~May Your Light Shine :D~

Tuesday, August 09, 2005

Look up now to where you type the web address and you will see precious grace. The reason why I named this blog so was not only because it sounded nice and was meaningful but also because it is what my name in chinese, 玮恩， means. Although my parents gave me that name, hoping I would someday grow up to be a gracious person, I admit that I have not been able to live up to my name.

However what does grace really mean? In a world where society works on meritocracy, grace is nowhere to be found. You work hard for a promotion, you get what you deserve, that is what justice and fairness means. Anger fuels hatred and the quest for revenge is neverending. Feuds last for generations and decades later, all that is left is destruction and emptiness. Take a look at the war on terrorism. From the moment America retaliated and launched a large scale attack on Iraq, terrorism has not ceased to exist. Conversely, never has the world seen such horrific acts of violence at such an alarming frequency in the past century as they do now. People worry about bombs on public transport, hijacks in airplanes and in some countries, walking along the streets is a highly dangerous affair. When Ms Universe contestants are asked the question what do they wish for the most, we will always remember the cliched answer, "World peace." But is world peace attainable?

I believe it is and it all hinges on grace. When Jesus comes back again, there will be world peace. The one thing that distinguishes Chrisitianity from all other religions is grace. Other religions teach that you need to do good deeds to attain enlightenment or go to Heaven. Even then it is not guaranteed. Only the Chrisitian faith guarantees you a place in Heaven and all you have to do is accept Jesus as your Saviour. However, to some, this seems very unfair. We can all understand why the apostles go to heaven, even Paul, who like Hitler, went all out to persecute the Christians before he met God, but later went on to become the world's best evangelist. However, what about the thief who was crucified with Jesus? All he did was asked Jesus to remember him and he was granted a place in paradise. Let us not forget about the other sinners Jesus was seen with, the prostitute who washed Jesus feet with expensive perfume, tax collectors, etc.

To those who suffered years for the Lord, it is difficult to swallow the fact that even murderers before their death sentence have a chance to enter heaven. Many of us, react like the elder son in the parable, The Prodigal Son, frustrated as to why the father would care to hold a feast for the son who left and squandered away his inheritance and came back in a sorry state. We would like to have seen the younger son getting punished but the bible shows us that he had a lovesick father who saw him from afar, ran to the son and kissed him. The younger son did nothing to deserve the feast held in his honor, but the father gave it anyway. We too have a lovesick Father, and His grace means there is nothing we can do to make Him love us more neither is there anything we can do to make Him love us less.

Finding an item that was lost, often brings greater joy than when obtaining it in the first place. What must it feel like for a parent to get a phone call from the police reporting that a daughter abducted years ago has been found alive? I believe that is a glimpse of how God feels when a sinner repents. In the words of Henri Nouwen, " God rejoices. Not because the problems of the world have been solved, not because all human pain and suffering have come to an end, nor becuase thousands of people have been converted and are now praising Him for his goodness. No, God rejoices because one of his children who was lost has been found. "

It often seems to me that in creating us, God made a very bad investment, He even had to sacrifice His one and only beloved son. But then again grace takes away all sense of human logic. Someone once said, that if we were all to operate on "an eye for an eye" attitude, the whole world will go blind. How true! Perhaps it is time we take on a gracious approach to an ungrateful world, only then are we one step closer to world peace.

Lydea blogged at 11:08 PM

May your light shine...
in the darkness...