Misconceptions of Grace ~ Denisha Workizer Ep.148 Artwork

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Misconceptions of Grace ~ Denisha Workizer Ep.148

June 11, 2025 • Denisha

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Welcome to Living the Reclaimed Life. I’m Denisha.

In the last two episodes, our friend Keith Ferrin shared powerful ways to approach the Bible, seven simple questions to help us engage with Scripture, and a refreshing reminder that reading the Bible is about relationship, not just information. As Keith says, “The purpose of reading Scripture is to hang out with Jesus.”

That idea leads perfectly into today’s conversation.

Have you ever believed that grace gets you in the door to heaven, but your obedience or good behavior is what keeps you there? As someone who naturally leans toward achievement, I’ve wrestled with that mindset, and maybe you have, too.

In this episode, I’m sharing a sermon I gave that challenges that misconception. We’ll explore the kind of grace that doesn’t just let you in, it keeps you, restores you, and reminds you who you truly are, not because of what you do, but because of who God is.

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The transcript is auto-generated.

That idea leads perfectly into today’s conversation.

Today called misconceptions of grace.

And grace is kind of a funny [00:02:15] thing because it doesn't exist somewhere in a box up in heaven. It's [00:02:20] not something you can buy by the pound. It's not something we can order on [00:02:25] Amazon and have shipped to our door two days later or the same day now. Grace is this, [00:02:30] is this different, unique thing that's hard to explain and it's even harder to live out.[00:02:35]

And so we're gonna be looking at misconceptions that we have about grace and a [00:02:40]misconception is a view or an opinion that's incorrect. [00:02:45] It's any time that we have to say, yes, grace, but. And the particular [00:02:50] topic that we're going to talk about today, I want to tell you that I wouldn't have thought I wrestled with this.

I would have heard it [00:02:55] and thought, okay, I get it. No. Actually, I realized that what I'm about to [00:03:00] say, I had a misconception of grace. So if what I'm about to say is something that [00:03:05] we are going to look at the opposite of, this is the misconception we're talking about today, it's [00:03:10] that grace gets you through the door, but obedience makes you righteous.[00:03:15]

Now you can hear that and think, Okay, I get that that obedience doesn't make me [00:03:20]righteous, but I will tell you as the last couple weeks played out, God had a really unique way of [00:03:25] giving me the opportunity to walk out grace in a really beautiful way, and I'm going [00:03:30] to share that with you in a little bit.

I think that we're going to realize there are some [00:03:35] things about grace that we personally struggle with, and so my hope for today is that as we wrestle through [00:03:40] this particular statement together, that we will learn something new about God's grace in our own [00:03:45] lives. So as we've been studying and kind of preparing for this, it made me remember [00:03:50] of a day that I had a lot of grace extended to me.

And I was in high school. [00:03:55] My first car was a two door 1979 Mercedes. [00:04:00] Now, before you go, oh poor thing, she had a Mercedes as her first car. No, okay, so [00:04:05] it was a 1979 in like 1992. Okay. And [00:04:10] so the windows did not roll down. There was no air conditioning. Um, there was no [00:04:15] radio. But it was mine. And I think, I want to say somebody owed my parents like [00:04:20] 1, 500.

I mean like it wasn't a whole lot. I looked it up now just for fun. If it was restored [00:04:25] and beautiful, it's like 50, 000. But it was like 1, 500 back then, okay? [00:04:30] So this car was mine, and it could fit four very comfortably, [00:04:35] five if they were super squished in the backseat. This was like an itty bitty little car.

It was like tiny, [00:04:40] okay? So one morning, I'm supposed to pick up two girlfriends for school, and then we're, you know, [00:04:45] heading on. Well, one thing led to another, and somebody was at somebody's house. The next thing I know, I [00:04:50] had five people in the car plus me, which means somebody was like laying on the floor in the backseat, right?[00:04:55]

And we were heading to pick up my second girlfriend that I was supposed to pick up which would make person number [00:05:00] seven in my little itty bitty car. So, we're at this intersection and I'm [00:05:05] stopped at a red light and I look over and there's this dip in the road, which I've driven through a bunch [00:05:10] of times, only this time there's a voice in my backseat saying, go, go, go, [00:05:15] faster, faster, faster.

Okay. So, I may have gone a little [00:05:20] bit faster than I should have, and I hit this dip, and I think we caught air. Like, [00:05:25] boom! I heard this loud noise, and then we're, you know, kind of bounced, and [00:05:30] off we went to friend number seven's house. And, uh, so we go to her house, so we pull up in the [00:05:35] driveway, we go inside, we're hanging out and talking for a little bit, come outside, and there's this [00:05:40] black stuff.

