THE PARADOX OF GRACE

"God Alone Suffices"

As much as I hate to admit it, Jesus Christ didn’t come to teach theology. Oh, he waxed theological in his arguments with the Pharisees and Sadducees, but intellectual instruction wasn't the center of his faith. In many ways, he was more similar to an Asian guru than a traditional rabbi. He demonstrated an unflappable mastery over the challenges of life. Jesus taught a message of empowerment that helped people lead a better life in the here-and-now. So, people flocked to him for practical reasons, not just to hear a lecture. They brought the sick, and he healed them. They brought their doubts, and he showed them how to have faith. They were poor in spirit and just plain poor, and he taught them God provides for those who step out in faith. Jesus taught an abundant life message, not just a survival strategy.

You and I can have the same kind of power, mastery and dominion that Jesus promised his disciples, but the path to wholeness and abundance is not through luck or happenstance. Your abundant life comes to you not from winning a spiritual lottery, but through exercising your mental and spiritual faculties. True, it is a free gift of God, which the very definition of “grace”, but the blessings of Divine Order must be freely received. Here is the tantalizing paradox of God’s grace: We cannot earn the good which God has prepared for us, yet without conscious effort we cannot receive it, either. Even a free gift must be accepted, unwrapped, and put to use.

God is like the sunshine, constantly pouring its warmth upon the Earth. To bask in this sunny day, we must come forth from our caves of error-belief, cast off all vestiges of self-denigration and feelings of unworthiness, and simply accept the good, warm, life-sustaining light of God. As St. Teresa of Avila said long ago:

Let nothing disturb you,

Let nothing affright you.

All things pass.

God is unchanging.

Patience obtains all.

Whoever has God needs nothing else.

God alone suffices.

Destination Guaranteed – Flight Path Optional

The Rev. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale once took a flight to Hawaii, during which the pilots invited the famous minister into the cockpit. They showed him the various instruments and navigational aids that helped them fly from the West Coast to the island paradise. Dr. Peale noticed the Captain and Co-pilot making a series of slight turns, course corrections. The aviators said an aircraft actually flies a zigzag pattern along its flight path. Drift south and correct north, then vice-versa, crisscrossing the direct line of flight as they sailed above the vast Pacific. The Captain said they must adjust the course continuously to correct for winds aloft and other atmospheric and meteorological factors. But the plane arrives on time in Honolulu, even though it has been off course during most of the trip.

It seems that Jesus understood the principles of flight two thousand years ago. He repeatedly urged people to make “course corrections” as they stumbled across the path toward Oneness with God: Zaccheaus, the dishonest tax collector whom Jesus called back to honesty without mentioning taxes or money; the Samaritan woman at the well, whose relationships were a disaster and Jesus encouraged her to take life and faith seriously; Simon Peter, a self-confessed “sinful man” who became the Rock of faith; Mary and Martha, two sisters who represented reflective and active faith; the “rich young ruler” whose inability to handle wealth had become a burden that he could neither bear nor release; the woman caught in the act of adultery, whom Jesus challenged to make better choices; and the list goes one and on.

The New Testament shows a wild explosion of personal growth among the followers of Jesus. These transformations are even more amazing when we consider that the ancient world believed a person’s character was fixed and could not change. Jesus called people to begin a journey, and his disciples stumbled across the flight trajectory to higher consciousness as they followed their best route along the path demonstrated by their Wayshower. We can take heart from their example.
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ARE YOU A FLYING $20 CLUB MEMBER YET?

The "Flying $20" Church for the Month for April-May is

Unity Southeast
3421 East Meyer Blvd.
Kansas City, MO 64132

If you feel called by Spirit to support this small but vibrant ministry, send $20 to the above address.

We'll pick a new "Flying $20" Church for the months of June-July...Any nominees?