161 Sermon Illustrations on Grace

A Second Chance

Georgia Tech played the University of California in the 1929 Rose Bowl. In the game a player recovered a fumble, but became confused and ran the wrong way. A teammate tackled him just before he would have scored a touchdown against his own team. At halftime all of the players went into the dressing room and sat down, wondering what the coach would say. This young man sat by himself; put a towel over his head, and cried.

When the team was ready to go back onto the field for the second half, the coach stunned the team when he announced that the same players who had started the first half would start the second. All of the players left the dressing room except this young man. He would not budge. The coach looked back as he called him again, and saw that his cheeks were wet with tears. The player said, "Coach, I can't do it. I've ruined you. I've disgraced the University of California. I can't face that crowd in the stadium again."

Then the coach put his hand on the player's shoulder and said, "Get up and go back in. The game is only half over."

When I think of that story, deep inside I say, "What a coach!" When I read the story of Jonah [in the Bible], and the stories of thousands like him, I say, "To think that God would give me another chance!"

Billy Graham

More Stories for the Heart compiled by Alice Gray (Portland: Multnomah Press, 1997), p. 37.

There are some things money can't buy, for everything else there's Master

card. I'm sure you've all received their applications in the mail.

However, I'm here to advertise a different card. You see, my life is a

product for others to see. I'm a card carrying representative for The

Master's Card. That's right, The MASTER'S CARD.

**Let me tell you about it.**

There are no finance charges, no payments due. My bill has already been

covered… it's a prepaid deal. I couldn't afford the price, so Jesus

stepped in and paid it for me.

My name is written on the card for all to see. It is accessible twenty-four

hours a day from anywhere in the world.

The MASTER'S CARD has so many benefits it's hard to list them all. Let me

share some of them with you... you might want to apply for a personal card

yourself.

Just for starters there is:

**UNLIMITED GRACE.

That's right, there is no preset limit to the amount of grace you receive

from the MASTER'S CARD. Have you been looking for love in all the wrong

places? Then, look no farther than The MASTER'S CARD. It offers the

greatest rate on love that has ever been offered.

The MASTER'S CARD gives you access to many "members only" benefits.

Want real joy despite the difficulties of life? Apply for the MASTER'S

CARD.

Want a lasting peace? Apply for the MASTER'S CARD. Looking for something

you can always rely on in a jam? The MASTER'S CARD is perfect for you.

Another great thing about The MASTER'S CARD is that it never expires and

will never be canceled. Once you're a member, you're a member for life...

eternal life, that is. Membership has its privileges, you know.

So why not apply today? It's only a prayer away.....

*

GRACE

The boy stood with back arched, head cocked back and hands clenched

defiantly. "Go ahead, give it to me."

The principal looked down at the young rebel. "How many times have you

been here?"

The child sneered rebelliously, "Apparently not enough."

The principal gave the boy a strange look. "And you have been punished

each time have you not?"

"Yeah, I been punished, if that's what you want to call it." He threw out

his small chest, "Go ahead I can take whatever you dish out. I always

have."

"And no thought of your punishment enters your head the next time you

decide to break the rules does it?"

"Nope, I do whatever I want to do. Ain't nothin you people gonna do to

stop me either."

The principal looked over at the teacher who stood nearby. "What did he do

this time?"

"Fighting. He took little Tommy and shoved his face into the sandbox."

The principal turned to look at the boy, "Why? What did little Tommy do to

you?"

"Nothin, I didn't like the way he was lookin at me, just like I don't like

the way your lookin at me! And if I thought I could do it, I'd shove your

face into something."

The teacher stiffened and started to rise but a quick look from the

principal stopped him. He contemplated the child for a moment and then

quietly said, "Today my young student, is the day you learn about grace."

"Grace? Isn't that what you old people do before you sit down to eat? I

don't need none of your stinkin grace."

"Oh but you do." The principal studied the young mans face and whispered.

"Oh yes, you truly do..."

The boy continued to glare as the principal continued, "Grace, in its

short definition is unmerited favor. You can not earn it, it is a gift and

is always freely given. It means that you will not be getting what you so

richly deserve."

The boy looked puzzled. "Your not gonna whup me? You just gonna let me

walk?"

The principal looked down at the unyielding child. "Yes, I am going to let

you walk."

The boy studied the face of the principal, "No punishment at all? Even

though I socked Tommy and shoved his face into the sandbox?"