All over her driveway. And it's really [00:05:45] thick. And it looks really slimy. And it's oil. And it's all over her [00:05:50] driveway. It was like, it was out of my car, down her driveway, and like on the sidewalk. Now my first thought [00:05:55] probably should have been, I should call my dad. But my first thought was, I need to get rid of these [00:06:00] extra four people.

that I was not supposed to have. So we start making phone [00:06:05] calls way before cell phones, we had beepers if you were like super lucky, and I start calling [00:06:10] people trying to figure out who's still home that can come and rescue these four people that are about to have to walk because my [00:06:15] dad's not gonna catch all seven of us sitting here cause he's gonna know exactly what happened.[00:06:20]

So they get rides and then I call my dad and he comes and he looks and he says How fast were you [00:06:25] going? And I was like I was at a stoplight. I just went, I don't [00:06:30] know, you know, and so he drove us to school that day. There was no learning. There was [00:06:35] no learning capabilities in my brain whatsoever because all I could think about was developing my [00:06:40]plan.

Because I was going to be in a lot of trouble. And so I thought I have to develop a [00:06:45] plan. When he says this, I'll say this. I'll stay in my room. I'll stay really quiet. Out of sight, out of mind. Maybe they'll forget. [00:06:50] I don't know what to do about like the whole mess thing going on at my friend's house. So I devised this [00:06:55] entire plan all day, and that's what I spent my afternoon doing.

So [00:07:00] then, I go into my room, out of sight, out of mind, and I hear a knock at my door, and I [00:07:05] open up the door, and it's my dad. And he has this, like, kitty litter box looking [00:07:10]thing. And it has ridges in it, and he turns it this way. And [00:07:15] it is completely scuffed. It is my oil pan. It is totally [00:07:20] scuffed. Looks like somebody took like metal to it.

It's terrible. And there's a hole in it. [00:07:25] And he says, this does not happen on that [00:07:30]dip. And I was like, Dad, but you know that dip's like big. This does not happen. And he looks at me [00:07:35] through it. And I can see his eyeball. And I'm in my bed like, I'm gonna die. My [00:07:40]entire existence in high school is over right now.

And he looks at me and he says, this does not [00:07:45] happen by going over that dip. And he sits it down on my floor, and I'm [00:07:50] like, I don't know what's gonna happen, and he tosses me my keys. [00:07:55] And I catch my keys, and I'm like, okay, now I die. Like, what's gonna happen? [00:08:00] Like, I'm gonna die with my keys in my hand? How is this gonna work?

And he leaves my room and quietly closes [00:08:05] the door. Now, I don't know, but if you were me, what would [00:08:10] dinner have looked like? Maybe walking on eggshells just a little bit? [00:08:15] What about breakfast the next morning when nothing gets spoken of at dinner? I was pretty [00:08:20] convinced by breakfast time that they had plotted all night about how they were gonna like take away everything [00:08:25] possible that they could from me.

And I was, you know, probably gonna like move states or something, like it was [00:08:30] bad. Everything I was like making my own plan of, how I was gonna come against and talk my way out [00:08:35] of, I was convinced they had done that, but breakfast came and breakfast went. And this hammer [00:08:40] never dropped. And I thought, wow. It turned out that my [00:08:45] dad actually never mentioned the oil pan incident again.

Never brought it up. [00:08:50] Nobody killed me. And you know, I think that the same thing that I did [00:08:55] about devising my own plan, I think that this is what we can even do with God. [00:09:00]We can make our own plan about how we are gonna make things [00:09:05] right between us. But see, my dad, in my case, had already made it right between us.

[00:09:10] He cleaned up, he fixed my car. He told me he spent the whole day cleaning it up. [00:09:15] Kitty litter and chemicals and all kinds of stuff. See, he had already made it right. He [00:09:20] made the situation right. He made it right relationally between us. But yet, I was determined. I'm gonna have a [00:09:25] plan. I'm gonna do chores.

I'm gonna work extra hours at work to pay this back. Like, I had 47 [00:09:30] different plans, depending on what my punishment was. And I think that we do [00:09:35] this with God because He can return our keys, and yet we're still going, I've got a plan, [00:09:40] I'm gonna earn this. But yet He's already made us righteous through Christ.

[00:09:45] He's chosen to forgive us and to restore us. And that's a beautiful moment of [00:09:50]grace. I lived day to day for a while thinking that [00:09:55] I had to prove that I was worthy enough to drive the car again. [00:10:00] But yet it wasn't even on their radar because what I was expecting and what I received, it didn't [00:10:05] line up and there was this tension in me between the fact that my dad had made it right [00:10:10] and the fact that I had this endless need to make it right myself.

