Can You Show Grace Today?
“For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” Romans 12:4-5
It’s super easy to forget that all of the people around us are members of the body of Christ, and that they are actually our brothers and sisters. It’s hard to remember this because we aren’t always treated in a loving way.
Because of sin, we feel betrayal and brokenness, and sometimes we feel this from the people that we love the most. Forgiveness can be incredibly hard.
At some point in your life, I bet that someone has wronged you. When this happens, we usually build up resentment and anger. Sometimes, even if we say that we’ve forgiven that person, deep down we still hold something against them, which makes us short-tempered toward that person.
When someone has treated you poorly, it can be very hard to show love and forgiveness. The easy thing to do would be to stay resentful. The easy thing to do would be to take that person out of your life, or no longer remain friends with them. But that is absolutely NOT what we are called to do.
The truth is that you’ve probably wronged someone else. The even bigger truth is that you’ve hurt your Heavenly Father through your sins.
Instead of showing resentment, anger, or the removal of all love and friendship, God shows you grace and mercy. Not just once, but every single time that you mess up. And He always will. So if we are the body of Christ, we are supposed to be showing the same grace and mercy to the people who have wronged us.
We belong to a God who shows endless grace. As children of God, we have been called to show the same love and grace to everyone we meet. He wants us to be a part of His kingdom, and in order to do that, we have to show His endless grace through our personality, emotions, tone of voice, and simply the way we treat others.
“Therefore, let your light shine before others that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
When we treat others with the same grace and forgiveness that Jesus has treated us with, we show them the gospel. We have the ability to show others who Jesus is through the way that we treat them.
Think about it, you’ve wronged Jesus many times, but He welcomes you with loving arms no matter what. Can you imagine a world where we all showed that same grace? That’s the world that we were supposed to live in.
Sin makes this world hard to reach, but as followers of Christ, we have the power to show grace, patience, love, and mercy to others. It’s not always easy, but I promise you will feel ten times better showing someone grace rather than holding a grudge against that person. Grudges create distance, sadness, and heartbreak. Grace creates friendship, trust, and love.
Today, I encourage you to show forgiveness and grace to someone who has wronged you. It might not be easy, but the things that God calls us to do usually aren’t easy. We are building His kingdom up and making His presence known with every “I forgive you” that we say and mean in our hearts.
Resentment and anger are the things that Satan wishes you would choose, but forgiveness and grace are the things that you have been given to use for God’s glory. Bring His grace to someone who needs it today. By doing so, you will make His love known.