"Oh, there has to be punishment. What you did was wrong and there are

always consequences to our actions. There will be punishment. Grace is not

an excuse for doing wrong."

"I knew it," Sneered the boy as he held out his hands. "Lets get on with

it."

The principal nodded toward the teacher. "Bring me the belt."

The teacher presented the belt to the principal. He carefully folded it in

two and then handed it back to the teacher.

He looked at the child and said. "I want you to count the blows."

He slid out from behind his desk and walked over to stand directly in

front of the young man. He gently reached out and folded the child's

outstretched, expectant hands together and then turned to face the teacher

with his own hands outstretched. One quiet word came forth from his mouth.

"Begin."

The belt whipped down on the outstretched hands of the principal.

Crack!

The young man jumped ten feet in the air. Shock registered across his

face,

"One" he whispered.

Crack! "Two." His voice raised an octave.

Crack! "Three..." He couldn't believe this.

Crack! "Four." Big tears welled up in the eyes of the rebel."OK stop!

That's enough. Stop!"

Crack! Came the belt down on the callused hands of the principal.

Crack! The child flinched with each blow, tears beginning to stream down

his face.

Crack!

Crack! "No please", the former rebel begged, "Stop, I did it, I'm the one

who deserves it. Stop! Please. Stop..."

Still the blows came, Crack! Crack! One after another.

Finally it was over. The principal stood with sweat glistening across his

forehead and beads trickling down his face. Slowly he knelt down. He

studied the young man for a second and then his swollen hands reached out

to cradle the face of the weeping child.

"Grace..."

Subject: Kissing Frogs

Date: For the Week of December 6, 1999

Muhammad Ali was named "Sportsman of the 20th Century" last week by Sports Illustrated. The presentation was made in Madison Square Garden.

Hearing Ali's name reported on radio in connection with this award triggered the memory of an article I read in the New York Times years ago. Harold Conrad, a former boxing writer who came to be known as a playwright and author, told of an experience he once had with Muhammad Ali. "He's one of the kindest men I've ever known," Conrad said. "A few years ago he took me to two prisons on a Sunday to visit convicts. I said, Why are you doing this, Champ?'"

Ali answered, "All them people forgotten, somebody's gotta worry about 'em."

"One of the prisons was for women," continued Conrad. "All the inmates lined up and they were ooh-ing and aah-ing as he went along. And there were some good- looking ones. But he kissed only the ugly ones." Conrad later asked him to explain why he had picked only the ugly ones. "No one ever kisses 'em," he replied, "and now they can remember that Ali kissed 'em."

Maybe you just hear Ali's ego in that response. If so, maybe you're right. But I think there was more to it than ego. It sounds like an acknowledgment by one human being of the need we all have for positive strokes. Maybe it even carried a barely-below-the-surface memory of times and places that were painful indignities to a young black man before he became rich and famous, the object of so much attention.

Pretty girls get kissed. Straight-A students get awards. Athletes get applause. Company executives get perks. High achievers get plaques for their walls. But ugly girls seldom get kissed. Marginal students more often get chewed out by teachers and grounded by parents. Non-athletes don't hear many cheering crowds. And folks with average skills doing average jobs just tend to blend in with the woodwork.

But everybody needs affirmations of his or her intrinsic worth as a human being, a person in God's own image. Performance (or lack of it) aside, people need to be noticed, patted on the back, hugged just because they are people.

Ever wonder why Jesus touched the eyes of a blind man and even touched lepers? It communicated more than power. It spoke of acceptance and caring.

It's the Christmas season, so why not make it a point this week to reach out to someone who is hurt, vulnerable, or frightened? Kiss a frog, and make him into a prince. Reach out to the young or old, blind or leprous, and be the instrument of God.

THE JUNK BOX

""""""""""""

My father used to say,

"My boy, don't throw a thing away;

You'll find a use for it someday."

So in a box he stored up things,

Bent nails, old washers, pipes and rings

And bolts and nuts and rusty springs.

Despite each blemish and each flaw,

Some use for everything he saw;

With things material, this was law.

And often when he'd work to do

He searched the junk box thru and thru

And found old stuff as good as new.

And I have often thought since then

That Our Father did the same with men;

He knew he'd need their help again.

It seems to me he understood

That men, as well as iron and wood,

May broken be and still be good.

Despite the vices he'd display,

He never threw a man away,

But kept him for another day.

