{"id":5527,"date":"2017-12-31T12:43:03","date_gmt":"2017-12-31T18:43:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/?p=5527"},"modified":"2017-12-31T12:43:03","modified_gmt":"2017-12-31T18:43:03","slug":"gratitude-for-grace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/2017\/12\/31\/gratitude-for-grace\/","title":{"rendered":"Gratitude for Grace"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jaime Harper\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\n\u00a0\u00a0Recognizing the strain that our past has caused in our relationships with our family members, friends, co-workers, and even neighbors is hard. But many times it is harder to recognize the strain that our struggles, hardships, dysfunctions, and addictions have put on our relationship with God.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
\nDue to the damage that we have caused in our past, many of us feel the need to make up for lost time with God. So, we get busy trying to \u201cout-good\u201d our bad. We think that we have to immerse ourselves in His work in order to get His attention. It isn\u2019t bad to be about our Father\u2019s business, but we must realize that our spirituality isn\u2019t measured by our work for\u00a0Him,\u00a0it is measured by how we allow His work to shine in us.\u00a0<\/span>
\nWe will never be able to do enough good deeds to cover up the harm that has been done. We are not worthy of God\u2019s grace nor will we ever deserve His forgiveness. He shows us mercy, not because we have earned it but because\u00a0He loves us. He reminds us of this fact in Isaiah 43:25 saying, \u201cI, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for\u00a0My\u00a0own sake, and I will not remember your sins.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/i>An example of this can be seen in Luke 7:36-50. In this passage, Jesus had been invited to eat at the house of a Pharisee named Simon. A woman, described as \u201ca sinner,\u201d learned of the meeting and rushed out with an alabaster vial of perfume in hand. Reaching the house, she fell at Jesus\u2019 feet and wept, washing His feet with her tears and drying them with her hair. She then anointed His feet with the perfume. The Pharisee, reclining at the table, thought to himself that if Jesus\u00a0was\u00a0who He said He was, He would know the woman was a sinner.\u00a0<\/span>
\nJesus, knowing Simon\u2019s thoughts, said in Luke 7:41-43: \u201c\u2018A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?\u2019 Simon answered and said, \u2018I suppose the one whom he forgave more.\u2019 And He said to him, \u2018You have judged correctly.\u2019\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
\nJesus then compared the woman to Simon and said in Luke 7:47-48: \u201c\u2018For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.\u2019 Then He said to her, \u2018Your sins have been forgiven.\u2019\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/i>One way of understanding this account is to view the woman as doing a good work in hope of obtaining forgiveness. Another view is to understand that the woman came performing those acts because of her great love for the One who had already forgiven her debts.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
\nIn Psalm 51, David is in despair and in desperate need of forgiveness. The guilt and remorse he felt was because of his sin (adultery, manipulation, and murder), which was written about in 2 Samuel 11. In chapter 12, after bring brought to his senses, David understood that his sin had come between himself and God. He realized that his main concern had been to preserve himself from any blame or harm, and it did not matter who else had to be harmed in the process. His guilt brought him to his knees. He was separated from God, and he knew that he\u00a0was unable to\u00a0do anything to make up for it. In his weakness, he understood that his only strength was prayer. He wanted back the relationship that he once had with God. He went to the throne of grace, pouring his heart out to God, and asked the Lord: \u201cRestore to me the joy of\u00a0Your\u00a0salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors\u00a0Your\u00a0ways, and sinners will be converted to You\u201d (Psalm 51:12-13).\u00a0<\/i>By humility, determination, and grace, David was restored to a right relationship with God.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
\nAnother account of the same gratitude is shown in 1 Timothy 1:12-16. There, the apostle Paul wrote of his past actions against men and sins against God, calling himself a blasphemer, persecutor, and violent aggressor. He also wrote of the mercy that was shown to him in his ignorance and unbelief. Proclaiming himself as the foremost of sinners, Paul ended this recount of his past life by telling Timothy: \u201cYet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life\u201d (1 Timothy 1:16).\u00a0<\/span>
\nYes, many of us have done unspeakable things in our past, but God can forgive us and use our past for His glory. As you see though the verses above, there is no reason to run away from God, or attempt to work your way back into His good graces. Instead, seek His forgiveness, trust in His promises, and keep your promises to Him. Allow Him to use you for His glory and show\u00a0your gratitude for His grace every day of your life! Regardless of where you have been, you do have a purpose and a place in God\u2019s Kingdom.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>
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By Jaime Harper\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Recognizing the strain that our past has caused in our relationships with our family members, friends, co-workers, and even neighbors is hard. But many times it is harder to recognize the strain that our struggles, hardships, dysfunctions, and addictions have put on our relationship with God.\u00a0\u00a0 Due to the damage that we […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[66],"tags":[1211,282,1141,1212,1213,1204],"class_list":["post-5527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-think-excerpts","tag-behind-the-smiles","tag-forgiveness","tag-jaime-harper","tag-moving-on","tag-past-sins","tag-september-2012","et-doesnt-have-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\nGratitude for Grace - Focus Press<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tampaseo.expert\/focus\/2017\/12\/31\/gratitude-for-grace\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gratitude for Grace - Focus Press\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Jaime Harper\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Recognizing the strain that our past has caused in our relationships with our family members, friends, co-workers, and even neighbors is hard. 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