STILL GRAPPLING WITH GRACE

Defining Grace is not as easy as it sounds.  It is more than just "unmerited favor."  Try plugging that into about half of the scriptures where Grace is found, and you'll see that it doesn't work.  Like all things that must be translated into English  it doesn't work all the time. Our men's group is working it from all angles, but we're not even close yet.  Grace is so much more than a simple act of mercy, or forgiveness. Grace is alive, thinking, and moving in us.  What we've learned from our study so far, is that grace is dynamic, powerful, and given to those who have faith.
One thing we worked hard to overcome, is the concept of fairness.
While God is not a "respecter of persons,"  that doesn't mean He treats everyone fairly.
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All we have to do, is look at His dealings with Cain, and Able.  Was there something we weren't told in the story?  If God were fair, He would have approved of Cain's sacrifice just as He did Able's.  Yet, we know that he didn't.  We can make all kinds of conjecture as to why, but the answer is; we don't know why.  I can hear Cain saying: "That's not fair!  I worked hard to grow that stuff! All Able did was bring a stinking lamb."  We as human beings, believe in fairness.  We believe that it is one of God's qualities, but it isn't.  HE IS JUST.  Justice assumes that all things are not fair.  Laws are hard, written in stone, and inflexible, Justice is not.  One of the greatest battles we face as a species going into the technological age, is the war between Law, and Justice. We want to believe in fairness, but it doesn't exist.  As people, we aren't equally valuable. That is why the Constitution of the United States of America is one of the most intriguing documents ever written by carnal men. The founding fathers of this great nation had a vision of what men could be if they moved beyond the idea of selfish ambition. They themselves were torn between the idea of governance, and rule.  I am sure that they would be dismayed to see their ideal of selfless governance turned into a dictatorial taskmaster. This is the end result of trying to be fair.  Their vision of equality was a loose framework that was inclusive, yet liberating. It is when we hand over the issue of fairness to the merciless hands of the law, that equality is swept aside for mindless uniformity. It is when we sacrifice judgment, and wisdom for the letter of the law, that we become trapped in tyranny. WE can see the results of this today as our government regulates our every movement, and maybe someday, our every thought.  This was never the founding fathers intent, nor is it our Heavenly Father's intent.  Fairness is not equality.
That is why judgment is the Lord's.  He is the wise, and kind judge.  We do not possess the knowledge of the future to decide as He decides.  Yet, when Christians are confronted with the carnal concept of fairness, we shrink back from the perceived cruelty of an unfair God.  Cruelty is situational. God is not situational.  He knows the beginning from the end.  Even Christians doubt His goodness when confronted with seemingly cruel things beyond their control.  Yet, we know God is good, or at least we should know He is good.
Grace is God making all things good, not fair, but good.  I'm sure that there are things I don't know, but He is revealing more of Himself every minute to those willing to listen. Men know more about the nature of God, than they have at any other time in history.  I'm sure that we will figure out God's definition of Grace before this is over with.