A human junk box is this earth,

And into it we're tossed at birth

To wait the day we'll be of worth.

Though bent and twisted, weak of will,

And full of flaws, and lacking skill,

Some service each can render still.

by Edgar A. Guest

A story from Scotland tells of a mother's dramatic rescue of her

child. Workmen were blasting rock in a quarry. One day after they

had attached the fuse and retired to a safe place and gave the alarm

they saw a three year old child wandering across the open space where

danger threatened. Every passing second meant death was closing in on

the child.

The workmen called to the child and waved their arms, but he only

looked on their strange antics with amusement. No man dared run

forward knowing the explosion was only seconds away. The child most

certainly would have been killed, had not his mother appeared at this

moment of crisis.

Taking in the situation at a glance she did what her mother's heart

dictated. She did not run toward her son or yell to frighten him.

Instead, she knelt down, opened wide her arms and smiled for him to

come. Instantly the child ran towards her. Shortly later the area

shook with the force of the explosion, yet the child was safe in his

mother's arms.

What a picture of the grace of God and of the cross. With

outstretched arms on the cross Jesus gives his gracious invitation to

the world. Indicating we are to come to him for eternal safety. Will

you come to Jesus?

- Pulpit Helps

The Prodigal Daughter Longing to leave her poor Brazilian neighborhood, Christina wanted to

see the world. Discontent with a home having only a pallet on the

floor, a washbasin, and a wood-burning stove, she dreamed of a better

life in the city. One morning she slipped away, breaking her mother's

heart. Knowing what life on the streets would be like for her young,

atractive daughter, Maria hurriedly packed to go find her. On her way

to the bus stop she entered a drugstore to get one last thing.

Pictures. She sat in the photograph booth, closed the curtain, and

spent all she could on pictures of herself. With her purse full of

small black-and-white photos, she boarded the next bus to Rio de

Janiero. Maria knew Christina had no way of earning money. She also

knew that her daughter was too stubborn to give up. When pride meets hunger, a human will do things that were before

unthinkable. Knowing this, Maria began her search. Bars, hotels,

nightclubs, any place with the reputation for street walkers or

prostitutes. She went to them all. And at each place she left her

picture--taped on a bathroom mnirror, tacked to a hotel bulletin

board, fastened to a corner phone booth. And on the back of each photo

she wrote a note. It wasn't too long before both the money and the

pictures ran out, and Maria had to go home. The weary mother wept as

the bus began its long journey back to her small village. It was a few weeks later that young Christina descended the hotel

stairs. Her young face was tired. Her brown eyes no longer danced with

youth but spoke of pain and fear. Her laughter was broken. Her dream

had become a nightmare. A thousand times over she had longed to trade

these countless beds for her secure pallet. Yet the little village

was,in too many ways, too far away. As she reached the bottom of the

stairs, her eyes noticed a familiar face. She looked again, and there

on the lobby mirror was a small picture of her mother. Christina's

eyes burned and her throat tightened as she walked across the room and

removed the small photo. Written on the back was this compelling

invitation. "Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, it doesn't matter.

Please come home. I still love you." She did. Max Lucade, No Wonder They Call Him the Savior, Multnomah Press, 1986,

pp. 158-159

When Billy Graham was driving through a small southern town, he was

stopped by a policeman and charged with speeding. Graham admitted his

quilt, but was told by the officer that he would have to appear in

court. The judge asked, "Guilty, or not guilty?" When Graham pleaded guilty, the judge replied, "That'll be ten dollars

-- a dollar for every mile you went over the limit." Suddenly the judge recognized the famous minister. "You have violated

the law," he said. "The fine must be paid -- but I am going to pay it

for you." He took a ten dollar bill from his own wallet, attached it

to the ticket, and then took Graham out and bought him a steak dinner! "That," said Billy Graham, "is how God treats repentant sinners!"

Progress Magazine, December 14, 1992

Find a great many persons unwilling to start in the Christian life,

fearing they will not hold out. Others, who have really passed from

death unto life, are trembling, and hardly dare to take a step

forward, lest they shall go back.

A few years ago, while I was troubled in the some way, I visited

Bunker Hill Monument. I really got a fine lesson from it. After paying

the small fee to the man who has the care of the monument, he gave me

a small lamp to light my steps. I took the lamp, and stepped inside on

the stone floor, and as the winding stone stairs are inside, I looked

far up its rugged steep, and at once called the attention of the man

in charge to my small lamp. I said:

"This won't do. It don't light a quarter of the steps. Look up

there."

He smiled at my want of thought, and said to me:

"You are not up there yet. Why do you want it lighted there until

you get there? Is it not bright enough on the first step where you

want to put your foot?"

"Oh, I see, I see! It is all right. My lamp is large enough. I only

need one step lighted at a time."

So I started on, taking one step at a time, my lamp lighting each

step as I went upward, until it had lighted every one of the two

hundred and ninety-five steps.

Then I began to inquire how much love to Christ I needed to start

with. Like the little lamp shining on each step as I advanced, so I

needed enough love to take the first step in the Christian journey.

Christ said, "After this manner pray you, Give us day by day our daily

bread." Not enough today to live on for a month, and so live on hard

tack or sweet bread most of the time.

I meet many Christians who say they fear they have not dying grace.

I tell them I know I have not. I do not want it. What would I do with

dying grace? It would be in my way until I need it. I do not wear my

overcoat through the hot weather of July and August, so as to be sure

to have it in the winter.

So, with my little lamp, I have been stepping along in the

Christian path for fifty-seven years, and expect it to light my steps

into and through the valley of the shadow of death. -- A. B. Earle,

From: "Incidents Used ... In His Meetings," published in 1888

According to Christianity, the worst sinners can still become saved. Even Jeffrey Dahmer - the cannibal killer - became a Christian just before he was murdered in prison! He was baptized in the prison whirlpool and spent all his time reading religious material. Many people doubt his religious change - he had gone through religious periods before and during his murderous spree as well - but what if it was true? If he was sincere in his conversion, he is in heaven right now. And Jesus can forgive you, too.

Yancey's original passage:

I participated in a lively discussion on the topic of forgiveness the week Jeffrey Dahmer died in prison. Dahmer, a mass murderer, had abused and then killed seventeen young men, cannibalizing them and storing body parts in his refrigerator. His arrest caused a shake-up in the Milwaukee police department when it became known that officers had ignored the desperate pleas of a Vietnamese teenager who tried to escape by running, naked and bleeding, from Dahmer's apartment. That boy too became Dahmer's victim, one of eleven corpses found in his apartment.

In November of 1994, Dahmer himself was murdered, beaten to death with a broom handle wielded by a fellow prisoner. Television news reports that day included interviews with the grieving relatives of Dahmer's vic tims, most of whom said they regretted Dahmer's murder only because it ended his life too soon. He should have had to suffer by being forced to live longer and think about the terrible things he had done.

One network showed a television program taped a few weeks before Dahmer's death. The interviewer asked him how he could possibly do the things he had been convicted of. At the time he didn't believe in God, Dahmer said, and so he felt accountable to no one. He began with petty crimes, experimented with small acts of cruelty, and then just kept going, further and further. Nothing restrained him.

Dahmer then told of his recent religious conversion. He had been baptized in the prison whirlpool and was spending all his time reading religious material given him by a local Church of Christ minister. The camera switched to an interview with the prison chaplain, who affirmed that Dahmer had indeed repented and was now one of his most faithful worshipers.

The discussion in my small group tended to divide between those who had watched only the news programs on Dahmer's death and those who had also watched the interview with Dahmer. The former group saw Dahmer as a monster, and any reports of a jailhouse conversion they dismissed out-of-hand. The relatives' anguished faces had made a deep impression. One person said candidly, “Crimes that bad can never be forgiven. He couldn't be sincere.”

Those who had seen the interview with Dahmer were not so sure. They agreed his crimes were heinous beyond belief. Yet he had seemed contrite, even humble. The conversation turned to the question, “Is any one ever beyond forgiveness?” No one left the evening feeling entirely comfortable with the answers.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #5606

A beggar stopped a lawyer on the street in a large southern city

and asked him for a quarter. Taking a long, hard look into the man's

unshaven face, the attorney asked, "Don't I know you from somewhere?"

"You should," came the reply. "I'm your former classmate. Remember,

second floor, old Main Hall?" "Why Sam, of course I know you!" Without

further question the lawyer wrote a check for $100. "Here, take this

and get a new start. I don't care what's happened in the past, it's

the future that counts." And with that he hurried on.

Tears welled up in the man's eyes as he walked to a bank nearby.

Stopping at the door, he saw through the glass well-dressed tellers

and the spotlessly clean interior. Then he looked at his filthy rags.