Grace [00:10:15] gets you in the door, but obedience makes you righteous. And if being righteous is being [00:10:20] in right relation, I thought I was going to have to perform to do something in order to [00:10:25] restore that. And I'm wondering if you've ever done that with God. [00:10:30] Maybe you feel like you're on probation with [00:10:35] God, and that at any moment something you're gonna do is gonna trigger this ripple effect of things that has happened.[00:10:40]

Do you ever have a fear that the hammer will fall? Or ever tried to [00:10:45] conspire your own plan in order to fix the relationship that you feel between [00:10:50] you and God? There's something in between you. I think we do that. I think sometimes our own [00:10:55] plan can look like, I will pray an hour every day, God. God, I will read my Bible.

I [00:11:00] will learn more so that I can show you that I am worthy of what you are calling me, of [00:11:05] righteousness through Christ. I think sometimes our plan will look like, God, I will [00:11:10] never miss church again if you adjust. We make our own [00:11:15] plans, and often, There's a misconception involved in our plan of [00:11:20] how God's grace actually works.

And that we don't always live out of [00:11:25] realizing that. Because misconceptions aren't obvious, are they? They're not always [00:11:30] obvious. It's not bad. I want to say it's not bad to read your [00:11:35] Bible. It's not bad to be obedient. It's not bad to pray. It's not bad to come to church. Those are all great [00:11:40] things. But if we're doing it in order to make ourselves [00:11:45] righteous, then it's not effective.

Because Jesus has [00:11:50] already done for that, uh, done that for us. And I think that sometimes we take it upon ourselves. [00:11:55] And because grace makes no sense to our conventional wisdom. It turns [00:12:00] our brains inside out and upside down. And says that doesn't make sense. My dad[00:12:05] handing me back those keys made no sense to my brain.

Because I had [00:12:10] my own plan. So the misconception that we're going to unpack [00:12:15]today is that grace gets us through the door but obedience [00:12:20] makes us righteous. And righteous as in right standing relationally. [00:12:25] So remembering that this is a misconception, I want to tell you that I [00:12:30] personally had to think about this sentence for a little bit.

And I had to walk it out for a couple [00:12:35] of weeks. God's gracious to give us the opportunities to walk those things out. [00:12:40] So if you have your Bibles, let's turn with me to Luke chapter 15. So Luke [00:12:45] chapter 15, Jesus tells three parables. And a parable is a story [00:12:50] that tends to take an unexpected twist. And in that unexpected [00:12:55] twist, there's a lot of wisdom and there's a lot of symbolism in parables that Jesus [00:13:00] uses to reach the people he's speaking to in this particular day.

And this day, [00:13:05] he was speaking to the Pharisees. He was speaking to the men who, above anybody, would say [00:13:10] that their obedience made them righteous. They followed the law. They knew everything. They knew [00:13:15] all the commands. They followed them. They would say that, yes, my obedience makes me [00:13:20] righteous. And if we live under that...

When we are in Christ, then that is a [00:13:25] misconception. So we're going to start reading in verse 11. It's Luke 15, verse [00:13:30] 11. And he said, there was a man who had two sons and the [00:13:35] younger of them said to his father, father, give me the share of property that is coming to me. And [00:13:40] he divided the property between them.

Now I'm going to have you pause. The way [00:13:45] it worked in this culture, remember Jesus uses a lot of symbolism, a lot of things that people hearing this [00:13:50] story would go, oh I get that. So if you had, if there is a younger son, that means there is [00:13:55] a... Older son, good job. And so if there's an older son, two [00:14:00] sons, the older son would get two thirds of the inheritance.

So when the [00:14:05] estate is split up upon the father's passing, the oldest son would get two thirds of the [00:14:10] inheritance, and the younger son would get a third of that. So essentially what he is saying [00:14:15] here is, I want my inheritance early, I wish you were dead. [00:14:20] Ouch. I remember a couple years ago, our now six year [00:14:25] old made the comment, When you and dad die, I am going to fill the entire house with [00:14:30] Oreos.

And I remember thinking, Maybe we should lock our door tonight? [00:14:35] Maybe not. I don't know. Let's buy the child some Oreos. But I want you to imagine [00:14:40] that you are looking at your parents, and you're saying, You are in the way. That I want your money. [00:14:45] I want what you can give me. How would you feel as a parent? [00:14:50] I would be so sad, like we laughed at the Oreos, but if my son were coming to me and saying, [00:14:55] I want my inheritance now, I would feel so sad, I would feel so [00:15:00] betrayed.

