“Grace . . . it is the gift of God.” Unmerited, unearned, pure gift, out of the goodness of God’s love and mercy, grace is wondrous to experience. Jesus gives us a good illustration of grace in his parable of the laborers in the vineyard (Mt.20:1-16). You remember, that’s the story of the landowner who gave those hired at the end of the day the usual daily wage, the very same amount he gave to those hired early in the morning “who [had] borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” Just imagine the joy of those last hired! It is so different from what we would expect in the world; we are stunned at such magnanimity.

Look at our lessons for today. It was grace for the Lord to bring the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, grace to feed them with “the bread of angels” (Ps.78:25), grace to have Moses lift up the bronze serpent as a sign of healing for their complaining hearts. The psalmist knew it was grace when “[God] sent forth his word and healed them and saved them from the grave.” It was grace that transformed Paul from a persecutor of Christians to an evangelist for Christ. It was grace that God “gave his only Son . . . in order that the world might be saved through him.” Grace upon grace!

Thank goodness, God’s grace did not stop when the canon of scripture was closed. It was “Amazing Grace” that turned a slaver like John Newton into an abolitionist, and God’s amazing, healing, redeeming, sanctifying grace is sufficient for you and me if we are open to receive it. The apostle Paul asks, “Do you despise the riches of [God’s] kindness (grace) and forbearance and patience? Do you not realize that God’s kindness (grace) is meant to lead you to repentance?” (Rom.2:4) With that in mind, we might even look at the season of Lent as grace. “Since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Rom.3:23) Lent provides an opportunity for us to realize that we have indeed “erred and strayed like lost sheep,” to repent and turn our lives around, to return to the Lord, and once again to walk in the light of the Lord, the way God has prepared for us.