I’m not creating new epiphanies today, but merely sharing someone else’s. In this case, the eloquent one is Brad Wilcox, who is speaking at a BYU Devotional. He tackles the much-misunderstood topic of grace. You’ll probably enjoy listening to him, because he is more eloquent than I, so I’ve embedded the video below, but I’ll give you the cliff’s notes version first.
Many of us have a faulty connection with Jesus Christ on the issue of the atonement. We assume that we do our very best and he does the rest, and we are saved. The problem he notes is that few of us ever feel like we’ve done our best, because our best is perfection and we can’t accomplish that. So grace seems out of our reach, even though we know it’s supposed to be within everyone’s reach. We understand that Jesus Christ has paid the price for our sins and that he can now ask something of us, but we assume that we are paying him back (which we can never do). Others of us assume that grace is a free gift that requires nothing more of us than to receive it. So Wilcox tells a parable.
Mothers (and fathers, we’re an equal opportunity blog) pay for piano lessons when their children are interested in learning to play the piano. What do they ask in return? Practice! When a child practices the piano, are they paying the parent back for the piano lessons? No. What the parent is truly hoping for is a transformation for the benefit of the child. The parent hopes the child will grow to be a confident pianist and have joy in playing. A child who is taking piano lessons against his or her will, or with no faith in his or her ability to become a skilled pianist, is missing the point of everything. It eventually becomes a GET. ME. OUTTA HERE. issue instead of a glorious opportunity. A child may receive the lessons with great enthusiasm and gratitude, but if he or she never practices, the gift will not have the power to transform and will have been similarly pointless.
Heaven is a place for people who have found joy in becoming changed by grace, transformed into someone with confidence and character consistent with someone who has been saved. People who aren’t being transformed by that will not want to be there, whether they saw grace as either unreachable or a simple matter of receiving. Grace is about accepting the gift of an opportunity to be transformed. It is not a repayment. It is not about scrambling guiltily toward perfection, beating ourselves up about every wrong note we accidentally sound; it’s about joyfully and gratefully embracing the assistance and loving encouragement of someone who’s paying for the lessons.
Anyway, I thought that was a nice parable. Enjoy.
savedbygrace
August 6, 2012
I hope you don’t mind. I don’t have any idea how to get this question across the preacher in the video. so I’m pasting them here.
1. what is that practice work that we are supposed to do?
2. what happens if we do not work our practice?
@”Grace is about accepting the gift of an opportunity to be transformed”
…………………….
3. does it mean that by practice we are transformed? and if not, we aren’t?
@”Heaven is a place for people who have found joy in becoming changed by grace, transformed into someone”
…………………….
if heaven is a place for people who are transformed, and without practice, we are not transformed, do we still belong to heaven?
Bonnie
August 6, 2012
I don’t mind at all, savedbygrace. First, I can answer according to my own understandings, but I can’t speak for Wilcox or the universe at large, so take my observations as my own.
1. Practice work would be what Jesus encouraged of us – love God, love each other. The teachings of his apostles expand considerably on these two.
2. I would imagine the same thing happens to us as happens to someone who is gifted with piano lessons and doesn’t practice. We aren’t transformed, acquire no further skills in godliness, and grow no more comfortable with God. I would assume that is what is meant by “faith without works is dead.”
3. I think we are transformed by our practice when we are there for the right reasons. If we are trying to save ourselves through our works, I think we miss the whole point. If we are trying too hard and missing vital things like love (as in Paul’s sermon on charity), we’re missing the point.
I think we have a long time to prepare for heaven. Most people stop taking piano lessons after childhood. Hopefully we don’t resist the offer of grace once we’re adults. Hopefully we are willing to continue to learn. I think if we are not transformed, we won’t want to be in heaven, but I think we have a long time to decide where and who we want to be.
Thank heaven.
savedbygrace
August 7, 2012
@ “1. Practice work would be what Jesus encouraged of us – love God,
love each other. The teachings of his apostles expand considerably
on these two. ”
…………………….
if you meant doing righteous works as you are already righteous
then the practice of good works are just plain manifestation.
a person who is loved, will love.
“we love because God first loved us”
- 1 John 4:19
as in the same manner hurt people hurt.
so it is considerably impossible for someone who is saved,loved and for
someone to experience God’s love to not love.
@”2. I would imagine the same thing happens to us as happens to someone
who is gifted with piano lessons and doesn’t practice. We aren’t transformed,
acquire no further skills in godliness, and grow no more comfortable with God.
I would assume that is what is meant by “faith without works is dead.””