I would feel shame. I would feel disrespected. He's about [00:15:05] to break up this family by taking his inheritance and leaving home. [00:15:10] And I want you to imagine the humiliation as they sell their [00:15:15] belongings to people in the village. All of a sudden, those were my dishes. [00:15:20]But yet they're still alive. They're still living there, but they see everybody else with their possessions and their [00:15:25] land.

This is humiliating for their family. And being a part of a [00:15:30] greater community was very important for the survival of this youngest son. [00:15:35] However, he cuts himself off by asking for his inheritance. There was actually a ritual [00:15:40] they had where they broke a pot in front of him on his property to say, you are [00:15:45] shattered.

You are no longer welcome here. You're gone to us. And so that is what they [00:15:50] did. Let's look at verse 13 and we'll watch that play out. Not many [00:15:55] days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into the far country, and [00:16:00] there he squandered his property and reckless living. And when he had spent everything, [00:16:05] a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need.[00:16:10]

So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into the fields [00:16:15] to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, [00:16:20] and no one gave him anything. So all of a sudden he, we're gonna pause there, he [00:16:25] finds himself alone, he finds himself desperate, he finds himself hungry, [00:16:30] and so much so that he takes a job feeding pigs.

Now he is Jewish, so [00:16:35] pigs to him are unclean in that culture. So not only is he desolate, right, he's [00:16:40] lost all of his inheritance, he's squandered it all, but now he's feeding unclean animals and he's [00:16:45] so hungry that he desires the slop that he's feeding these pigs. [00:16:50] I mean, this is pretty much rock bottom, right?

And so he's about to realize [00:16:55] that, and he's about to turn and go home. Let's look at verse 17. [00:17:00] But when he came to himself, he said, How many of my father's hired servants have [00:17:05] more than enough bread? But I perish here with hunger. I will arise and go to [00:17:10]my father, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.

I am no longer [00:17:15] worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants. Now [00:17:20] notice, he makes a plan here, just like I made a plan, [00:17:25] just like I wonder if you make a plan of how he's going to make it right. This is him sitting [00:17:30] in math class saying, how, what am I going to say if my father says this?

Well, I'm just going to go and tell him, [00:17:35] here's what I've done. I will come back as a hired hand. But see, he left as a [00:17:40] son and he's coming back with a mindset of a hired hand. Let's look at [00:17:45] verse 20. Let's see what his father's actually going to do. [00:17:50] And he rose and came to his father, but while he was a long way off, his father saw [00:17:55] him and felt compassion and ran and embraced and kissed him.

And the son [00:18:00] said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, I am no longer [00:18:05] worthy to be called your son. This shows that the son did not [00:18:10] understand the love and the compassion that the father had. Jesus was very [00:18:15] careful in all of the parables to use very specific examples to get the point across that he wanted [00:18:20] to get.

So this son, even though he had gone out, he had squandered, he had said he comes back. [00:18:25]And his father not only embraces him and receives him, he was hoping he would maybe let [00:18:30]him work in the barn as a hired hand. But his father doesn't do that, does he? His [00:18:35] father runs out to meet him and to greet him. And what I also love about this, he [00:18:40] could have said you're shattered, you're broken, you're not welcome here, but he doesn't, he runs out, and in [00:18:45]order for a man to run out in this time, running was considered something that [00:18:50] was scandalous, it was considered not something that you would do, it was almost like a taboo, [00:18:55]because as a man they would have to actually pull up their tunic, okay, pull it up around [00:19:00]their hips and run, So this was embarrassing.

It was humiliating. It was [00:19:05] definitely not something that somebody who was wealthy and predominant would do. You just [00:19:10] didn't run. That's why I don't run. No, but you didn't run. And to give [00:19:15] you a really good example, this would be like, as if you came home to your parents [00:19:20] house and you drove down the street and you saw your father running to you in his [00:19:25] undies, this is what this would be like.

That's humiliating, right? We would think. [00:19:30] Dad has fallen off the rocker since I left, right? But this is what this father [00:19:35] does. He humbles himself to run out and to meet his son. [00:19:40] And I think that's so neat, because what he also did is remember, if a Jewish son [00:19:45]had squandered all of his money to the Gentiles, his whole community would turn against [00:19:50]him.

So this isn't just a matter of the father receiving him home, which was most important, [00:19:55] but it was also the fact that community would have been like, you're not welcome. So his father running [00:20:00] out to meet him was kind of a way of him getting a hold of his son before the [00:20:05]community confronted him. And the son, he stuck to his plan, right?

He gave him his [00:20:10] speech because he hadn't realized the reality of the father's love for him. That it [00:20:15] wasn't dependent on his actions or behavior, it was because he was just a son. [00:20:20] He was his son. Now let's read on in verse 22. But the father [00:20:25] said to his servants, bring quickly the best robe and put it on him and put a ring on his [00:20:30] hand and shoes on his feet and bring the fattened calf and kill it.

