Love and Grace for All
Lessons from Scripture
It’s raining cats and dogs here today. Those living on the coasts might groan over a spring day ruined by precipitation, but here on the prairies, we rejoice over a full day of steady moisture. If you’ve ever attended a church in an agricultural area, you will always hear, “Praise God for the rain!” on the following Sunday. However, it’s not just those who go to church who are getting rained on. The neighbor who has never uttered a word to God or darkened the doorstep of a sanctuary? He’s receiving rain also. The abusive spouse; the one who scoffs at the needs of others; the neglectful caretaker - they’re all in the path of the same shower, and they will all benefit from it. Why?
In His “Sermon on the Mount,” Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. 1
Matthew 5:43-48, ESV (Emphasis added)
Here, Jesus was speaking about the radical, God-like love His followers are to have for others by using examples of God’s common graces. “Common grace” is used to refer to the gifts God gives all of humanity, regardless of their relationship with Him (like natural talents, beautiful sunsets, and rain for crops).
David expressed this idea in Psalm 19,
The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.
Psalm 19:1-6, NIV (emphasis added)
God displays His love and grace toward us in everything: the first steps of a child, glowing stars, the warmth of the sun, an encouraging word. He doesn’t reserve these things for those who have already dedicated their lives to Him; they’re available even to those who despise His name. The magnitude of the Father’s generosity is incomprehensible.
We can’t share this kind of love and grace with others in the exact same way - we are not all-powerful. But Jesus commanded His followers to love others (especially the unjust) in a similar way. “Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.” Just as God sends rain on the just and the unjust to draw them to Himself, don’t withhold your love and grace from anyone. Earlier in the sermon, Jesus said, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16, NIV). Declare the glory of God through your life, just as the heavens do.
The rain just always gets me thinking about this. God is good, God is love, God is grace - and He desires for everyone to experience these things, through the rain and through you and me.
Don’t let “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly father is perfect” freak you out. Check out this quote from the New American Commentary:
“Perfect” here is better translated as “mature, whole,” i.e., loving without limits (probably reflecting an underlying Aramaic tamim). Jesus is not frustrating his hearers with an unachievable ideal but challenging them to grow in obedience to God’s will—to become more like him. J. Walvoord rightly observes, “While sinless perfection is impossible, godliness, in its biblical concept, is attainable.”
Blomberg, C. (1992). Matthew (Vol. 22, p. 115). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
Thanks for this reminder.