It’s a Yaris. Hertz Car Rentals gave me a Yaris. I felt like with my track record with speeding, a four-cylinder car would be in my best interest. I’ve been know on a few occasions—cough, cough—
to speed on our local highways. It’s not my intention, but without me realizing it I’m breaking the interstate rules and compromising public safety [at least that’s what my last driving school instructor said].

I’ve shared in the past about grace, but this past week I realized there is a fault in my explanation of grace. It’s been my experience that Christians often confuse grace and mercy. So let me break down the two:

Imagine you’re in a silver Yaris driving down Interstate 5 in California on your [hypothetical] way to San Francisco, going [hypothetically] 103 mph in a 55-mph zone.  All of a sudden you see flashing lights, and a highway patrol officers [hypothetically] pulls you over. You’ve been caught in the act! When the officer comes up to the window, he asks, Mam, did you know how fast you were going? [Ok, ok, it’s not a hypothetical. It was me.]

No amount of eye-batting or kind words is going to get me out of this. I was caught. I broke the law. I was very wrong. Yes sir, I do know how fast I was driving. I’m sorry. The officer takes my drivers license and pulls out his ticket book as he walks to his car. I begin to pray like my life [and driving record] depended on it. I’m praying in my head to the God of all grace and kindness and forgiveness, the God who sovereignly put me in that silver Yaris car rental on interstate 5 to PLEASE, pluuuuueeeesssse, not give me ticket. If I wasn’t driving with my coworker, I would have burst into tears and lamented with sackcloth and ashes telling God, If you let me off I will never, EVER, speed again. In fact, I’ll drive below the speed limit. In fact, I’ll start riding a bike. Yeah, a bike! [People, Matthew would probably grounded me and not let me talk on my phone if I got another ticket?!]. I prayed and beat my forehead on the top of the steering wheel and ancient Jews who beat their chests in contrition.

The officer walks back to the four-cylinder car I managed to speed in and says, I’m feeling nice today. But listen, please don’t speed on the highway even if no one is around. I nearly jumped out and kissed him! I was so filled with joy and thanked God out loud for the grace He bestowed [I’m sure my coworker thinks I’m insane].

The only problem is that this is not an example of grace; it’s an example of mercy. Most people think that simply being forgiven of our sins is an act of grace. But grace is much richer than that.

Image if you’re driving down the interstate and speeding again, but this time you’ve been drinking [this one really is a hypothetical]. The highway patrol officer pulls you over, and you know that you’re guilty. You’re dreading the consequences. The officer comes up to you and asks, Did you know you were speeding? Is that alcohol I smell on your breath?!

He gives you a breathalyzer and it confirms you’re drink. To your shock and awe, he responds, You know, I’m feeling gracious. I’m going to go to jail for you and take the penalty for your crimes. But that’s not all. He gives you the keys to his brand-new 860i luxe edition BMW. Then he gives you the keys to his mansion and a key to his safe totaling 1.2 billion dollars. He says, I believe in you and I’m going to let you live my life so I get punished and you get my inheritance.

Can you imagine this!? This is more like what God has done for us in Jesus. We deserve wrath and punishment for our sins, but he gives us life and hope and welcomes us into His kingdom. He adopts us as his children. He gives us everything that Christ has and says that we will rule and reign with him. That is what GRACE is. That’s what God has done for us. All other religions are man’s attempt to reach God. Christianity is God coming to us.

This is grace.