"Absolutely not! They're in no condition. They took their own way, and they can pay the price. It's called sowing and reaping! They made their bed; now they must lie in it. They can't have it both ways. We're not bending things around here to please them. We're sticking to our guns! Our decision remains firm."
It doesn’t take much imagination to visualize the clenched jaw in such a conversation and the determined facial expressions of those who are closed to reason and dialogue. They have no intentions of reconsidering a matter or of showing grace.
Consider the new King Hezekiah in the Old Testament, who longed to see the fractured kingdom spiritually restored. Things were in a bad state, and idolatry was rampant. The majority had long abandoned important Jewish Feasts like the Passover.
King Hezekiah’s servants hit the roads with an invitation for all to come to Jerusalem for the reinstatement of the Passover Feast in all its greatness. Some ridiculed the invitation, but others packed their bags and headed towards Jerusalem to participate in the spiritual festival.
The Passover was to be held at the same time every year but could be delayed one month under extenuating circumstances. King Hezekiah believed this was one of those times when an exception should be made. Thank God for people who know when to make wise exceptions. But even with a month’s postponement, not everyone was in top-notch spiritual condition to engage in these spiritual activities. There were failures and shortcomings.
The Passover was a very personal activity in which each individual was responsible for killing their own lamb. But the reality was — some potential worshippers were not yet up-to-snuff spiritually, so others had to act on their behalf. Some might call it a bending of the rules or a compromise or making allowances or giving in or being soft and spineless — but really, in character, it was grace! With a heart in tune with the Lord, Hezekiah wanted, above everything else, to see the people restored to the Lord and give God His rightful place in the nation. The process would be marked by grace.
Consider these verses, and don’t miss King Hezekiah’s prayer regarding the allowances he made in response to the people’s failure to be ready for the ceremony:
For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the LORD. For a majority of the people… had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise than as prescribed. For Hezekiah had prayed for them, saying, “May the good LORD pardon everyone who sets his heart to seek God, the LORD, the God of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary’s rules of cleanness.” 2Chronicles 30:17-19
On this side of Heaven, there will always be shortcomings and imperfections. How we deal with those less-than-ideal circumstances is the real indicator of how like Christ we are. We might be able to present profound truths from the Bible or even use it like a sledgehammer. But how we respond to less-than-best circumstances is the true test of our spirituality.
Listen to the sweetness of Hezekiah’s shepherd-like intervention at the Throne of Grace: “May the good Lord pardon everyone who deep down wants to seek the Lord but who doesn’t quite measure up to the Scriptural expectations yet.”
Often, we fail to see in others the inner spark of desire to please the Lord because our vision goes no deeper than the external. Why is that? If I lack spirituality, it’s easier for me to criticize what’s visible because my ailing spiritual eyesight cannot discern the inner spark of desire in the Christian’s heart to please the Lord.
A spiritual leader can see the unobservable spiritual desire and potential deep within a believer and know how to work with the hidden spark, nurturing it and bringing oxygen to it in a way that produces a future flame burning for the Lord. That’s Christlikeness, and that’s grace.
Grace is an attitude, a disposition, that springs from knowing and growing in Christ and blossoms into behaviour that reflects the actual behaviour of Christ as He mixed and mingled with people unlike Himself.
The very last verse of Peter’s second and final epistle ends on this very high note:
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. 2 Peter 3:18
We are to make spiritual progress by growing in the “grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour…” God expects us to display increasing conformity to “the likeness of His Son” (Romans 8:29) in our gracious ways, attitude, and outlook.