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Book is filled with Grace. Oh
yes. And it has been through receipt of that Grace, that we had to add the
word "Amazing". AMAZING Grace.
And what is there about God's Grace that makes it so amazing? Mr. Webster
defines grace as "good-will or favor", then adds, "Divine love and
protection given to mankind by God". Grace is the unmerited favor of God.
Unmerited? Absolutely! We cannot earn it, learn it, buy it, deserve it, but
He still imparts His Grace to us, every day.
Such a gift as Grace begs the question, "Why?" Why would God ever give us
Grace? Why would God extend His glorious mercy to us? The answer is so
simple that many completely miss it or choose to disregard it. He wants us
to glorify Him. He wants us to magnify Him. He wants us to love Him, and
praise Him. He wants us to live for Him, so He can give us abundant life and
a peace that truly does pass all understanding. It's hard for humans to
understand this kind of love, for it is not in our nature. Thus the
difference in God's divine nature and man's corruptible one. God extends His
Grace to us that we may come to know Him in His fullness, in all His
abundance. Grace. Amazing Grace. What glorious words!
Countless numbers of people have heard that wonderful old hymn, "Amazing
Grace". Have you ever really stopped to listen to the words of that great
old song? It was written by a man who experienced the awesome Grace of God,
John Newton. Articles about his life describe the debauchery in which he
indulged, even going so far as to engage in the despicable slave trade,
transporting people from their homeland to distant shores. However, one day,
John Newton met a man, and oh what a man he met!
During a desperate bid for his life during which the ship he captained very
nearly sank, he reached beyond the means he knew and into the arms of
Amazing Grace. No wonder John Newton could pen such words! He knew, he
experienced Amazing Grace, firsthand. He never ceased to praise God for His
Grace. Sources record that shortly before his death at the age of 82, he
said, "My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: I am a great
sinner and Jesus Christ is a great Savior!"
Newton's tombstone reads, "John Newton, Clerk, once an infidel and
libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned and appointed to
preach the faith he had long labored to destroy." But a far greater
testimony outlives John Newton--the most famous of the hundreds of hymns he
wrote: Amazing Grace.
I, too, can attest to that great Grace. "Amazing Grace" will always be my
favorite of all songs because it so aptly describes the wretchedness of my
own life and the forgiveness I found through Jesus Christ. Oh, that God
would extend His Grace to forgive such a person as me!
I will never forget who I was and what I was and where I was. I don't want
to forget. I want to always remember where He brought me from and all that
He has done for me. I am separated from the sins of my past and have been
made a new creature in Him. Old things are passed away, behold! All things
have become new. There's a completeness, a peace the Bible describes as
being "past all understanding" in my life, that the world and all it had to
offer, could not give. But what makes it so amazing is, it's made new every
day! It's there for not only today, but all my tomorrows!
Do you know that peace? Do you have that everlasting joy and contentment
deep within your soul? You can. Yes, you can - it's there for you, too. You
can know the relief that only Jesus Christ can give. You, too, can have a
new life through His Amazing Grace.
You see, there truly is no other word for Grace but Amazing.
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