“Grace” is a difficult word for us to define today. Sometimes it means graceful, like in the smooth movements of a ballet dancer. Sometimes it means to say grace (thank you) at a meal. But mostly for Bible readers today it means the gift of salvation in Christ, as explained by the Apostle Paul in his letters.
Not well recognized in later history, grace had special meaning in the Greek world of Paul’s time. Charis is the Greek. We get the English grace through the Latin for gratia.
All this background is to say that in the Greek world of Paul’s time charis had special associations with Greek mythology, that loose and shifting network of major gods, goddesses and especially of the minor goddesses considered to be muses. These muses were regarded as the sources of inspiration for writing about beauty, language, poetry, and for doing music and dance. Three especially important muses were the Charity sisters, represented in art as three women dancing. These three particular muses represented joy, the word for which is char, basic to charis.
When Paul wrote to the Ephesians, he reminded these Christ followers, “Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved through faith. It is the gift of God”(Ephesians 2:4).
This gift is much more than a present of some clothing you get at your birthday. His listeners would have thought of it as something you get from a muse: a new idea, a new sense of beauty, a source of joy. For Paul this muse is the Almighty God who loves his people. This God is not like the Greek gods of mythology who needed to be feared and appeased, lest they jinx any plans you were making.
A favorite way of looking at the transaction that happens in Christ is that our sinfulness, our transgressions, are replaced by Christ’s merit. We are justified. This is a Latin way of thinking with the Roman emphasis on justice. It misses the Greek emphasis on a gift from above (from the muses) that gives you joy, that changes you, that makes your world beautiful.
The Christian God “is rich in mercy.” Basically, mercy is the opposite of grace. Mercy is when you don’t get what you deserve for your sinfulness. Mercy is very important in a world that revolves around justice, as it did in the Latin-based Roman worldview. Grace, on the other hand, is when you do get what you do not deserve. In Christ you get a new life of joy and beauty. This new life from above would fit especially in the Greek perspective.
Paul is well recognized as the apostle of grace. He used that word 106 times in his letters. We are re-discovering his greater emphasis on the Holy Spirit, Christ’s Spirit. He refers to what the Spirit does 169 times in his letters.
The Holy Spirit is not necessarily present in a view that focuses on our justification before God, our being made right with God. The Latin language-based Reformation was all about the role of “good works” in a Christian’s life. They don’t make us righteous before God. But what then is the role of good behavior? Usually that Latin-based discussion goes in the direction of living a virtuous life, which we are on our own to try to live. Empowerment by the Spirit does not fit into that worldview, resulting in a church life where the Holy Spirit stays mostly confessed but not felt as necessary.
The Greek Paul of Tarsus invites us into the church life where the power from above, the Holy Spirit, calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies all those gathered in Christ’s name. Without the power of the Spirit, Christian churches are just social organizations on their own trying to respect God and do good works in his name. Such secularized churches do not have much staying power in the new American culture that does not share a biblical worldview.
What is your understanding of God’s grace? Does it mean more than mercy?
I love all you said. To me grace is everything. Grace is the generator of life in creation, in salvation, and in sanctification. I think the reason people universally feel alive and joyful when they are creating something (art, music, writing, cooking, loving etc.) is because at those moments they are participating in the creative activity of the divine Creator, in expressions of grace. And in believing the great good news of the gift of one’s accomplished salvation brings a freedom and joy unparalleled. Sheer grace completely releasing us from living under the law’s burdens. And the grace of the Holy Spirit is what daily births us more and more into the new life, enabling us to release our gifts, passions, and talents for God’s purposes for us in church and world. Partnering with the living God, Creator, Redeemer, and Enlightener, is a such a joyful gift. It really it “Amazing Grace!”
Well said. The root of charis is char, which means joy. You added the joy of creation. Creating a new me through the Spirit brings God joy. Thinking out the necessary steps and building furniture brings me joy.
“Mercy is when God spares you what you do deserve.”
“Grace is when God gives you what you don’t deserve.”
Well said. A member of our church designed a coin with that definition of mercy on one side and grace on the other, along with the symbol of the cross and the dove. My wife gives them out to servers at a restaurant. You can obtain some from Keith Park at hiscoin@gmail.com.
John 4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
We must recognize and glorify God in His Spirit for it is only through this that we can truly feel His presence and know His ways. It is through His Spirit that our faith is strengthened and His blessings are made known.
When we go out into our communities and share Jesus with EVERYONE through loving acts of kindness we are placing our complete trust in His Spirit that He knows what is going on in the hearts of the recipients as we do not. Our perception of someone is based outward appearances, their demeanor and our prejudices. Well serving the Lord in this fashion teaches us some very valuable lessons. While the unexpected act of kindness makes it easy to interact with many people, by itself it does not trigger the total transformation of the recipient as witnessed many times over when Jesus has clearly been identified as the source. His Spirit is what is at work, which is able to penetrate our tough exterior and unlock the heart to reveal the pain & suffering within. As if this wasn’t enough the Spirit also orchestrates with precision accuracy the series of events that took place just prior allowing this moment to take place at all. Truly an amazing thing to witness and serves to boost one’s faith to new heights! I highly recommend getting PACK started at your church and out in your community. The program download is free (no donations please) at http://www.acts18.org. Join the thousands who have already done so in 114 countries to date.
Actions speak louder than words. Behaving in Christ-like ways is our best witness.
I read this with a lump in my throat for this powerful reminder of grace and mercy and the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life. I am saving this in a “folder” of touching emails that nudge me spiritually and encourage my belief. Thank you.
Wow. I am glad this touched you so deeply. You have a strong life in the Spirit.
Wow! I loved reading the nuances. Had heard the Charis part in school, of course. Bringing in the justice framework from the Roman’s and then the good works of the Latin…excellent.
I’ve long wondered why our church body doesn’t typically talk about the work of the Holy Spirit beyond the sacraments and conversion. Thanks for sharing this and being an online professor! 😉
Hi, Krista. Our Lutheran forefathers did very rational theology. The Holy Spirit does not fit well rational concepts. I trust you are doing well.
My definition of grace is no “ifs”, “ands”, “buts” or “maybes”. It is God’s absolute blessing of restoration.
I like you word restoration. God’s gift of the Spirit produces fruit like love, joy and peace. That’s restoration to the life God created in the Garden of Eden.
Another GREAT post! Thank you David, after reading your post to my wife, she commented, “That’s right! We can’t survive without the Holy Spirt!”
Particularly in times like the present, when many believers go running to 2nd Chronicles 7:14, get on their knees before “an angry God” begging His forgiveness, trying their best to crucify Christ again, just to be sure He really meant what He said,”It is finished!”
Christians so often miss the point that “God is NOT mad at you, He is mad ABOUT you.”
That IS the Gospel of Grace. Undeserved forgiveness and unconditional love. It is so foreign in our worldview that even we, as Christians, have to “reload our paradigms” to properly interpret current events. Thanks
Well said. God could get angry in the OT. But that did not work. So the loving God started over again by sending the Messiah to remove the cause for God’s anger. For Luther, the righteousness of God made him angry with the sins of his people. Then one day he realized it was the righteousness from God that made him acceptable to God. The Reformation resulted.
In working with Muslims, I would often contrast mercy and grace. In the Quran, one of the frequent characteristics of Allah is merciful. Muslims hope that Allah will be merciful to them on the day of Judgment, seeing their many good deeds. There is a lot of fear and uncertainty for Muslims over Judgment Day. They just hope Allah will be merciful. In contrast, we as Christians have no fear. We see Judgment day as a day of surety and celebration because we know God is gracious because of Christ. With mercy, we can only hope; with grace, we know.
Hi, Herb. Good to hear from you. I value your perspective based on mission experience. You once wrote that we believe one God in three persons. With Muslims, why don’t we start out talking about the one God Muslims believe in and then get into the three Persons.
Grace and mercy in abundance. Each time I think about it, a lump comes to my throat. For years I could not take communion without that lump and some tears.
Hi, Linda. That lump is the Spirit moving in you. What a vivid experience.