2 Corinthians 13:14 - a greeting to start the day
“May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” 2 Corinthians 13:14 NIV
Grace: that imparted which is undeserved. This financial guy, Dave Ramsey, has a radio show. When a caller asks him “how are you doing”, he replies with “Thanks, better than I deserve.” Why does he say that? Because he understands grace, and believes he is under its umbrella. God’s grace, which does not see his faults. Rather, sees him as a child, and loves him despite his faults. We all have faults, which, if counted against us, would leave us without the bridge seen in my attached image. It is that grace which reconciles us to God.
The Lord Jesus Christ: Scripture tells us that God took on flesh in Jesus, who came to put that bridge in place.
The love of God: without which grace could not be imparted. Use the model of how you view your own children. My neighbor is going to call the police because he has found airsoft bullet holes in his vinyl siding. Do I think my kids did it? No, but I cannot discount the possibility they shot the airsoft guns. These guns are banned in my house, but they were not for a time. Other neighbors still have them, I found one a few weeks ago laying in my lawn and threw it in the garbage. So I do my best to keep them off my property. The cops will show up, and I will take responsibility; be a good neighbor and offer to pay for the damage. Tell them I doubt my children would have ever done something like that intentionally, but will not claim with certainty one of mine could not be the culprit. Money does not grow on trees, but it isn’t right to claim my neighbor can’t prove anything and walk. Explain to my kids that it will cost me, and I certainly expect them to tell anyone coming near my house with a gun to leave. And, by chance if one of them actually did shoot holes in the siding, take the hit by offering to pay up. In effect, take responsibility on their behalf. This time. If I knew they had done it, they would have to reimburse me, as failure to teach responsibility would not be grace at all. It would be neglect. God teaches me to look on my children with grace as He does me. He loves me with an even greater love than I feel for my own. A perfect love, covered in His perfect grace.
Fellowship of the Holy Spirit: God’s means of tying Himself to us in this age. An age in which Christ has come and gone, waiting until He sees fit to return or I quit breathing. Whichever comes first. Until then, today’s verse provides a greeting which gets my day off to a good start.
