Words Of Grace

John 3:16-17

God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:17)

AS THE MODERN MISSIONS MOVEMENT began to swell in the nineteenth century, most missionaries personified the message of Isaiah 52:7—“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!” A few, however, carried only bad news: a message of condemnation for the horrific sins “the heathens” practiced. They spent most of their time deconstructing local religions and hardly any proclaiming the gospel of redemption and restoration. Like street-corner preachers on a global stage, they were messengers of judgment.

There are times when the law of God needs to be declared in order to convince hearts that their righteousness is insufficient and they are thus in need of him. But judgment is never the end of the message, and it usually isn’t the beginning, either. The kindness of God is a much better catalyst for repentance than his severity is (Romans 2:4). Likewise, the message of our universal depravity is usually fruitless unless it is sandwiched between a clear affirmation of each human being’s immense value in God’s eyes and each human being’s vast potential as his beloved and restored child. The gospel is above all a message of love and hope. That’s the message Jesus delivered.

Jesus made it clear that an age of judgment is coming, but this is not it. This is an age of rescue, of blessing, of restoration and the favor of God (Luke 4:19). If our message does not line up with that truth, something is wrong. If it does, we will find that many hearts that had once turned away from him are drawn to him—slowly, perhaps, and sometimes suspiciously, but eventually in confidence and hope. The Kingdom of God is far more spacious than many of us have imagined, and his grace reaches farther than many of us are willing to concede. Yes, the gate is narrow, but the land inside is abundant, fruitful, and wide. Let your words be filled with the grace that makes that clear.

{Jesus, may my voice harmonize with yours in every way in declaring the time of God’s favor, restoration, and mercies as wide as his Kingdom. Let the Father’s love and the Spirit’s power fill my words. Amen.