Monday, July 9, 2018

When By His Grace


300 years after the Scottish Psalter printed “The Lord’s My Shepherd”, John Peterson wrote a newer version of the 23rd Psalm.  “Surely Goodness and Mercy” has become a familiar Peterson classic.  The song actually has a double chorus.  The first one repeats the phrase, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.”  The second chorus, to be sung after all the verses have been sung, begins with two power phrases sung with strong emphatic power notes, “And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever” and “I shall feast at the table spread for me”.  This chorus takes us beyond the gracious care of God in this life to the eternal promise of His grace – heaven with Him forever.

In I Corinthians 15:19 Paul says, “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.”  This verse is set in a chapter devoted to the triumphant truth that since Jesus lives, so too shall we.  The old Gospel chorus says, “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through; my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue; the angels beckon me from heaven’s open door, and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”  This world is a stopping point on the way to an eternal destiny.  If by faith we have embraced the grace of God in Christ then that eternal destiny is heaven.  Each day that we walk in this dim shadow of our hope, we have the presence and care of God’s daily grace.  But there is more, much more, to come. 
God’s grace will be fully seen as we enter heaven’s gate.  There we will see our beautiful Savior, the reflection and perfection of grace.  There we will receive the fullness of all the promises.  There will never be need or sorrow or sin or shame.  There will be the full beauty of eternal forgiveness. There will be the full embrace of eternal grace with nothing between us and our dear Savior.  As Charles Gabriel wrote in his beautiful hymn about heaven, “O that will be glory for me, glory for me, glory for me; when by His GRACE I shall look on His face, that will be glory, be glory for me.”  That is abundant grace for today and for eternity.  


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