In todays opening prayer of the Mass, we are reminded what the gift of grace is about, "Father, in your love you have brought us from evil to good and from misery to happiness."
The gift of grace sets us free to embrace goodness and to let go of misery by delving deeply into the promise of Joy we encounter in Christ.
St. Peter in the Acts of the Apostles reminds us, as he reminded the early church, that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are saved through grace.
Many Christians proclaim to be saved by faith and even faith alone. But, the reality is, simply put, that faith and love and hope are fruits of grace. It is the grace of God that saves us, faith, love, and hope are our response to that saving invitation.
Grace is a word that encapsulates what God does for us, to us, in us, with us by means of Jesus. This includes everything that was a precursor to Christ as well, such as, circumcision and the ten commandments.
Grace is God coming down to us and showing us how to live ad to love according to his standard; the ten commandments are grace for us. Circumcision was grace for the Jewish people, it was an external sign that reminded them that God chose them.
Jesus is the perfect manifestation of God's invitation, of God communicating himself and his goodness to us.
We simply have to respond. Grace is the invitation; our response in faith and love and hope is the RSVP with our life. We cooperate with God's favor and choose to live differently.
We have all received grace upon grace in Christ, according to the Gospel of John. The question for us is do we respond, do we actively embrace the favor of God and live differently, embracing all as a gift that enables us to share in the divine life.
Here we must set aside our expectations for we must always remember that the primary gift of grace to us and for us was Jesus suffering, dying, and rising.
Grace is always beyond our comprehension but yet it also always remains within our reach. Reach forth and grab hold of Christ, especially in the sacraments, and live differently in grace, setting aside evil for good, misery for joy.
This is grace, this is life, this is joy, this is the invitation placed before us in Christ.
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