Let us eat and [00:20:35] celebrate for this is my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found [00:20:40] and they began to celebrate. Now there's a defined moment of him [00:20:45] being made righteous and right standing relationally with his father that [00:20:50] happens in verse 22. And that is when his father says, get the robe, get the [00:20:55] ring, get the shoes, and put it on my son.

If Jesus has everything [00:21:00] with symbolism, that robe... Symbolize being made whole. [00:21:05] That robe symbolize that you are welcome back into the family again. That you [00:21:10]have restoration with the family. That you are in right standing in relationship as if you [00:21:15] had never left. That robe is so important. Now it doesn't mean that [00:21:20] nothing has happened.

It just means that whatever has happened has been covered in grace [00:21:25] and overcome by the Father's love. The ring says that you're a part of the [00:21:30] family business. It's a symbol of wealth and position. The shoes say that you're not a [00:21:35] hired servant, that you are acceptable. He was given his keys back [00:21:40] in this moment.

That robe was significant of giving the keys back to saying, here [00:21:45] you are. You are completely and totally restored. The father closed him as [00:21:50] an act of love and compassion to honor his son in full view of the village. [00:21:55] He returned with the mindset of a hired hand, yet he was received as a son [00:22:00] because a son is accepted and righteous because of the father.

[00:22:05] And see, that's grace. And grace is God's plan that restores us. [00:22:10] So, so far we've seen two characters. We've seen the father and we've seen the younger son. And [00:22:15] if there's a younger son, there's a... Older son. So now I wonder what the [00:22:20] older son who got two thirds of the estate would say when he [00:22:25] hears that his brother has come home.

You know, verse 12 told us that the estate, so the [00:22:30] father actually had to sell everything in order to split this up. It wasn't like he could just sell a [00:22:35] portion of it. He actually sold everything. But the older son decided to stay and work instead [00:22:40] of leaving. So let's see what he thinks about this homecoming.

So the older [00:22:45] brother is working in the field, and he hears music, and he hears dancing, and [00:22:50] he says, What's going on? And somebody says, Haven't you heard? Your brother has come [00:22:55] home. It's amazing. There's celebration. Your dad is killing the fattened calf. [00:23:00]Here's his response. Let's read in verse 29. He answered his father, Look, these many [00:23:05] years I have served you.

I have never disobeyed your command, yet you have never given [00:23:10] me a young goat that I might celebrate with my friends. But when the son of yours [00:23:15] came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him? [00:23:20] He's not super happy about this, is he? [00:23:25] And his dad responds, Son, you were always with me, and all that is [00:23:30]mine is yours.

It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for your brother was dead and is [00:23:35] alive. He was lost, and now he is found. This parable [00:23:40] ends with the older brother refusing to come to the feast. But what I think [00:23:45] is so funny about this is what did he just say he wanted? You've never given me a party. [00:23:50] You've never had me invite my friends.

I've done all this for you. I've worked my way into, I've [00:23:55] used obedience to become righteous and in right standing with you, yet you've never offered [00:24:00] me a party with my friends and a big goat. But it's not exactly what's going on. He actually [00:24:05] has exactly what he wants. Right there. I mean, in a village, probably [00:24:10] the older brother's friends would be the younger brother's friends would probably be the dad's friends.

Like, the [00:24:15] people he wanted to hang out with are there. The party he wanted, the feast that he wanted, is [00:24:20] there. But he's mad, and he doesn't want to participate in [00:24:25] it. Because he wasn't recognized for his years of obedience. I [00:24:30] mean, here comes his squandering brother that comes home with his head held down.

Why should he get the [00:24:35] party? But remember, Jesus tells everything with a purpose. And the older [00:24:40] brother, he did not understand grace. He was still trying to earn his [00:24:45]righteousness through obedience. But Father, I have never disobeyed you, [00:24:50] he said. He's trying to earn his righteousness through obedience.

[00:24:55] Grace gets us in the door, but obedience makes us righteous. Can you see how [00:25:00]that is a misconception that this older brother had? And you know, [00:25:05] we live in a transactional culture, don't we? I'll give you money, you give me [00:25:10] food. I'll give you my time and my talents, you give me a paycheck. [00:25:15] We live in a very transactional culture that tries to [00:25:20] convince us that righteousness is a reward of being obedient.

Have [00:25:25] you ever had that misconception of grace? [00:25:30] An expectation that you might get in the door, but you may barely get in or that you have to be [00:25:35] a hired hand. Because I want to tell you that grace is what gets [00:25:40] us through the door. And it's the love and acceptance of Christ that makes [00:25:45] us righteous.