"They won't take this from me. They'll swear that I forged it," he

muttered as he turned away.

The next day the two men met again. "Why Sam, what did you do with

my check? Gamble it away? Drink it up?" "No," said the beggar as he

pulled it out of his dirty shirt pocket and told why he hadn't cashed

it. "Listen, friend," said the lawyer. "What makes that check good

is not your clothes or appearance, but my signature. Go on, cash it!"

The Bible says, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord

shall be saved."

That promise is a "negotiable note" of infinite

value. And as sinners, all we need to do is "exchange" it by faith

for eternal life. Don't let the "tattered clothes" of your past keep

you from cashing God's "check" of salvation.

See: \reference{Rom 10:13}{Romans 10:13}

Henri Nouwen, who defines forgiveness as “love practiced among people who love poorly,” describes the process of grace at work:

I have often said, “I forgive you,” but even as I said these words my heart remained angry or resentful. I still wanted to hear the story that tells me that I was right after all; I still wanted to hear apologies and excuses; I still wanted the satisfaction of receiving some praise in return - if only the praise for being so forgiving! But God's forgiveness is unconditional; it comes from a heart that does not demand anything for itself, a heart that is completely empty of self-seeking. It is this divine forgiveness that I have to practice in my daily life. It calls me to keep stepping over all my arguments that say forgiveness is unwise, unhealthy, and impractical. It challenges me to step over all my needs for gratitude and compliments. Finally, it demands of me that I step over that wounded part of my heart that feels hurt and wronged and that wants to stay in control and put a few conditions between me and the one whom I am asked to forgive.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #1491]

One of Chuck Colson’s favorite films was “It’s a Wonderful Life.” I love the film, too: Everything from Zuzu’s petals to “Clarence! Get me back to my wife and kids!”

We can find a lot of great life lessons in that film if we try to. Someone who did exactly that is journalist Bob Welch. He just wrote a book titled “Fifty-Two Little Lessons from It’s a Wonderful Life” -- one lesson for every week of the year.

For instance, Welch points out that the film has a lot to say about grace — that is, unmerited favor. We see it right at the beginning, when Mr. Gower, the druggist, slaps a young George Bailey on the ear so hard that it starts bleeding. But George forgives him; he knows Mr. Gower has just received word that his son has died.

And then there’s the scene where George and Mary are leaving on their honeymoon, and they witness the run on the bank. Old man Potter is offering fifty cents on the dollar, and many people are tempted to take him up on it. But George does his best to convince the townspeople that that they should keep their money at the Bailey Building and Loan. As Welch notes, “George suggests that one reason to do so is that the Baileys believe in grace and Potter doesn’t.”

“Here, Ed,” George says to one of his neighbors. “You remember last year when things weren’t going so well, and you couldn’t make your payments? You didn’t lose your house, did you? Do you think Potter would have let you keep it?”

Of course not. Old man Potter doesn’t do “grace.”

And then there’s the matter of that missing $8,000 which Uncle Billy loses on Christmas Eve. While it’s true George grabs Uncle Billy and shouts at him, in the end, he ultimately extends grace as well. When George goes to Mr. Potter asking for help, George takes the blame: He says HE’s the one who misplaced the money.

George’s wife, Mary Bailey, also excels at the grace business. Remember, George comes home from work on Christmas Eve, yells at his wife and kids, insults Zuzu’s teacher over the phone, and trashes the living room. Mary has a right to be furious — but instead, she forgives George, tells the children to pray for daddy, and goes out to ask the town for help replacing that $8,000.

Grace, Welch reminds us, “is the foundation of the Christian faith. Jesus’ granting us grace by forgiving our sins flies in the face of virtually every other religion, which operates on a you-get-what-you-deserve basis. But Jesus says, in essence, you don’t get what you deserve. You get what you don’t deserve.”

The willingness to live by grace: That’s part of what makes Bedford Falls such a great place to live.

What other life lessons do we find in Welch’s book? That we should stop to count our blessings. That richness is not about money, but about the people in our lives. That our actions make a difference because, as the Angel Clarence reminds George, each man’s life touches so many other lives.

________

Copyright (c) 2012 Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission. "BreakPoint with Chuck Colson" is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries.

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #6420]

Based on grace there is hope for the future. Hope is an important ingredient in the Bible. It is found in the O.T. and the N.T., but for the years between there was no hope. When hope depends on us, hope goes out the window.