…………………………..
the one word that stands out
“Practice”
it begs the question
do we practice to get salvation?
do we practice to get holiness?
do we practice to get godliness?
i believe we are already saved by grace. (eph 2:8)
just as we are holy, godly, righteous, sanctified, wise.
” It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for
us wisdom from God–that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption ”
- 1 Corinthians 1:30
@“faith without works is dead.”
the works is of faith. not our effort to work.
the work is the result of faith.
James illustrates someone who has faith and someone who has work.
if both person combines them, its still dead.
stand alone faith and stand alone works are both dead. dead faith and dead works
a living faith is that kind of faith that works.
again not our works, but the works of faith.
@”3. I think we are transformed by our practice when we are there for the right reasons.”
…………………………….
we are transformed not by ‘doing’.
we are transformed by looking to Jesus. by beholding the glory of Jesus
” But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror
the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image
from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord ”
- 2 Corinthians 3:18
true transformation is effortless.
to Practice means to ‘beholding’ Jesus.
starting today, why dont we practice finding Jesus in the scripture?
for example, When Abraham offered Isaac.
who do we see? do we see ourselves offering our ‘Isaacs’ to God?
or do we see Jesus in the story?
@”I think we have a long time to prepare for heaven”
………………………………
you are absolutely right.
in truth, no amount of time can prepare us for heaven.
the way to heaven has been made available to us
Jesus is the way.
we are already righteous, godly, sanctified.
we stand on grace ground.
we practice righteous works, because we are already righteous.
we love our neighbor and self, because we have been love
Melody
August 6, 2012
I love this talk of his. You did a wonderful paraphrase!
savedbygrace
August 7, 2012
the reason your post got my attention is because I am a musician
by that I mean, music is in my genes
nobody taugh me to play Piano. but I learned it by myself
did I practice? honestly? i didn’t
I started tuning Guitars at the age of 7.
also Banjo and Banduria at that same age.
did someone taught me? no.
same with guitar. self taught.
the flute, saxophone, tho I hate wind instruments (i would ran out of air lol)
nope. no practice. no teacher.
everyone in the family plays violin, piano, auto harp, etc.
just by being born into the family, makes me a musician.
don’t get me wrong, I do practice,
but I do not practice to become a musician. I am a musician already.
I have 4 lovely children. and I never taught any of them music. but one of them simply played twinkle twinkle in a toy piano.
if heaven qualifies musician for salvation, then I can say I am saved already.
with or without practice. just the mere fact that I am born a musician.
but of course not.
Jesus, says the same thing I believe when He says being born again to Nicodemus.
unless a man is born again he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
Bonnie
August 7, 2012
I’m glad you commented, but it seems that you and I have a very different perspective on grace. It sounds like you are saying that there is something inevitable about your becoming a musician/Christian and that both naturally flow from something beyond your own choosing. What I am saying is that while we may have benefits, like being born into a musical or Christian family, we still choose. That choice is the choice to take that journey, and I think it involves change. You may have been *motivated* to practice by a natural gift, but it was still the practice that changed you. I can appreciate that the spark of a godlike character burns within you and you are simply being true to something within. I think everyone has that. But just because some people don’t fall into it naturally doesn’t alter the possibility for them. Their choice will be so much more conscious, just as yours would if you had instead been born with a tendency toward alcoholism. I think it is impossible to be saved without making a conscious choice. I’m sure you hadn’t considered how unkind your view is to people who have not had the easy path to God that you have had. Are they saved as well, even though the gift of recognizing God or music did not come easily to them?
savedbygrace
August 7, 2012
grace and peace be upon us.
wow.. I am loving this conversation
@”It sounds like you are saying that there is
something inevitable about your becoming a musician/Christian
and that both naturally flow from something beyond your own choosing”
…………………………
those who receive Christ, is now a new creation.
let me share you my testimony. i hope i can paint a good picture.
I considered myself to be a christian since child, simply because I grew up in the church.
my parents abandoned me since child. there was this time when my mother showed up, and there was arguments at home with mother, so I grab a Machete and almost chop her. glad someone grab the Machete from me!
what happen? did i not practice love? yep. I hated my parents.. I cant help it.
now, after 23 yrs, I came to know the true gospel. the gospel of Grace.
I realize the goodness of God, all those years.
then as a result of the gospel, I became born again! what? did i not grew up in the church?
so now, I am a new creation. then I met my mother. for some reason, all the hates towards my parents are gone!
now I love my mother. am i forcing myself to love her? nope. so where did the love came from? it came from God
i have experience what the scripture says
“we love because He first loved us” – 1 John 4:19
you see, I have become a new creation.