Righteousness is to be in right standing [00:25:50] relationally. Christ did that for us. John tells us that grace and [00:25:55] truth were realized through Jesus. He doesn't say grace and truth were [00:26:00]realized through your own works. He said grace and truth were realized through Christ, through [00:26:05] Jesus. That is the heart of the Father.

And you may be thinking, you don't know what I've [00:26:10] done. Well, I want to tell you, it doesn't matter what you have done. Because the Bible [00:26:15] also tells us where sin has increased, grace has abounded more. [00:26:20] God makes us righteous. Not our own works. Not our own doing. [00:26:25] And both brothers, they had a plan, didn't they?

They both had a plan. And I'm fascinated [00:26:30] by the fact that they were kind of both the same in a way. They just went about them a little bit differently. [00:26:35] Because both wanted to be in right standing with the Father. They just thought [00:26:40] that it was about them. One thought that he could work his way back, [00:26:45] being a hired hand to being worthy of being in the Father's house.

And the other one thought that it was [00:26:50] work that made him righteous. I want to tell you that obedience is not [00:26:55] bad. It is not bad to be obedient. That is a really good thing. Just like prayer and reading our Bible and [00:27:00] coming to church. But if that's what we base our righteousness on, then it makes [00:27:05] grace about us.

And grace is not about us, [00:27:10] but obedience happens when we know we are righteous. [00:27:15] It's God who makes us righteous. And this could be hard for us, not [00:27:20] only because we live in a transactional culture, but we also might not have been raised in a [00:27:25] home of grace. And I can tell you that you heard a beautiful story of my dad's grace [00:27:30] and that it was amazing.

But the messages that were repeated to me redundantly [00:27:35] growing up was that my value was based on what I could do. My value is based [00:27:40] on my grades, my performance. My acceptance was based on how good of a girl could I [00:27:45] be. That was how I had my value and acceptance. That is how I felt that I [00:27:50] received love.

And see maybe you've had that too. Maybe you've thought that [00:27:55] your value had to be earned. Maybe you have felt that you had to be a certain way [00:28:00] or do certain things in order to be accepted or to be enough. Maybe once you [00:28:05] received the grace of Christ, you were worried that it would be taken away as fast as it was [00:28:10] realized.

That's not how God works. That's a transaction. [00:28:15] And that's not how God works. If that sounds familiar, I want to tell [00:28:20] you that you're not alone. I said the last couple weeks I've kind of been walking out my own [00:28:25] grace moment. God has a cool way of doing that. And over the last couple weeks, there's been [00:28:30] some things that I've been struggling with, with my pushing forward, with me, you know, I have to [00:28:35] perform, I have to do things right in order to be valued and accepted.

And I want to tell you something, that Ryan [00:28:40] Kramer is actually my boss, and he said something to me that [00:28:45] really, He begged me to ask a lot of questions. And he [00:28:50] said to me, he said, Danisha, we care more about you being all that God has [00:28:55] created you to be. As a wife, as a mother, as a Christ follower, we want [00:29:00] all of that for you, more than we want what you can do for us.

And [00:29:05] I sat there, I wasn't sure to... Like, I didn't know what to feel in that moment [00:29:10] because I thought, no, no, no. The more I do for you, the more you like me. The more I do for you, the more [00:29:15] favor I have with you. And he was debunking every misconception that I had [00:29:20] had about grace. And it was a beautiful moment.

I even tested him on it a [00:29:25] little bit here and there. How much if I do this and then, no. But I did, I felt [00:29:30] like I needed to push back a little bit. And we had several conversations on that. Because I said, I didn't realize how [00:29:35] much I thought that me being in right standing was based on what I did. [00:29:40] I didn't realize that that was a misconception I had of grace.

And then I thought it was [00:29:45] real funny when I realized the topic I got today. I thought, alright God. So I can tell you if you've [00:29:50] wrestled with that, so can I. But because of that right standing, because of the freedom that [00:29:55] he gave me, that it's not about what I can do, that actually gave me the freedom to be the [00:30:00] pastor, the wife, the mother that God has created me to be.

Our kids need to [00:30:05] see this type of grace modeled for them. , they need this. They see us being [00:30:10] critical of ourselves. They see us not extending grace to ourselves and others at times. They [00:30:15] need to see us modeling grace for them and extending grace to them. [00:30:20] We all have a different story and they're all so unique.

Everybody I talk to there, our stories are [00:30:25] so unique, yet all just designed by the same God and it's [00:30:30] amazing. It's interesting and so beautiful to see grace displayed in each of our lives. [00:30:35] So I'd like to wrap up our time together today with three things that I think we can [00:30:40] tangibly do and start thinking about in our lives when it comes to grace.

