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Grace Greater Than Sin

Ephesians 2:4-5 "But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved."

Today was Palm Sunday - the day when Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowds around him. In just a few short hours, the scene would change dramatically and by the end of the week, He would be dead. As we move through the holy week prior to Easter, we need to look introspectively at why Jesus did what He did. I think we know all the pat answers, but do we really realize what put Him on that cross?

Did you know that your sin nailed Jesus to the cross just as surely as that of Hitler, or Nero, or Osama bin Laden? There are no degrees of sin with God and Romans tells us clearly that all have sinned and come short of His glory.

As we have been reading the Bible through since January, most of us have finished Leviticus and Numbers and are plowing through Deuteronomy. Although reading the law is tedious, it serves the purpose of showing us how completely inadequate we are to meet God's requirements on our own. Hebrews 12: 18-21 gives a frightening account of Moses on Mt Sinai receiving the law. He came down "trembling with fear".

In verse 22 of that chapter, though, the writer tells us that we come to approach a different mountain. We come to Mount Zion where angels are in "joyful assembly". Why the difference? Because the cross stands in between. God's grace in the death of Jesus Christ enables us to "boldly approach the throne".

The thing is - I think we take that privilege for granted. I believe we have made God into our friend and we have forgotten His absolute holiness. Until we truly understand the enormity of our sin, we will never really get the magnitude of God's grace. My Sunday School material this week, encouraged us to spend time meditating on exactly that. So I will encourage you - Spend time meditating on our sin, what it caused and His grace and what it has accomplished then thank and worship Him for that which we will celebrate this Easter season.

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