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, learned this the hard way. He tried for years to be pleasing to God by being good enough. He awoke early and prayed and and fasted and sought after God. Still he had no hope.

On one occassion, he went as a missionary to Georgia. A storm arose and as the waves swept against the ship it seemed as though all would be lost. Wesley was terrified of dying because despite his efforts, he was not sure if he would go to heaven. Yet some Moravians on board were calmly singing hymns. The boat did not sink and Wesley returned to England. One day he heard a sermon being read that changed his life. The words stuck in his mind. "The just (good) shall live by faith." Wesley suddenly realized that he could not earn salvation; it must be given to him. And for the first time he had real hope.

On the twenty-first of April, 1864, in the little village of East Leister in England, Jane Merrick, a school teacher, cradled in her arms, her precious little son that had just been born. Taking a character from the Bible whom she loved, John the Baptist, she named her son John - John Merrick. The joy was short-lived. Before very long, he began to develop hideously. John Merrick, later to be called the “Elephant Man” was an indescribable genetic disaster.

Soon his head began to take on the misshapen effects that would later cause women to gasp upon seeing him, and run sick to their stomachs from the encounter. One of his arms grew so large that it looked as though it were the trunk of an elephant, while his left arm remained entirely normal. His spine began to curve and he began to develop huge segments of skin unnecessarily, and they putrefied and had a terrible odor. John Merrick then lost his mother - the only one who loved him, at age 12, in a tragic accident. All he knew was gone.

As a teenager, rejected of society, looking increasingly more obnoxious and hideous by the day, John Merrick ran away from home. He soon found himself in the hands of an unscrupulous exhibitor, who made a sign advertising the Elephant Man, and charged two-pence apiece for a look at this hideous human. He was suffering from what was later called Van Recklehausen's syndrome, a genetic disease now known as multiple neurofibermetosis. And that poor man, at age 20, had become so deformed, such a recluse, and though he was a sensitive spirit, so utterly beaten down, that he could scarcely even look up through his one good eye at those who stared at him.

When he was 20 years old, in 1884, a physician by the name of Fredrick Trebis happened to pay the two-pence to see him, and became interested in him. He eventually moved him to London Hospital. Trebis thought that this man would never be able to communicate. But then one day, he finally understood him for the first time. And do you know what he was doing? He was repeating one of the two things he had read - the Bible. And that young man, the Elephant Man as he is known today, was repeating the twenty-third Psalm: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of death, I shall fear no evil.”

Realizing that he was a thinker and that he was sensitive, Trebis began to bring various people to meet him. One day, a beautiful widow met John Merrick. When she was ready to leave, instead of the same reaction that most women had, she pressed forward and took John Merrick by the hand. When she did, it was the first human touch from a woman that he had felt since his mother died, and he began to weep. Trebis, sensing the unusual situation, and knowing that Merrick had become a student of the theater, brought to see him a person that Merrick thought he would never see. Mrs. William Kindle of the Drury Lane Theater came into the room. Like most people, the first moment she saw him, she was utterly repulsed. She managed to keep back the expression that she felt in her heart so that it did not come to her face.

But as often as Merrick would look away, as she later testified, she herself would turn away and shake her hands and head and fight back the tears from her eyes. She could not imagine a human being so hideously misshapen, so totally repulsive. How In the world could she even carry on a conversation with him? Then God began to do a work in her heart. Do you know what happened? When she got ready to leave, God spoke to her heart. She got up; she crossed the room. And she approached John Merrick, the Elephant Man, and not only did she extend her hand, but she embraced him in her beautiful arms. As she leaned over, this famous, beautiful actress, planted on the misshapen, inarticulate lips of John Merrick, the only precious kiss he ever experienced in his whole life. His shoulders began to wrench. Tears burst from those eyes. And he began to weep, understanding what it had taken for her to do that.

Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the Eternal God, holy and exalted, above sin, without the taint of iniquity in heaven above, looked down at our misshapen, malformed sinful selves. Jesus did not turn away from us. He placed the kiss of grace on us and received us.

__________

Source: The Timothy Report, Copyright (c) 2004 Swan Lake Communications, http://www.timothyreport.com

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #4745]

Legendary Spanish artist Pablo Picasso was virtually unknown when he painted his famous portrait of American writer Gertrude Stein in 1906. Picasso gave the portrait to Miss Stein since, as the artist himself recalled with a smile, at that time in his career "the difference between a gift and a sale was negligible." Some years later, the portrait attracted the interest of millionaire art collector Dr. Albert Barnes, who asked Miss Stein how much she had paid Picasso for it. "Nothing," she replied. "Naturally, he gave it to me."

