Sometimes when we get into conversations about why relationships in our lives are strained, we get stuck on where it all went wrong. We are all-in on pursuing justice—for ourselves. Well, they did that, or They accused me of this, or I just can’t get over when he said that.
We do this in our marriages: The reason we are having problems is because she does this, and I don’t deserve it.
We’re like this in our jobs: Well, I’m owed this and I wasn’t given my full due here.
We’re like this even in societal racial discussions: Well, I’m being held responsible for what my ancestors did and that’s not my fault! And that’s all true—if we’re only talking about justice.
But if you’ve encountered Jesus, you go beyond justice to mercy. You’ll ask different kinds of questions: What do I have by which I can lift up others? How can I use my position to pour myself out? I don’t want to merely repay what I owe; I want to give back four times as much.
An impulse for grace is the sign that grace has changed you. Robert Murray M’Cheyne once said,
The more you understand who Jesus is and what he has done for you, the more generous you become … I fear there are many hearing me who now know they are not Christians because they do not love to give. To give largely and liberally, not grudging at all, requires a new heart. An old heart would rather part with its lifeblood than its money.
Is your life characterized by mercy, justice and generosity? If not, Zacchaeus would say, “I don’t think you’ve met the same guy I have. There’s no way to encounter that kind of grace and stay the same. There’s just no way.”
This article on justice and generosity originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
