401/444 Encounter God’s Grace: His Power to Restore
2012.10.11
He is mighty to save
Anyone can have power, or at least think they have power. Many use their real or perceived power to destroy. Some use it for their own gain. As is so often the case, the opposite is true with our amazing and remarkable God. Oh, He has power. Don’t think for one second that He doesn’t. Look at Psalm 29 with me.
In awe before the glory, in awe before God’s visible power…God thunders across the waters…God’s thunder tympanic…God’s thunder smashes cedars…God’s thunder spits fire…God thunders, the wilderness quakes…
Unlike those of us on this rock, many who imagine their power is more super than it really is, He has limitless power, absolute power and He uses it to save… to redeem and restore anything and anyone. You can’t do something or think something that He can’t restore. One of our favorite quotes is “Grace fears no sin.” We can’t out-sin God’s Powerful Grace. We can’t scare Him out of restoring us by just how bad we’ve become. He will cut through our ugliness with His thunderous power and spit fire and smash anything that stands between us and Him. He loves us that much.
Yet, “Grace doesn’t blind God to what is going on, nor does it make him less honest in calling things as he sees them.” (Lewis Smedes) Just because He redeems us doesn’t mean that He doesn’t call us on our sin or that He dissolves consequences for our actions into stardust. There are absolutely consequences for our sin. I know you’ve felt it. Lost friendships. Lost intimacy. Cutting, biting words said and regretted. Loneliness that sinks into your soul. Worthlessness that bubbles to the surface day after day after day. Beth Moore says “We are forgiven as soon as we repent, the healing from the consequences take much longer.” Amen, sistah.
Let’s return to Psalm 29.
God makes his people strong, God gives his people peace.
The psalmist, after revealing God’s glory and power, reveals our restoration. Strength and Peace to you as you savor the Power of His Grace.