What are the three most abused words in the vocabulary of faith?
Many words might make the list—but “Should,” “Must,” and “Ought” are the undoubted champions.
And there’s the pity, for before we learned to read or count, we heard voices—even righteous voices—telling us that belief in God was, first of all, about “Should,” “Must,” and “Ought.”
Before we learned how much God loved us, we heard the trio of obligation. Before we felt the warmth of our Father’s gentle embrace, we learned about our duty. Before we saw the love of God in how Jesus lived among us, knew our pain, and rescued us—we heard how much we owed Him.
The Bible couldn’t be clearer, but somehow, we didn’t hear it. “Since our friendship with God was restored by the death of His Son while we were still His enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of His Son” (Rom 5:10).
Grace is what God has done and is doing for us. Gratitude—unforced and uncommanded—is how we lovingly respond.
So stay in grace—and gratitude.
—Bill Knott