“Grace, without Jesus Christ, is homeless. To be clear, grace doesn’t save a wretch like me. Jesus Christ does.
It is the pastor’s highest privilege to be an agent of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s grace in Christ is our calling, our work, our stock-in-trade.
Every sermon should be marinated in the grace of Christ. Sermons and counseling sessions that hammer have their place, but they’re dangerous in heavy doses.
God’s people start taking on the prodigal’s speech, “I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men” (Luke 15:19). We’re not worthy, of course, but God never leaves us there. Pastors must not either.
Jim was a gangly, grinning, retired blue-collar worker with the goofiest sense of humor I ever encountered. He had come to Christ in his sixties and, oh how he loved Jesus. His official ministry was usher, and he was born to do it.
What especially endeared Jim to the church was that every Sunday, when the service was over, he would be waiting by the rear doors for the children. His jacket pockets bulged with Smarties, little rolls of candy, and every child got one. He loved the children so much that when he gave out that candy it could break your heart to watch. And we all watched.
Grace isn’t candy, I know, but that is a wonderful picture for pastors. Grace isn’t always about sin. Grace is God’s favor lavished on those who couldn’t get their hands on it by themselves.
Meet people with your pockets bulging with grace. Keep the grace of Scripture in your pockets. Don’t be glib with it; don’t turn God’s words into platitudes. But as Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”
Use Scripture to encourage and bless. Give out Bible words like small compasses to disoriented people, like water for runners, like God’s smile for the sad.
Have a pocketful of the grace of sympathy and understanding. “That must have felt awful,” you say. Or, “Thank you for being so faithful.” “I would have been so scared. Were you?” “I’ve noticed in this trial how you have tried to trust the Lord.”
We hand out grace, too, when we remember a visitor’s name, the anniversary of a loved one’s death, when we celebrate a good grade on an exam, or cheer for a wedding anniversary. Always carry grace in your pockets. Be lavish with it, extravagant. There’s plenty more where that came from.
When I was a young pastor, I heard someone say that a church takes on the personality of its pastor within three years. I don’t know if that’s true, but I do know that a pastor whose pockets are full of grace is likely to see his flock spread grace.
God’s grace is contagious. Being around grace is like being near someone who can’t stop laughing. Pretty soon, you’re laughing too.”
–Lee Eclov, Pastoral Graces: Reflections on the Care of Souls (Chicago: Moody, 2012), 42-46.
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