@You may have been *motivated* to practice by a natural gift,
but it was still the practice that changed you”
…………………………..
in some sense, I see what you mean.
but true change is effortless.
don’t get me wrong. as much as we can, let us encourage people to change.
but how to achieve true change? only by Grace.
not by self effort, but by Grace.
definitely we must not stop the practice of righteous works.
we practice righteous works because we are already righteous.
@”Their choice will be so much more conscious, just as yours would if
you had instead been born with a tendency toward alcoholism.
I think it is impossible to be saved without making a conscious choice.”
……………………………
well said. indeed.
If it wasn’t for our ‘will’ Jesus would have just snatch us all and put us to heaven.
but the truth is that even genuine Christians can drink alcohol.
I am saying that because I can boast ‘I have no vices’.
a righteous person, smokes cigar or drinks alcohol and is still righteous.
there is no difference between a white lie told by a righteous person.
we all will commit sin.
but let me establish. I am not for doing this things. by all means, avoid evil.
by all means avoid sin!
but power over sin is not via self effort or practice. it is by grace
“For sin shall not have dominion over you:
for ye are not under the law, but under Grace”
- Romans 6:14
@”I’m sure you hadn’t considered how unkind your view is to people who
have not had the easy path to God that you have had”
……………………………
oh, i didn’t mean to present a unkind view.
the point I am trying to drive at is this.
A person who is born again is a New Creation.
whether we choose to do good or bad (out of our will, we can)
we cannot go back to our old self.
those who struggle to please God by obedience and doing good,
are most likely people who have not heard about their standing before God.
God is no longer angry with us, God looks at Jesus our representative, who is perfect.
rather than struggle to please God or man, we now have rest in the finish work of Jesus.
we can never reach God, it will be an endless struggle. but God made a way.
God reached for to us instead through Jesus.
therefore, by merely being Born Again, we are saved
………………………………………..
so the analogy is this :
“we do not practice piano lesson to become a musician. we are already a musician,
but being born into a family of musician
some will want to become a musician by practicing piano like we do,
but they cannot become a musician because they are not born a musician”
- grace and peace
prometheus
August 12, 2012
That was a fantastic talk. I wish it could have been preached 30 years ago when I was being taught all those things like “do your best and Jesus does the rest”.
We have sorely misunderstood grace, as a church, and are only in recent years coming to understand it. We think that our works are worth anything of themselves, still, but they don’t. Everything we do is flawed, incomplete, marked by immaturity and ignorance. We are saved by grace when we stop fighting it, when we stop saying “get me out of here” and start saying “yes, I want to stay”. It really is just that simple. Say yes.
I love the bit where he says, “Grace has saved you, but has it changed you?” That was a fabulous line. Repentance (again, growing up Mormon in the 80s) was always equated with suffering and punishment. Of course you didn’t want to repent because you would be shamed, punished and miserable. But really, it is all about change. It doesn’t last any longer than we let it. Just change. (Easier said than done, I know.)
Alma was freed from his suffering the very moment he caught hold of Christ and asked for help. The very moment. Not after a suitable time had passed, not after he had suffered the right amount, but immediately. He changed, and because he changed, his suffering stopped. His guilt stopped as he accepted the love of God, extended to him regardless of his “worthiness”.
And the change, we often think is so much more than it really is. It is really just love. Love each other. Forgive each other. Show mercy to each other. That’s it. The big secret – love. Everything else is just window dressing, really.
Anyway, going on at length here, so I will stop and say thanks, Bonnie, for posting this talk.
Melody
August 12, 2012
I love these comments. They made me think of an experience I had a number of years ago. Without going into all the details of the situation, I’ll just say that I did something that I felt had offended God by showing something sacred to someone who wasn’t ready to receive it. I had assumed that she was. Anyway, when I realized what I had done, I felt awful, and driving home, I said a prayer apologizing for what I had done. When I said, “Please forgive me,” I felt a voice say, “I already have,” and I realized that I had done all that was required to repent of that, besides doing my best not to do it again. How freeing it was to know that before I even got back home, the burden had been lifted, and I didn’t have to carry it any longer than it took for me to sincerely repent of it, a matter of minutes in that case.
Bonnie
August 17, 2012
Prometheus and Melody – glad you commented! Thanks for your observations. In a church that teaches about forgiveness, we don’t spend a lot of time talking about the joy of being forgiven, and the added strength that comes as we embrace grace. I think our leaders talk about it; I don’t think we often do. Thanks for talking about it!