Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down, for the Lord upholds him with His hand.” Psalm 37:24
When something has been damaged or broken, we usually throw it away. The object has lost its value or it’s become worthless. When we talk about God being the One who keeps us, or tends to our wellbeing, we know God will restore us when have been harmed, stolen from, or we’ve fallen. His motive in restoration is the value He still sees in us.
Let’s remind ourselves, we were damaged when Jesus died to win us back to God. Jesus was not paying a ransom for us at our best; we were at our worst. Because He loved us, He not only chose to provide redemption, but to commit to a life-long restoration process.
Receiving the grace of God is necessary to receive salvation, but the grace of God is also necessary for living life day-to-day. We sometimes struggle with grace because of our tendency to be self-sufficient. We will humble ourselves to be dependent on Jesus for our initial redemption, but we sometimes gravitate to our good behavior and good works to earn our standing with God and each other.
When we are drawn to lean on our own strength, we try to fix our faults in our own strength. We also try to be better than those around us, so we pick out their faults, as well. If we don’t find a fault, then we will even resort to holding up rules and regulations so we can catch someone who is not measuring up.
However, when someone is tending to the needs of another, part of the tending process is fixing what is broken, healing what was hurt, and picking up what was fallen. Like a shepherd goes to search for a lost sheep caught in a thicket, God comes searching to rescue us when we have wandered away or a wolf clawed us. God is our keeper, the one who tends to our care.
Are you damaged? God wants to heal you. Are you fallen? God wants to raise you. The only thing God needs to tend to us is our surrender and our repentance. God will heal and restore to relationship with Him. Whether or not the person is restored to responsibility is up to the Lord. Let’s receive grace for ourselves and others. There is also truth in accountability. Grace is not intended to enable abusers to continue to abuse. God’s care includes safety, amen?
Application: Read Psalm 94:18-19, Micah 7:8, and Jude 1:24 If someone ever tries to condemn you for something for which God has forgiven; don’t receive it. Pray for them. They are lacking in grace.