Marvelous, Infinite, Matchless Grace

The Cost of Grace

May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light. Colossians 1:11-12 (HCSB)

Mary Lewis shares this true story. Two guys in a church, Paul and William decided that they really wanted to become godly men. So they started meeting with one another to pray and encourage one another; they even set goals for themselves and their behavior, and then were accountable to the other one.

Paul decided he wanted to break his habit of using profanity. He decided he was going to put five dollars in the offering for every time he swore during the week. In order to stay accountable, he would tell William how many times he’d failed.

The first week cost Paul $100.

Now, Paul must’ve been doing ok financially, because that didn’t stop his swearing. In fact, while he improved somewhat over the next couple weeks, he really wasn’t having the success he wanted and was losing a lot of hard-earned cash. After the fourth week, William told Paul he had decided that the deal needed to be changed for the coming week, but he wasn’t going to tell Paul how it would change. He just said, “Trust me. It will cost you both less and more.”

When they met the following Sunday before worship, Paul admitted he’d failed again. William put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Paul, I told you this was going to cost you both less and more. It’s called grace.” William took out his checkbook, and made out a check to the church, leaving the amount blank. He gave the check to Paul and said, “Your sin still costs, but for you it’s free. Just fill in the numbers. And next week there will be more grace.”

William’s grace cost him $55 the first week; the second only cost him $20. There was no third week. Paul couldn’t bear to see what his sin was costing his friend, so he quit sinning.

Grace is never cheap. The cost is priceless and the result of grace can best be expressed in the words of the old slave trader John Newton:

I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be.

I am not what I hope to be. But still, I am not what I used to be.

And by the grace of God, I am what I am.

Today’s Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank You for the tremendous price You paid for me! I cherish the forgiveness of my sin through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen