Jamaican conglomerate with a portfolio of commercial enterprises spanning food and beverage, financial services and retail and trading just to name a few. Every Jamaican household is familiar with Grace Foods, a brand synonymous high quality food and beverage products and high prices, but then again everything is expensive these days.

After becoming a believer I got re-introduced to grace in a context within which I wasn’t very familiar. This was grace from a biblical perspective, which if I am to be honest completely blew my mind. So here’s the gist of it from what I’ve been able to grasp so far, after creating human beings to live in pristine paradise, which up until this point had been the creator’s greatest creation, the creator yearned deeply to commune with this, his treasured creation. Evidently, living in a veritable heaven on earth wasn’t enough for human beings because a simple act of disobedience on their part created distance between creator and creation. Quite a bit had occurred, fruit which was expressly forbidden had been eaten and even a serpent was involved at some point. Man was created by a loving creator, given dominion over all things in the physical realm, and the Job of naming all the animals in existence. God, recognising man’s need for companionship created the perfect counterpart and partner from his rib signifying that they both are one. Right before man’s counterpart is created he is given just one stipulation “¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, ¹⁷ but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat^[a] of it you shall surely die.” – Genesis 2:16-17, and what did man and his counterpart do? Break the stipulation……Sigh. Based on this act of disobedience there needed to have been some sort of punishment, after all God is a just God. So man and woman experienced the first ever eviction as they were kicked out of the garden of Eden. Even though they were kicked out of their home God still showed them grace by providing them with clothes, highlighting the fact that despite their clear disobedience and lack of deserving, God still showed his ongoing care and provision for them. “²¹ And the Lord God made clothing from animal skins for Adam and his wife.” – Genesis 3:21.

Even after their offspring committed the first murder ever in history and was eventually punished by being made to wander the earth, God still showed grace by marking him to protect him from being killed by others , ¹⁵ The Lord replied, “No, for I will give a sevenfold punishment to anyone who kills you.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who might try to kill him Genesis 4:15. Here we see that even in judgment, God extends mercy. Grace is further on display in the story of Noah, where God takes the decision to cleanse the wicked world with a flood but chooses Noah, a righteous man, to build an ark and save his family and pairs of every animal species. After the flood, God establishes a covenant with Noah, promising never to destroy the earth by flood again and setting the rainbow as a sign of this covenant. ¹² Then God said, “I am giving you a sign of my covenant with you and with all living creatures, for all generations to come. ¹³ I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth. ¹⁴ When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, ¹⁵ and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life. ¹⁶ When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.” ¹⁷ Then God said to Noah, “Yes, this rainbow is the sign of the covenant I am confirming with all the creatures on earth.” – Genesis 9:12-17.

We see another example of grace in the story of Abram (Abraham) who is called by God and blessed, promised to make him a great nation, and make his name great so that he will be a blessing to all the families of the earth. Despite his flaws and failures, God still remained faithful to His promise, repeatedly reaffirming the covenant in Genesis 15 and 17. God show grace again in His choice of Jacob over Esau, continuing the covenant promise through him. Despite Jacob’s deceitful nature, God chose to bless him and rename him Israel, promising him numerous descendants and land. In the story of Joseph we see a powerful example of grace through adversity. After being sold into slavery by his brothers, Joseph rises to a position of power in Egypt and is used by God to save many lives during a famine. Joseph eventually forgives his brothers and recognises the role of God’s grace in his journey, saying to his brothers, “20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.” – Genesis 50:20

These are just a few examples of grace found in the book of Genesis, I can assure youth there is an enormous number of additional examples depicted throughout scripture. What can we take away from all of this? God is a gracious God. Despite our failings and utter lack of deserving we are still shown God’s love and forever have the opportunity to make things right with Him through repentance and turning away from sin. When I reflect on my life of scum baggery, struggling with alcoholism, womanising and sexual immorality it is only through God’s grace that I am now a part of his kingdom. Recognising the transformative power of God’s unmerited favour, I invite you to reflect on how you have experienced this grace in your own life. Whether you are struggling with personal challenges or seeking a deeper connection with God, His grace is available to you. Take a moment today to reflect, repent, and embrace the love and mercy that God extends to us all. Remember, no matter where you are in life, God’s grace is sufficient for you.