Why is God Gracious (Part 1)?
Grace is the free and unmerited favour of God which is shown through salvation for sinners. Grace is one of God’s many characteristics that truly blows our minds. The passage of focus is John 4:1-26 and there are three points that we can take from this passage that confirm how gracious God is:
1. God is gracious because he doesn't judge people.
We need to understand that God does judge all at the end of time as he declares who is righteous and who is not. However, God is not judgemental and does not condemn others. Jesus shows us that he doesn’t judge people by going into Samaria when the Jews would do all that they could to avoid the area. He also approached and interacted with a Samaritan woman. From this interaction there are three reasons why the Samaritan woman responded to Jesus the way she did.
She was a Samaritan - the Jews hated the Samaritans so much that they wanted them to go to hell.
She was a woman - in this time it was not common for a man to speak with a woman.
Jesus asked her for water - this was an odd request as the Jews did not eat or drink with the Samaritans as this was seen as unclean.
Even though the Samaritan woman had all these against her, Jesus did not judge her and desired to tell her something. Let this be an encouragement for us to not judge others as we have no basis to do so. Jesus has set the example for us.
2. God is gracious because he offers eternal life for everyone.
Within this passage, Jesus uses water as an analogy for eternal life. He invites the Samaritan woman to ask about the living water that only he can provide. The woman responded with interest and curiosity regarding the water Jesus was offering. Who wouldn’t want this kind of well in their village? However, the water Jesus was referring to was eternal life. Despite all the reasons mentioned above, Jesus did not withold the gift of eternal life to this Samaritan woman.
Whether it’s consciously or not, we can be selective regarding who should receive the gift of eternal life or not. But, that is far from the truth. Jesus demonstrated for us that the gift of eternal life is offered to all. All that is needed is to ask and accept this gift from God. We should not withhold the Good News to those that we like or who are interested. If we choose to withhold the truth from others we do not believe that eternal life is for all.
3. God is gracious because he loves us despite our sins.
Jesus knows the whole truth about this Samaritan woman. Despite knowing that she has had five husbands and that the man she is currently living with is not her husband; Jesus still loves her and offers her the gift of eternal life. He makes it clear that the way both Jews and the Samaritans are worshipping is not the right way; the true way to worship is in Spirit and truth. The Spirit and the truth is only through Jesus. We must believe in Him and that means to fully trust and to commit yourself to Jesus.
God loves us no matter how far we have pushed him. Our history of shame and guilt might make us think we’re unworthy to be loved by God. However, God is gracious to us because he loves us regardless of our sins. And this love should encourage us to drop sin and to be obedient. Similarly, the grace that has been shown to us needs to be represented within ourselves. We need to share grace to others in the same way that Christ has shown it to us.
Father God,
Thank you for the grace that you have shown to us by saving us and gifting us with eternal life. Thank you that you love us despite our sins from the past, present and future. I pray that we are able to be obedient and to commit our lives to you. I pray that we can show the same grace and love to all.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen