There are about as many definitions of Divine Grace as there are Christians. However, according to God's own word, there is only one, and that one solely defines who He is. It is embedded in His character, in His nature and above all, it is in His disposition to show His graciousness and loving kindness toward all of humanity. It is His Nature to love mankind in the same manner as He loved His first creation Adam. The original creation was corrupted by the first act of disobedience in the heavens – then by man. But God's love for His creation ran so deep in His heart that when the relationship between Himself and His creation was broken, He forgave us and reconciled it alone by becoming flesh, bound it by the crucifixion and death of His only begotten Son, and then sealed it with His own Spirit by the resurrection of Christ. By this sole act completed one hundred percent by Christ, humanity now has the unmerited privilege of living in a new age – the Age of Divine Grace. When I read the words that God spoke to Jeremiah about putting His law within them and on their hearts, it brings to mind this definition of marriage that someone once presented to me: "Marriage is a bonding of two souls by the spirit of love. Together their love brings forth a power that one does not have alone. If the marriage is bound by the written law, then it binds but does not bond; but if it is bound by the law that is written on the tablet of your heart, then it bonds but does not bind. Know that law and you will need no other law." The Old Testament believers were bound by the written law, and because of it, I can understand why it was so difficult for them to bond with God. The Hebrew word for law is towrah and is defined to mean "a body of legal instructions." If I think of this in terms of a marriage, then this tells me that it becomes a marriage that is bound by the written law as opposed to a marriage that is bound by the heart.
How incredibly fortunate we can count ourselves to be as we live in an age where in God's own character, His disposition is to show loving kindness toward all of mankind. We are now free – free to be loved by God – to love Him back freely, and to give to and receive love from each other as brothers and sisters in the body of Christ without having a body of legal instructions and penance to follow, and more importantly, without any condemnation or judgment. God's free gift to humanity is – The Age of Divine Grace which makes it possible for us to be freely and eternally reconciled to Him, and to become a part of His new creation.
Blessings, Judy
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© 2011 Judy Azar LeBlanc
