Why the "Tyranny" of Grace?

An evangelical friend once asked me, “are you Born-Again?”  Recognizing my confusion, he followed up “have you accepted Jesus as your personal savior?”

I could’ve answered flippantly, as I used to do in high school, “No thanks,” I’d say as I’d pat myself down “ it appears I was born sufficiently the first time.”   But I didn’t choose that route; instead I just said “No”. Our conversation ended abruptly in discomfort and silence. I wish I had answered his question differently and with more explanation. I wish I could have answered him as I would now. Our friendship deserved that much and more.

This is always a tough question for me as I'm a non-evangelical Protestant. You’d need to understand how I understand salvation through Grace.  To me, Grace is best expressed in Paul’s letters to the Ephesians which instructs us that Grace is given to us and not earned by us through acts or good works.  So, how can you deserve or earn what is freely given?   When we are saved, it is not because of any act we choose.

Therefore any statement about Grace or salvation that begins with “I accept” is utterly flawed. At best it is unnecessary and at worst it is misleading.  I do not accept Jesus as my Savior because He does the accepting, the choosing and the saving. I am merely the object of His salvation and Grace. I am saved, whether I accept it or not.

You might think that’s pretty easy, huh?  Something for nothing? Best deal in the world… you might even think it’s the kind of “cheap grace” that the great Lutheran theologian Deitrich Bonhoeffer warns us against.

Let me tell you a story I heard a while ago about a vicious hate crime that was committed by  two white supremacists who murdered a black man. Every day during the trial and sentencing,  the victim’s mother sat in the front row of the gallery.  Observers noted that she was completely unemotional.  When the grisly facts of the murder were read by the prosecutor, she didn’t flinch.  When the jury foreman read the “guilty” verdict, she didn’t show any sign of  joy or satisfaction.  Even at the sentencing, she didn’t show any sign of relief. Of the perpetrators, one was observed to act without remorse.  He often crossed his arms as if in defiance and mumbled under his breath.  He stared down the jury and the judge and scowled incessantly. The other murderer was different.  He hung his head and spoke dispassionately even when given the opportunity to defend himself.  He wept often during the trial.

At the sentencing, the second one asked to speak to the court.  The judge warned him not to
say anything that might upset the court and especially the victim’s family.  He promised that he wouldn’t. He began to blurt out a rambled and almost incompressible explanation andapology. At the end, he addressed the victim’s mother and told her that although he didn’t deserve it, he hoped that one day she’d learn to forgive him.

With a meek and halting voice, but one that spoke with greater authority than the court's she spoke. “I have already forgiven you.  Both of you.” The judge had to issue a short recess, so  that he and everyone else could dry their eyes and collect themselves. You and I are heirs and descendants of the crucifixion, which is, after all, the world’s best  known hate crime.  When we look up to Heaven and ask God to forgive us, He replies, “I have already forgiven you.  All of you.”

Such is the nature of Grace.  Doesn’t sound like it comes easy, does it? It costs much, but it is paid by Another.

To me, Grace is unmistakable, inescapable and unrelenting.  It is as if we live under the tyranny of Grace, eternal and universal. That's the origin of the title of this blog. Whether we choose to accept Him or not, Jesus intrudes on our lives with Grace and salvation through Grace. Thanks be for that.

And that’s what Bonhoeffer calls, “costly Grace”.  A Grace that may not require anything of us,  but may inspire greater discipleship from us.