Hymns: Your Grace is Enough

I’ve been exploring some of the very modern worship songs as an old guy 😀. But now, I’ve decided to alternate between very modern hymns, old hymns, and in-between hymns, namely the worship songs from the 60s to the 90s that feature in hymnbooks such as Mission Praise. Today it’s the turn of the very modern hymns.

Today’s song is Your Grace is Enough It’s from 2004.

When I hear the phrase “Your grace is enough”, I think primarily in terms of salvation. We are saved by grace rather than by good works or “grace + good works”. Interestingly, Matt Mahler, the writer, is a Roman Catholic, so perhaps he believes the latter 😀. Roman Catholics and Protestants believe in the importance of good works, but Protestants, and perhaps many Roman Catholics, believe that our salvation is ultimately in God’s hands.

Ephesians 2:8-9
⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast.

When I trained to be a schoolteacher back in the 1980s, we had all sort of modules and teaching practice sessions that were focused on educating teenagers. Now let’s say, I get a job as a teacher and most of the class fail their exams, I go to the principal and I say “it’s not my fault – some of them were downright stupid and others lacked motivation”. How would he reply? 😀

A good teacher would ensure that he/she motivates the children and teaches in such a way that all the children learn. And whatever shortcomings we humans have, God isn’t subject to limitations. It’s true that some verses in the Bible put much focus on our need to be faithful and to obey Him. But ultimately, we’re in His hands and His grace is enough.

Jesus did the test for us and passed with flying colours. And in relation to our part, sanctification or progressive holiness, we’ll never be perfect in this world, but God will continue to motivate and teach us. And our place in heaven is already secured by Jesus in any case, though if we used that as an excuse to be careless, perhaps we should wonder if we really are disciples in the first place.

John 10:27
²⁷ My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.

I’m always touched by the fact that Jesus knew that Peter would deny him three times on the night before He died – and that His disciples would desert Him. Yet, He knew that he was paying the price for their sin the next day. And He also knew that they would repent and continue to believe and proclaim His message. Most actually died for their faith.

The context of today’s title is more related to God’s grace being sufficient for us to cope with life’s trials. It’s very natural to go and ask God to instantly fix a problem for us. And why shouldn’t we entertain such a hope? Paul did this when he had what was probably a health problem – a “thorn in the flesh”. Sometimes God surprises us and gives us exactly what we ask for – maybe to encourage us to pray. But He often says “no” because He has other plans. Perhaps He’s even using our suffering to help us to grow and mature.

2 Cor 12:7-10
….Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

When we get to heaven, there’ll be no more pain, but we generally don’t escape trouble in this world. But we trust that God knows exactly what He’s doing. Getting back to teaching, I can remember feeling great resentment towards teachers or bosses at various times. But later, I’d realize that they’d have my best interests at heart. You’d get others who were quite friendly, but didn’t really care about what you learned or didn’t learn. Which ones were your real friends?

Anyway, here are some other versions of today’s hymn. Lyrically, it doesn’t seem to say very much, but the title alone is enough for me.