“Grace Alone”

I was an orphan lost at the fall
Running away when I’d hear you call
But Father, you worked your will
I had no righteousness of my own

I had no right to draw near your throne
But Father, you loved me still
And in love before you laid the world’s foundation
You predestined to adopt me as your own

You have raised me up so high above my station
I’m a child of God by grace and grace alone
You left your home to seek out the lost
You knew the great and terrible cost

But Jesus, your face was set
I worked my fingers down to the bone
Nothing I did could ever atone
But Jesus, you paid my debt

By your blood I have redemption and salvation
Lord, you died that I might reap what you have sown
And you rose that I might be a new creation
I am born again by grace and grace alone

I was in darkness all of my life
I never knew the day from the night
But Spirit, you made me see
I swore I knew the way on my own

Head full of rocks, a heart made of stone
But Spirit, you moved in me
At your touch my sleeping spirit was awakened
On my darkened heart, the light of Christ has shone

Called into a kingdom that cannot be shaken
Heaven’s citizen by grace and grace alone

So I stand in faith by grace and grace alone
I will run the race by grace and grace alone
I will slay my sin by grace and grace alone
I will reach the end by grace and grace alone
(Taken from MarsHill.com)

I mean, that pretty much sums it up. I wish I would have understood grace more clearly before getting married. I wish I would have known that when I did the things I didn’t want to do {in my marriage and all of life} or when I didn’t do the things I did want to do, that only grace could change me. That only by accepting Jesus’ completed work on the cross could I be a better wife and not by working my fingers down to the bone in an effort to change myself. That I could put on Jesus’ righteousness simply because He’s given it to me. Not because I earned it. That all of my striving apart from grace was useless.

To be able to actually “see the gospel by despairing of my own efforts.”

I love these three lines:

Lord, you died that I might reap what you have sown
And you rose that I might be a new creation
I am born again by grace and grace alone

I wish I would have known that His death, His burial, and His resurrection {a.k.a. the gospel} were my only hope to being the wife God called me to be. Because if I had gotten that, I would have deeply valued grace. As we talked about yesterday, we need to understand the bitterness of sin to appreciate the sweetness of grace. And I also would have been much more willing and able to extend grace to my husband out of the grace that Jesus had so lavishly poured out on me. When we start to understand grace, we become more gracious wives instead of living like the unmerciful servant in unforgiveness.

21 “Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. 23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 So the servantfell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundreddenarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. 31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. 32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers,until he should pay all his debt. 35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” (Matthew 18:21-34)

How can we be forgiven of such a costly debt {all our sin} and yet turn around and choke our husbands out for their sin? If we accept Jesus’ grace, how can we not extend grace to our husbands? For me, it was because I didn’t really believe I was that bad of a sinner, didn’t understand that each sin killed Jesus, and didn’t get or appreciate grace.

Thankfully, by grace, I’m getting it now. Most of the time. And when I don’t, and I fall short, there’s grace. Crazy talk.

So I stand in faith by grace and grace alone
I will run the race by grace and grace alone
I will slay my sin by grace and grace alone
I will reach the end by grace and grace alone

So far in this series we’ve talked about what I wish I would have known About Jesus, sin, and grace before getting married. Come back tomorrow as we discuss my final “wish”: “What I Wish I Would Have Known About Repentance.” Then, stay tuned for another funny story {in addition to “The On the Way to Church Fight”} of me falling flat on my face and also an update on where we are now and what’s different.

**This is the fifth post in the “Wicked Wife” series.**