One [00:30:45] is accept that you are accepted. That sounds easy, but I'm gonna [00:30:50] actually take the most time unpacking this one. Because I could tell you I was accepted, but when [00:30:55]Ryan said that I was like, wait, you mean it's not based on anything that I do? [00:31:00] That's so confusing to me. So accept that you are accepted.

You know, we tell [00:31:05] our kids, you're a work izer, and when you're a work izer, you do this. When [00:31:10] you're a work izer, we stand for this. See, they can't make themselves a work izer, [00:31:15] they were made a work izer. Just like we can't make ourselves righteous, we were made righteous [00:31:20] through Christ. Grace is misconceived because it can be difficult because [00:31:25] we don't understand it, because we don't always accept it.

So practice the acceptance [00:31:30] of grace. And this sounds really simple. Okay, I'll accept that I'm accepted. But [00:31:35] guys, this is like, been blowing my mind the last couple of weeks. Because you're gonna find [00:31:40] yourself in awkward moments. When your boss tells you we care more about you than what you can do [00:31:45] for us.

Like, I feel like I owe you something right now. I don't even know what to do with that. It was [00:31:50] awkward. It was beautiful. You're going to find yourself, um, maybe somebody gives you a [00:31:55] present. Now what do we do when somebody gives us a present that we weren't expecting and it's not our birthday? [00:32:00] We run to the store to get something equivalent to give back to them.

Don't we do that [00:32:05] sometimes? I've done this, rummaged through my house trying to find an equivalent gift to give back real [00:32:10] fast, like re gifting. But what if we stay in that awkward [00:32:15] moment of that grace? What if we get the gift and we just simply say, thank [00:32:20] you. And that's awkward, okay? I remember one of my girlfriends loaned me a sweater, a [00:32:25] really nice sweater, from a really nice store.

And I took it off the really nice sweater and put it on my [00:32:30] couch and my really sweet dog jumped up and grabbed it and chewed the whole shoulder [00:32:35] out. And that was before, like, shoulderless shirts were cool, and it was only one, and it was real [00:32:40] rough, okay? And so I called every store they had, I mean, I was trying [00:32:45] everywhere, but they might have one at this location, so I'm calling them.

They didn't have the sweater [00:32:50] anymore. So I called my friend, I said, I'm so sorry, my dog ate your sweater. And you [00:32:55] know what she said? That's okay. I didn't like that sweater anyways. Now what if I would have just [00:33:00] said, oh, you're so kind, thank you. No. I grabbed my checkbook, I went down to the [00:33:05] store and I bought her a 50 gift card.

Because I felt so bad. But what if I put away my [00:33:10] checkbook next time? What if I sit in that awkwardness of saying, I'm so sorry, my [00:33:15] dog ate your sweater. And she said, that's okay. And I went, really? Thank you. [00:33:20] Those are the moments that I'm talking about that get really, really awkward. What about the [00:33:25] next time that we feel that we are in probation with God, and we're waiting for that hammer to fall, [00:33:30] waiting to receive what we think is coming to us?

What if we remember that we're already [00:33:35] accepted and loved, not because of what we can do, but of who we are in [00:33:40] Him? When you simply accept grace, it forces you to feel what [00:33:45] really happened. What if that son had refused the gift? What if he [00:33:50] had taken off his robe and said, No, dad, I don't deserve this. I haven't worked for this.

No, dad, take [00:33:55] this. That would have gone against everything we see in the father's heart. What [00:34:00] about our own plans? You know, I'll work off the damage to my car by doing chores, by working extra [00:34:05] hours. I'll work as a hired hand. God, I'll be obedient. And I'll try really hard not to [00:34:10] make that mistake if you would just love me.

Have you ever done that? [00:34:15] All of these things are misconceptions that we have of grace and they're the mindset [00:34:20] of a hired hand and not a son or a daughter. Because by creating these plans and how we're [00:34:25] going to fix it for ourselves, do you know what we're really saying in those moments? We're really [00:34:30] saying that we don't need God.

That we can earn back our acceptance and our [00:34:35] righteousness. And that we can work to earn that back. See, grace is nice, it gets us through the [00:34:40] door, but obedience is what keeps me righteous. That's a misconception. Friends, that's a [00:34:45] one sided approach to grace. That's not what the Father desires. [00:34:50] If we see it through the lens of the Father, we can't help but know we are accepted.

So accept [00:34:55] that you are accepted. The second thing I want to leave you with is keep your [00:35:00] dinner plans. When you get the robe, how do you feel? When I [00:35:05] got the keys, I felt guilty. I felt unworthy. But what if we can go to [00:35:10] dinner with our robe and our ring and our shoes and we know that we belong [00:35:15] there?

