Grave to Grace… (Matthew 28:1) 211008
Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. (Matthews 28:1)
I am in the midst of preparing a sermon to be preached 3 Sundays from now. I am so stressed out because I don’t even have a passage in mind. All I am given is the topic: Life of Abundance. This is such a wide theme. I am not sure if i should speak on material abundance or spiritual abundance or emotional abundance or whatever abundance; with God, everything can be in abundance. This topic is simply too broad and I am not given a specific area to work on. Rather to say that I am in the midst of preparing a sermon, I have not even decided on a good passage to work on it.
I feel stressed because I will be going for a holiday with my family end of this week for a week, and I am also preaching again on the Sunday after preaching on the “Life of Abundance”. Before that I am going to have a Boys’ Brigade camp and apprentice training class on a new material which I have not have completed on the week before my preaching. To add on my stress level, I will be running another round of fellowship for single working adults on the day I am preaching and I have to teach during that fellowship. On top of these, there are two weddings to attend on the two Saturdays before I am preaching. When I look at my schedule, I am like the Marys, we are all looking at the grave.
I am looking at the grave of religious work while the Marys were looking at the grave of Jesus. They did not know that Jesus will eventually walk out of that grave; that grave had no restraint to the Lord Jesus. Though I know Jesus is already out of the grave, yet I still look at the grave. I look at my own ability to handle all my preaching preparation and teaching. I look at the time I have at hand to work on all these preaching and teaching. I am looking at the grave.
What is beyond the grave? It is grace. It is grace because Jesus is walking out of the grave. It is grace because Jesus is no longer in the grave. Jesus is the grace of God who will allow us to walk through life with Him in peace and joy. Jesus is the grace of God whom we receive the life of abundance. Jesus is the grace.
I am thankful to realize such grace this morning. I can no longer look into the grave but to the grace of Jesus. By looking at the grave of religiosity, I am hopeless and weak. By looking at the grace of Jesus, I am sufficient and strong (2 Cor. 12:9). By looking at the grave of the bureaucracy of the church, I am bounded and restrained. By looking at the grace of Jesus in His truth, I am being set free (John 8:32). By looking at the grave of my personal inadequacy, I am disappointed and discouraged. By looking at the grace of Jesus in my life, I can be comforted and rejoice for He is faithful to those who are faithful to His commandments (Deut. 7:9).
Now, I can relax and take some time off to wait upon the grace of God to give me the strength, the faith and the truth to prepare for my next sermon. I have to learn to look away from the grave of Jesus and look to the grace of Jesus. For by grace I have been saved through faith; and that not of myself, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast (Eph. 2:8-9; Italics are mine).
Are you looking at the grave or are you looking at the grace of Jesus? If you are looking at the grave of your health, look to the grace of Jesus for healing. If you are looking at the grave of a relationship (I am not referring to marriage), look to the grace of Jesus to learn to submit to one another (Eph. 5:21). If you are looking at the grave of your current job, look at the grace of Jesus who will speak and guide you gently along. If you are looking at the grave of the current financial crisis, look to the grace of Jesus for security and provision. If you are looking at the grave of your loneliness, look at the grace of Jesus’ promise to be with you always (Matt. 28:20). Turn away from the grave, and look to the grace of Jesus.
HHS…
Abel…
