Indiscriminate Grace
By J.B. Hixson, Ph.D.
04/20/2022
“I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You…. I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:2–6)
Many people see life through the lens of retribution. When something bad happens, they ask, “What did I do to deserve this?” They assume that life has some kind of master “fate regulator,” where bad consequences are only the result of bad actions. As long as they do their part, they expect God to do His.
According to this faulty view of life, God is like a cosmic Coke machine. When we put in our coins, we expect to get what we requested. If we push the Dr. Pepper button, we expect to get Dr. Pepper. If we push Pepsi, we expect to get Pepsi. After all, we did our part. We put the money in the machine; we pushed the correct button. When we do not get what we expected, we become confused and angry. We push the button again; we start shaking the machine; and we demand a refund. Why? Because we feel cheated. Some people have become so frustrated when vending machines do not cooperate, that they shake them to the point that the machine topples over on them and severely injures or even kills them!
What we need to understand, however, is that God is not some kind of cosmic soft drink dispenser. Life is not always fair, and it is not God’s fault. He created a perfect world filled with justice, peace, and righteousness. We messed it up. God is doing everything He can to rescue us from the predicament we got ourselves into. He sacrificed His own Son in payment for our sins, and He offers freely to all the gift of eternal life.
One day, according to His plan, He will make all things right in the world again. Jesus will return to the earth, establish His Kingdom, and there will be no more injustice and suffering. Until then, we must look to God as our hope in the midst of the storm, not point fingers at Him as if He was the storm-maker.
The story of Job is familiar to even the most casual student of the Bible. Chosen by God to endure a period of untold suffering and trials, Job enters into an extended dialogue with three friends in an effort to understand why he was suffering. The book of Job addresses the age-old theological question: Why do the righteous suffer? The message of Job teaches us that only God knows what’s best for us and that even through suffering God’s glory is revealed. The traditional understanding of the retributive principle of suffering is proven false by Job. Particular sins are not always the immediate and universal explanation for trials and suffering in life. In good times and bad, God is first and foremost a God of grace.
Even God’s righteous servant Job had to come to the realization that he did not have the right to question God for the suffering he was facing. If ever there was a man who did not deserve suffering it was Job. In God’s own words, “He was blameless and upright and there was none like him on the earth. He feared God and shunned evil.” (Job 1:8) In light of this, it is not surprising that Job questioned God when he faced unspeakable suffering. “Why me?” he must have thought.
Job had “heard” God, but he had never really “seen” God for who He is. (Job 42:5) In the end, Job comes full circle (no thanks to his three friends who had it all wrong) and realizes that he was no more deserving of God’s blessing and grace than the worst sinner. The great thing about God’s grace is that it is indiscriminate. Job repented of his wrong attitude toward God because he saw himself in the light of God’s holiness.
We all have a tendency to adopt Job’s attitude. We think, “I’m a pretty good person. I shouldn’t have to suffer. I should receive God’s blessing.” However, what we need to realize is that all of us, no matter how good we may be on the outside, are sinners in need of a Savior. If there is anything good in our lives at all, it is only by God’s grace.
The only thing any of us deserve is to spend eternity in a literal place of torment called hell. God loved us enough to send Jesus Christ to pay our personal penalty for sin on the cross. If we will simply put our trust in Him as our personal Savior and believe that Jesus is the only One with the power to forgive sin and give the free gift of eternal life, we will be saved.
Perhaps you have spent a lifetime “hearing” God, but you have never really “seen” Him for who He is. When we truly see God in all of His holiness, only then will we see ourselves for who we really are: the fortunate recipients of God’s indiscriminate grace.
04/20/2022
“I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You…. I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:2–6)
Many people see life through the lens of retribution. When something bad happens, they ask, “What did I do to deserve this?” They assume that life has some kind of master “fate regulator,” where bad consequences are only the result of bad actions. As long as they do their part, they expect God to do His.
According to this faulty view of life, God is like a cosmic Coke machine. When we put in our coins, we expect to get what we requested. If we push the Dr. Pepper button, we expect to get Dr. Pepper. If we push Pepsi, we expect to get Pepsi. After all, we did our part. We put the money in the machine; we pushed the correct button. When we do not get what we expected, we become confused and angry. We push the button again; we start shaking the machine; and we demand a refund. Why? Because we feel cheated. Some people have become so frustrated when vending machines do not cooperate, that they shake them to the point that the machine topples over on them and severely injures or even kills them!
What we need to understand, however, is that God is not some kind of cosmic soft drink dispenser. Life is not always fair, and it is not God’s fault. He created a perfect world filled with justice, peace, and righteousness. We messed it up. God is doing everything He can to rescue us from the predicament we got ourselves into. He sacrificed His own Son in payment for our sins, and He offers freely to all the gift of eternal life.
One day, according to His plan, He will make all things right in the world again. Jesus will return to the earth, establish His Kingdom, and there will be no more injustice and suffering. Until then, we must look to God as our hope in the midst of the storm, not point fingers at Him as if He was the storm-maker.
The story of Job is familiar to even the most casual student of the Bible. Chosen by God to endure a period of untold suffering and trials, Job enters into an extended dialogue with three friends in an effort to understand why he was suffering. The book of Job addresses the age-old theological question: Why do the righteous suffer? The message of Job teaches us that only God knows what’s best for us and that even through suffering God’s glory is revealed. The traditional understanding of the retributive principle of suffering is proven false by Job. Particular sins are not always the immediate and universal explanation for trials and suffering in life. In good times and bad, God is first and foremost a God of grace.
Even God’s righteous servant Job had to come to the realization that he did not have the right to question God for the suffering he was facing. If ever there was a man who did not deserve suffering it was Job. In God’s own words, “He was blameless and upright and there was none like him on the earth. He feared God and shunned evil.” (Job 1:8) In light of this, it is not surprising that Job questioned God when he faced unspeakable suffering. “Why me?” he must have thought.
Job had “heard” God, but he had never really “seen” God for who He is. (Job 42:5) In the end, Job comes full circle (no thanks to his three friends who had it all wrong) and realizes that he was no more deserving of God’s blessing and grace than the worst sinner. The great thing about God’s grace is that it is indiscriminate. Job repented of his wrong attitude toward God because he saw himself in the light of God’s holiness.
We all have a tendency to adopt Job’s attitude. We think, “I’m a pretty good person. I shouldn’t have to suffer. I should receive God’s blessing.” However, what we need to realize is that all of us, no matter how good we may be on the outside, are sinners in need of a Savior. If there is anything good in our lives at all, it is only by God’s grace.
The only thing any of us deserve is to spend eternity in a literal place of torment called hell. God loved us enough to send Jesus Christ to pay our personal penalty for sin on the cross. If we will simply put our trust in Him as our personal Savior and believe that Jesus is the only One with the power to forgive sin and give the free gift of eternal life, we will be saved.
Perhaps you have spent a lifetime “hearing” God, but you have never really “seen” Him for who He is. When we truly see God in all of His holiness, only then will we see ourselves for who we really are: the fortunate recipients of God’s indiscriminate grace.
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