You know, having a son in the Army during this very uncertain time in our history is a little overwhelming to me right now as a mother. I mean, how do you really let your son go to face war? How do you reconcile in your heart as a parent the real possibility of losing a son in the battle of war?
People can say glibly, “You are going to have to let your son go. After all, mothers throughout the ages have sent their sons to serve their country.” Yes, this is all so true. But many mothers have knelt by a precious son’s graveside, clutching the American flag as a symbol of freedom that their son died for, while weeping buckets of bittersweet tears knowing they will never see their son’s smile, or hold their son again in their arms. Or..... Or..... Or... there are way too many or’s!
As I have been pondering how on earth to truly let my son go and still gain the peace I know the Father can give to me, several stories in the Bible lept into my heart. I first thought of Abraham of the Old Testament. The Lord gave Abraham a promise that one day he would have a son. After Abraham messed things up and brought forth Ishmael, God’s promise was fulfilled in Isaac. Then one day the Lord asked the seemingly absurd: Abraham, sacrifice your precious son Isaac. Genesis 22:2 “Then God said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” Abraham walked up Mount Moriah in obedience to God’s word, willing in heart to fulifll God’s word. Somehow Abraham believed that God would provide the sacrifice. The Lord saw fit to honor Abraham, spare Isaac’s life, and provide the sacrificial ram in Isaac’s place. A spotless offering took the place of Isaac on the sacrificial altar that day, thus sparing Isaac’s life. This was a ‘type’ of Christ, a foreshadowing of what was to come some later day.
On that later day, God the Father sent his only begotten son to earth, to be born as a baby of a virgin named Mary. There was one purpose for his coming; to die on the cross for the sins of mankind. When you look at this scenario from a parent’s perspective, it is incomprehensible to even understand what would make a parent contemplate giving his or her only son for the sins of a mad and rebellious world, let alone making that sacrifice!
Then one simple but powerful word came to me: GRACE. I felt the Lord speak to me in the midst of my pain, “Denise, I sent my only begotten son whom I love because of GRACE. I allowed him to die and to be the sin-sacrifice for tworld because of my infinite GRACE.
God made his love clear!
My grace knows no limits or boundaries. My grace has no end, and it is continuously flowing to cleanse the heart of man from every sin. My grace sees no gender, nor does my grace see any color. My grace does not see handicaps, nor does my grace see any intellect. My grace sees only one thing; a heart that is lost without me as the Lord of their life, for I am continuously searching hearts. My grace sees hearts that are hurting, hearts that are hungry for me, and hearts that are torn apart because of the agregious sin nature in the heart of man. Sin not only separates lives from me, but destroys them as well. If only people could comprehend the unending, unfathomable, unsearchable grace that I have for each human being, they wouldn’t look hither and yon for the answers they seek to fulfill the empty places in their lives. People ask, “Where is God” when bad things happen. If they would only look to me, they will find me waiting patiently for them to come, and I wait patiently because of my GRACE.”
I could never figure out how Abraham could muster the courage to be obedient and actually bind Isaac up, lay him on a pile of wood to sacrifice his only son. Obedience, of course, was a key word. Then it hit me. GRACE!
Abraham could only go through with God’s directive because of the grace of God.
Hannah could only go through with her promise of giving her only son Samuel over to Eli the priest to be raised as a servant of the Lord because of the grace of God.
Moses’ mother found the courage to place her son in a basket and place him in a river, which defies all sense and reason, because of the Grace of God.
The mother who went before King Solomon and was willing to let her son go and be raised by another woman instead of seeing King Solomon chop him in half, she could utter the words, “NO, let her raise him,” because of grace.
And as the Lord Jesus Christ uttered those words as he hung on the cross, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?“God could hide his face for a season, and let his only begotten son bear the weight of a sin infested world on his shoulders, because of grace.
Grace led a savior to be “obedient unto death, even death on the cross.” Grace led a spotless sin-sacrifice, the Lord Jesus Christ, to the cross of Calvary to save me, dying in my place as my sin-sacrifice because of grace.
I have been treasuring each and every moment spent with my son home on leave. I will be sending him overseas soon, into a very uncertain future. The same grace that compelled Abraham to give up his son Isaac when the Lord required it of him is the same grace that will give me strength, strength to let my son go to the unknown during this tumultuous time. And as I totally surrender my son with the help of God’s amazing grace, I find my heart is comforted and at peace. And I can be assured that grace will lead my son home... and grace will lead me home... and that grace can lead you home, too.
Do you know the comfort and the peace of the Lord’s infinite grace?
Are you struggling today with an issue and you need the Lord’s grace to be your comfort, your peace, and your strength?
Do you even know the Lord of all grace and comfort?
If not, if you will seek him today, you will be found by him today. He is still waiting with his arms wide open for you to come to him. Surrender your preconceived ideas as to who and what God is, and discover for yourself the amazing grace about which we sing, preach, pray, and praise. This is truly amazing grace in action! Inexplicable. Powerful. Wonderful. Grace.
Title: "God's Infinite Grace"
Author: Denise Guady
Publication Date: May 23, 2002
God's Infinite Grace
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