Dr. Barnes was incredulous that such a priceless work of art could have been a gift.

If you've ever thought about the gospel for very long, you can probably appreciate Dr. Barnes's incredulity. Think of what we have been given in Christ: forgiveness, eternal life, all the riches of heaven, all at a cost we could have never paid! But that's not all, we have the privilege of sharing this treasure with others.

At one time J. Wilbur Chapman experienced a great sorrow that

nearly shook his faith. In addition, his finances were almost

depleted just when it was necessary for him to take a long trip

to the western United States. One of the elders of his church

who was a wealthy banker came to his home to offer a word of

comfort and encouragement. As he left, he slipped a piece of

paper into the pastor's hand. Chapman looked at it and was

surprised to find that it was a check made out to him and signed

by this rich friend. But the figures to indicate the amount of

the gift were missing. "Did you really mean to give me a signed

blank check?" he asked. "Yes," said the man. "I didn't know

how much you'd need, and I wanted to be sure you would have

enough." Later Chapman commented, "While I never had to use that

check, it gave me a secure feeling to know that thousands of

dollars were literally at my disposal." Someone has said, "God

too has given us a signed check in \reference{Philippians

4:19}{Philippians 4:19} to provide

for every genuine need that arises in our lives."

The philosophic Hammerton tells us the story of a woman who worked in a cotton factory in one of the great manufacturing towns in Lancashire, and who on an excursion went for the first time to the coast. When she caught the earliest glimpse of the Irish Sea, the expanse lying out before her eyes looking like the limitlessness of the ocean in its rush and roll of billows, she exclaimed, as she drew one boundless breath of freshness and glory, "At last here comes something there is enough of!"

-- Dr. C. Robinson

A wise student described her struggle like this: "I have been

walking throughthe desert for days. I am so dry and just need some

water. I look around and realize that rain has been falling the whole

time. The ground is soaked, but I liik up and see that my hands are

clutching an umbrella. I can hear voices saying, "You don't really

deserve God's love, work hard, don't relax." I feel that I should not

allow myself to get wet. God is showering His grace upon me, but I

just hold my umbrella and will not let myself get wet. Then I look

down and notice that the rain is splashing off the rocks, and my feet

and legs are soaking wet."

- Phillip A. Coyle, {Proclaim}

TAMPA, Florida - With wads of cash strapped to his body and hoping to make some people happy, Kevin Shelton gave away $1 bills while strolling through a mall.

In two hours, Shelton says he gave away about $7,000 - with only smiles and "thank yous" to show for it.

"It's what I choose to do," he said Friday after the cash giveaway. "I think it's making an impact."

Shelton, 32, says he earned his money buying and selling real estate in the Tampa Bay area.

Reactions at the International Plaza varied - from hugs to lectures for not giving the money to the poor.

Most shoppers happily took the free money and walked away giggling. Some vowed to give it away. Others planned to buy a lottery ticket.

Shelton began doling out cash last year as a way to brighten people's day and spark generosity. He swears it's not a gimmick. He says he doesn't keep track of what he gives away, but guesses it's in the tens of thousands.

*

1. Freed from the law—Oh happy condition!

Jesus has bled, and there is remission;

Cursed by the law and bruised by the fall,

Grace has redeemed us once for all.

Chorus

Once for all—O sinner, receive it!

Once for all—O brother, believe it!

Cling to the cross, the burden will fall—

Christ has redeemed us once for all!

2. Now we are free—there's no condemnation!

Jesus provides a perfect salvation;

“Come unto me—” O hear His sweet call!

Come—and He saves us once for all.

3. Children of God—Oh glorious calling!

Surely His grace will keep us from falling;

Passing from death to life at His call,

Blessed salvation—once for all.

*

1. Come, Thou Fount of ev'ry blessing,

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;

Streams of mercy, never ceasing,

Call for songs of loudest praise.

Teach me some melodious sonnet

Sung by flaming tongues above;

Praise the mount—I'm fixed upon it—

Mount of Thy redeeming love.

2. Here I raise my Ebenezer,

Hither by Thy help I've come;

And I hope by Thy good pleasure

Safely to arrive at home.

Jesus sought me when a stranger

Wand'ring from the fold of God;

He to rescue me from danger

Interposed His precious blood.

