Recently, I gave out something beautiful to someone. I felt the person would really need it. Days after, while thinking about it, I felt I should have given it to another person more deserving of it. Then I heard the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit; “That was what I did when I gave you the gift of my Son. You were not deserving of it. That is Grace.” I learnt the lesson.

Friend, the economy of Grace is such that most people do not understand (2 Corinthians 9:15). The reason God’s Grace seems to elude a lot of people is the thinking that they don’t deserve it. Sometimes, we rob ourselves of the Grace we need when we think others are unworthy of it (Luke 18:9-14).

The reason it is called Grace is that we are not deserving of it (Romans 11:6). If you need to work for it, it is not Grace. If you need to earn it, it is not Grace. Grace is Grace when it locates the undeserving and least likely. This is why the parables of Jesus often glorify the least, the last and the lost (Luke 15:32).

Grace works best in the life of the people that look unlikely. This is why you would discover that those whom you thought would never amount to much in life are often seen at the top. The people that others have written off are beautified by Grace. Grace looks beautiful on the undeserving while it often eludes the overqualified (2 Samuel 9:1-13, Ruth 2:10).

You cannot qualify yourself for Grace (1 Corinthians 15:8-10). It is Grace that qualifies you for God’s blessings. The posture that Grace needs to work in your life is the posture of surrender. God’s strength is only made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Like the Holy Spirit whispered to me that day, don’t keep the gift back from the people that look undeserving. The way you treat others is the way you would be treated (Luke 6:36-38, James 2:13). You need to go out of your way today and show Grace to the undeserving and unlikely. Grace is a seed. You sow it, you reap it. You withhold it, you get stranded.

‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria