Administration of Grace

"This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles - for surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given me for you, and how the mystery was made know to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, a reading of which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ."
--Ephesians 3:1-4

Paul was "...circumcised on the eight day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the Law, blameless."
--Philippians 3:5-6

Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, used to be a Pharisee. At first, we think "oh, he's finally understood that righteousness comes from faith, not the Law", and, yes, we'd be correct.

But.

The Pharisees hated the Gentiles. "Gentiles were created for the fires of hell", taught one teacher. Paul, zealous to the extreme, would have known this and practiced this. He would have condemned the Gentiles, never eating with them or being around them, so as to stay "clean" before the Law.

And, yet, God has chosen him, Paul, a Hebrew of Hebrews, a Pharisee before the Law, to preach to the Gentiles. God has taken the one least likely to do this naturally, and redeemed him. God has taken Paul's weakness and used it for His glory.

Isn't that the way of it? Isn't that the Way of Christ?

God taking our weakness, our failings, and using them for His glory. I struggle with paying attention...voila, instant ministry to many of the youth in my church. I struggle with feeling loved...and, voila, instant understanding of what many people are going through, and an aid in reaching them with the love of Christ. My parents are divorced...I understand the frustration, the anger, the agony of going through that and can reach out to all the people that come from broken and shattered families.

I hate that. I hate that God uses my weaknesses most. Why can't He just make me better, and THEN I can minister?

Because, its not about me. Its not about what I can do. Its not about how I can reach. Its not about how smart I am, how intelligent I sound, how good I look...any of it. Its not about me.

Its about God. Its about His glory.

We live in a broken world, tainted and marred by sin. And, so often, we close our eyes and pretend we are perfect. We cut others down ruthlessly to build ourselves back up (no one is more guilty of this than I). We point out all the imperfections in others, and then get defensive when someone mentions a possible misstep on our part.

Instead, Christ calls us to throw our broken selves before the throne of grace. Let us take Paul's example and let God change and use our inmost and deepest chasms of hate, let God redeem them with His grace and His love.

Once again, I feel like I have fallen far short in describing the indescribable. I wish I could convey the beauty of the grandeur of God's grace. However, it is not something that can be described; only something that can be experienced. Immerse yourself in the Word of God, and there meet the Living and Active Christ.