3. Oh to grace how great a debtor

Daily I'm constrained to be!

Let Thy goodness like a fetter

Bind my wand'ring heart to Thee.

Prone to wander—Lord, I feel it—

Prone to leave the God I love;

Here's my heart—O take and seal it,

Seal it for Thy courts above.

[Tune “Nettleton”]

*

As a former Army Ranger, Seattle pastor Tom Allen described a special connection he felt to the characters in the World War II movie Saving Private Ryan:

I was extremely proud -- until the last minute of the movie. I was proud watching the Rangers take Omaha Beach. Then they receive a mission to go deep into enemy territory to save Private Ryan. They hit skirmish after skirmish, and some of them are killed along the way. They finally get to where Private Ryan is holed up, and they say, "Come with us. We've come to save you."

He says, "I'm not going. I have to stay here because there's a big battle coming up, and if I leave my men they're all going to die."

What do the Rangers say? "We'll stay here and fight with you."

They stay and fight, and it's gory and hard, and almost everyone dies except Private Ryan. At the end, one of the main characters -- played by Tom Hanks -- is sitting on the ground. He's been shot and he's dying. The battle has been won.

Private Ryan leans over to him, and Hanks whispers something to him. Everyone in the theater is crying because Tom Hanks was shot; I was crying because of what he said -- it was so terrible. Ryan bent down and Hanks said, "Earn this."

The reason that made me angry is no Ranger would ever say, "Earn this." Why? Because the Ranger motto for the past 200 years has not been "earn this." The Ranger motto for the past 200 years has been Sua sponte, "I chose this." I volunteered for this.

If Hanks was really a Ranger he would have said, "Sua sponte." In other words, "This is free. You don't pay anything for this. I give up my life for you. That's my job."

And so when you look at the cross and see Jesus hanging there and hear him say, "I thirst," you do not hear "earn this." You never hear Jesus say, "Earn this." He doesn't say, "I've given up everything for you. Now you need to gut it out for me."

What he says is "I thirst." He says, "Sua sponte. I volunteered for this. You don't have to pay anything for it."

from a sermon by Tom Allen, Seattle, Washington Preaching Today audio tape #200

Looking Back … Looking Ahead

Paul wrote to his associate Titus to encourage him as he sought to minister to the church in Crete: “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Saviour and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Saviour, that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:3-7 NASB)

Our family has spent vacations from time to time in hiking in the mountains of British Columbia. Sometimes, after a particularly difficult section, you look back in order to appreciate the vista and the beauty. But, in so doing, you are reminded that you may have to travel back over that same difficult path — and going down is often harder than going up!

In a similar vein, one of my peculiar tendencies is to consider a “Road Closed” sign as an invitation. This is particularly true on the prairie where the traffic on a “Closed Road” is frequently heavier than that on normal roads. Right here in Ontario, I recall some years ago taking such liberty in going along the Taunton side-road. Down a steep hill and up the next, until at the bottom of one I had to go through rather muddy ground — but we got through. But as we looked back we all had but one thought: “I hope that we don’t have to go back this same way!”

That is one of the joys of the Christian walk. When we have crossed some particularly difficult section of our life’s road — some river Jordan — we can look back and know that that is done with; we don’t have to go back. So looking back is encouraging, just as Paul intended it for Titus, rather than unsettling. As John Newton (1725–1807) put it in the hymn “Amazing Grace:”

“Through many dangers, toils, and snares,

I have already come,

‘Twas grace that led me save thus far,

And grace will lead me home.”

So the Christian looks back and sees God’s enabling grace and then confidently looks ahead, knowing that that same grace will be there for every future difficulty. This truth is what keeps us as Christians — and as a church — marching forward.

The following was spotted in the lost and found section of a newspaper.

LOST DOG - $50 reward. Black and tan dog of Poodle and German

Shepherd descent. Flea-bitten, left hind leg missing, no hair

on rump, blind, and recently neutered. Answers to “Lucky.”

TS -- Some of us are a lot like Lucky. Of mixed ancestry, not much to look at, and in pretty bad shape, we still answer to the name of Lucky. We are indeed fortunate, for like the dog, we have someone who cares enough about us to look for us, to pursue us, to desire us, to pay to get us back. And God did pay to get us back - it cost him the life of his only Son. That dog is lucky, and so are we - lucky that our Master would love us so much. - Steve D. Dawes