“If you would tell me, tell me true,” a wise old man once said. “There isn’t time enough for lies.”
And when we’ve polished all our trophies, and sung again our victory songs, we come at last to stories too painful to be false. Each honest story unwraps our wounds, our hurts—as well as those we’ve given.
We grieve the loved ones whom we’ve lost—a spouse; a friend; a much-loved child—though some of them still live and breathe. We mourn the loss of innocence; we’ve soaked up toxic sums of greed. We laugh at violence and war; we cheer for “heroes” who display our poorest human qualities. We feel the sadness for what’s never fixed or mended or repaired.
And so it’s not an accident that we know more of Jesus as a healer than any other role. He stepped into the broken story of our world with grace that made the lepers dance and unlocked tongues that never spoke. He gave the parents back lost children; He cast out evil spirits and refashioned sin-sick attitudes. He told us of a Father who kindly waits for us to finish playing prodigal.
And when He died to heal us of our greatest hurt, He took our pain and made it His. “He was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the punishment that made us whole, and by His bruises we are healed” (Isa 53:5-6).
The good news is that grace still heals. It closes wounds; it soothes our scars. And someday soon, it leads us home.
So stay in grace. -Bill Knott
GraceNotes: The Certainties of Grace (December 21, 2018)
GraceNotes: Grace and Risk (December 14, 2018)
GraceNotes: For Goodness' Sake (December 7, 2018)
Transformation Tips: Resist The Python Spirit (December 2018)
Costin Jordache: What We Don't Know About Technology (December 2018)
ViewPoint: The Place Where I Worship (December 2018)
Journeys with Jesus: The Greatest Gift (December 2018)
GraceNotes: Persistent Grace (November 30, 2018)
Digging Deeper: The Creation Story (December 2018)
GraceNotes: Gratitude and Grace (November 23, 2018)
ViewPoint: Making Change Sustainable (November 2018)
GraceNotes: Grace Beyond Fear (November 16, 2018)
Zero Alcohol Consumption (November 2018)
GraceNotes: Grace and Clarity (November 9, 2018)
Cliff's Edge: Adventism After Auschwitz (November 2018)
Jared Thurmon: Do Robots Need The Law? (November 2018)
Searching The Obvious: Not Done (November 2018)
GraceNotes: The Gate of Grace (November 2, 2018)
Digging Deeper: Babylon (November 2018)
GraceNotes: Tenacious Grace (October 26, 2018)
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