Everybody might know our business. There are people who are going to know what we've done. [00:35:20] But what if we know that we are fully accepted and we can go in in peace and knowing [00:35:25] that we belong there not as a hired hand, but as a son or as a daughter. You know, [00:35:30] childlike faith. Kids don't wear masks. They're grateful for what they have.

[00:35:35] And we get to express gratefulness for God's grace in all the moments when we're [00:35:40] tempted to feel like a hired hand. The third and last thing I want to leave you with is [00:35:45] before you leave the house in the morning, you put on your clothes. So the third thing I want to tell [00:35:50] you is leave your robe on, not your house coat.

But I want to tell you, you put on clothes before you [00:35:55] leave the house, right? If you didn't, this would be a really awkward moment right now. [00:36:00] So thank you. Yay! Good job! You guys all got dressed this morning. But before you [00:36:05] leave the house, you put clothes on, and your clothes in grace the same way. You're not [00:36:10] walking out naked, you're walking out accepted.

So what I want to encourage you to do, and we're [00:36:15] going to do just a quick activity. is I want to encourage you to leave your robe on. You [00:36:20] are clothed in grace, not because of what you have done, but for what Christ has done for [00:36:25] you. So to remember that, I want us all to put out your [00:36:30] arm, and I want you, with me, to put on your rope.

Okay? One arm. Good job. [00:36:35] The other arm. Okay. Now this is nothing fancy. It's actually from our honeymoon [00:36:40] 18 years ago. There's nothing fancy about this, but we are clothed in [00:36:45] grace. So I want to encourage you, don't disrobe, leave your robe on. I'm going to take mine off just because [00:36:50] it'll be like 150 degrees up here.

Don't take yours off. Uh, leave your robe on. [00:36:55] Two times in this parable, Jesus said that the younger son felt unworthy [00:37:00] to be a son. And I think that that's really important because his feelings of [00:37:05] unworthiness and our feelings of unworthiness just make the reality of the [00:37:10] Father's love even more profound.

So you know what's amazing about [00:37:15] grace? Is that Christ does not struggle to forgive you. [00:37:20] Sometimes we may picture Him going, yep, I'll even forgive you because I have to, it's in [00:37:25] the book. That's not what he does. It is his joy. Christ left his [00:37:30] home in heaven to come down to our world, to run out with open arms, [00:37:35] compassion and love and joy.

It is his joy to forgive us and to receive [00:37:40] us. It's not based on what we do, it's based on what he did. [00:37:45] What God wants most is you, not your works, and not the best [00:37:50] plan that you can come up with. There is no way that you can blow it so bad that [00:37:55] God does not receive you. Because more than anything else, He wants you, not as a [00:38:00] hired hand, but He wants you as a son or a daughter.

Christ gave us our [00:38:05] keys back. And the question for us is, are we still going to try to earn them back [00:38:10] when the keys are in our hand? Christ's single act of grace gets [00:38:15] us through the door. It's all Him. We don't have to earn them back. You're already holding them. You're already [00:38:20] clothed in grace. John tells us that it's out of His fullness that we have [00:38:25] all received grace upon grace in Christ.

It's [00:38:30] not about what you've done. It's about what He has already done. [00:38:35] Grace is not about you. Let us pray. [00:38:40] Father God, I just come to you today, Lord, and we thank you for your grace. We thank [00:38:45] you that we are made righteous in Christ, that we are right relationally with you, that we don't have [00:38:50] to work for it, that it's not our obedience, Lord, that makes us righteous.

But [00:38:55] God, we thank you, Lord, that knowing that we're righteous, Lord, that's what makes us obedient. [00:39:00] God, we love you. We thank you. Father, I ask for just a new encounter of grace and [00:39:05] love for each of us in our lives as we go about this week, Lord, and help us to extend the same [00:39:10] grace that we've received to others.

Lord, it's in your name we pray. Amen.[00:39:15]

Thanks for listening. I pray you found [00:39:20] hope in today's conversation and maybe even feel a little less alone in your [00:39:25] story. Stay connected with us on Facebook and Instagram at Reclaimed [00:39:30] Stories. Want to learn more about living a reclaimed life and how you can be a part of our [00:39:35] growing community of reclaimers?

Check out our website at reclaimedstory. com [00:39:40] All of those links and more will be in the show notes. And if you enjoyed this [00:39:45] inspirational podcast, be sure to subscribe, rate, and review. Not only [00:39:50] will you be the first one to know when new content comes out, but it is also a huge health and [00:39:55] helping us reach more people to live the reclaimed life.[00:40:00]