Many years ago, I was at a convention for people who do student ministry. I always loved that convention because of the new ideas shared and the many Christian artists who performed.
I realize this will age me beyond measure, but at this particular convention, the band Audio Adrenaline performed. After their session, they set up a meet and greet in the lobby, and all had access to say hi. Slow to make our way to the lobby, my friends and I waited in the back of the line. When it was our turn, the new guitar player who had recently joined the band looked at my friend DJ and said, “How do we know each other?”
The two of them proceeded to spend the next hour trying to figure it out. The guitar player was from Minnesota, where my friend DJ was a youth pastor. They discovered that while the guitar player was in high school, his youth group and DJ’s youth group went together to a local concert, where they met and talked for a while. During this time, I sat with the lead singer chatting, laughing, and just hanging out.
I had stepped into line hoping to get a moment to say hi, and instead, I was given undeserved access that left its mark even to this day! That is the nature of grace. We don’t get what we think we deserve. And that is good news! In today’s passage, two people get that level of access to Jesus …
The first is a paralyzed man. This is someone who was an outsider, and the Pharisees were watching. First, Jesus declared his sins were forgiven, and then after the Pharisees accused him of blasphemy, he healed the man.
Shortly after that encounter, Jesus met Matthew, a notorious tax collector. Tax collectors in that time were known to be corrupt government officials, so they, too, were outcasts. Jesus chose to invite Matthew to be one of his disciples and even accepted an invitation to have dinner with him. Scandalous! That not only changed Matthew’s life, but it also opened the eyes of those who witnessed this to the radicalness of God’s grace. It was for everyone!
On this Ash Wednesday, as we kick off the season of Lent, take heart in knowing that God’s grace is for you. You matter! You are never too far from God because God won’t allow that. He meets you where you are and wants to bring transformation to your life.
Reflection:
- Have you ever witnessed radical grace? Maybe it was you or someone you know who had their life transformed.
- Why do we often struggle with the notion of being worthy of being known by God and accepting his grace?
- During the 40 days of Lent, take time to soak in God’s grace.