To me the concept of grace in a religion that espouses a quest toward individual perfection or godliness boils down to whether someone believes there's such a thing as too much love. Most religious conservatives seem to believe that strict enforcement of rules with punishments etc is required to get people to do what they should, and that forebearance and unconditional love lead people to cut corners and get unearned rewards. But abundant experience shows that love doesn't make anyone lazy. Rather it's the ultimate motivator and the only one that really lasts and results in genuine improvement. Grace is only scary for those that worry more about people cheating their way to heaven than they do about people's spirits being crushed by legalism that deprives them of love and acceptance. Jesus taught this concept in many ways, and one of the most vivid is the parable of the laborers.
As a boomer, I find it a little jarring to suddenly hear grace preached from the pulpit. Being brought up as a Mormon girl, ANY conversation about grace was centered around "AFTER all WE can do!" I envied my "Christian" friends, as the pure idea of grace spoke/ appealed to me. So now, when I hear it promoted in an almost evangelical, traditional, biblical idea I love it, but feel cautious.. "really? Is there "a catch" maybe some fine print I'm missing?"
To me the concept of grace in a religion that espouses a quest toward individual perfection or godliness boils down to whether someone believes there's such a thing as too much love. Most religious conservatives seem to believe that strict enforcement of rules with punishments etc is required to get people to do what they should, and that forebearance and unconditional love lead people to cut corners and get unearned rewards. But abundant experience shows that love doesn't make anyone lazy. Rather it's the ultimate motivator and the only one that really lasts and results in genuine improvement. Grace is only scary for those that worry more about people cheating their way to heaven than they do about people's spirits being crushed by legalism that deprives them of love and acceptance. Jesus taught this concept in many ways, and one of the most vivid is the parable of the laborers.
As a boomer, I find it a little jarring to suddenly hear grace preached from the pulpit. Being brought up as a Mormon girl, ANY conversation about grace was centered around "AFTER all WE can do!" I envied my "Christian" friends, as the pure idea of grace spoke/ appealed to me. So now, when I hear it promoted in an almost evangelical, traditional, biblical idea I love it, but feel cautious.. "really? Is there "a catch" maybe some fine print I'm missing?"
Such a good topic to revisit again and again
again...and again...and again
Love you gracepeddlers!
love you back Pat!