“Working together with Him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.”
2 Corinthians 6:1 ESV
“Disgusting! This looks nasty!” I sat staring at the brown leather-looking meat, partly hidden by brown gravy. I didn’t dare say those words out loud, but I was saying them over and over in my mind. “What is this stuff? It doesn’t even smell good. Does Momma really expect me to eat this?” I poked at it with my fork. The thought of putting it in my mouth made me want to gag, so I did.
“Sherri Renee, what is the matter with you?”
Uh oh. Middle name used – that’s never good.
“What is this, Momma?” I asked, as I continued to stare in disgust at my plate.
“It’s liver and gravy! It’s good, you’ll like it. And it’s good for you!”
Oh! No! It’s good for me? That’s parent code for “tastes awful.” I knew that from many past experiences – every evil, gross liquid medicine ever spooned into my mouth came with “It’s good for you!”
“But Momma, I don’t like it.”
“You haven’t even tasted it yet.”
I poked the fork tines tentatively into the gravy, then bravely raised it to my lips. I gingerly touched the gravy with the tip of my tongue, then immediately gagged again.
“Sherri Renee!”
“Please, Momma, I don’t like this.”
“There are starving children in Africa who would be happy to eat this! We are not going to waste good food.”
At that moment, I would have happily sent my liver-filled plate to those kids. They could keep the plate, I didn’t care! Another thought I did not mention to Momma.
“Three bites. That’s all. You just need to try it. You’ll see, you’ll like it.”
I could feel the tears rolling down my cheeks. Three whole bites! Three mouthfuls of liver and gravy—that sounded as reasonable as being told I’d have to eat the entire cow. My gag reflex strained to exert itself again.
Somehow, I managed to eat the three bites with only minimal gagging—holding my nose as I ate helped. And eventually, that particular “we won’t waste” ordeal was over.
I often think of this episode when the subject of “wasting something” comes up.
So when I read this passage written by the Apostle Paul to the Church in Corinth, it was only natural that I thought of gagging through three bites of liver because we were “not going to waste good food.”
However bizarre my thinking process may seem to you, it made perfect sense to me. In his letter to the Corinthian Church, Paul wrote, you have received something good—good for you and good for others. It’s precious, priceless, even. Do not waste what you have been given. “Do not receive the grace of God in vain.”
“Working together with Him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.” 2 Corinthians 6:1 ESV
Don’t WASTE IT!
You’ve received God’s grace on purpose for a purpose. It’s not something you sniff and turn your nose up at. The responsibility and obligation that come with God’s awesome grace are not something you pass off to someone else. Nor are you to ignore and allow them to lie dormant in your life.
Do not DO NOTHING!
This first verse in 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 immediately follows Paul’s instructions to believers (2 Cor 5:14-21) to follow his and Timothy’s (who was serving alongside Paul at the time) example to become reconciled to God through Christ Jesus, in Whom we have forgiveness of sin and His imputed righteousness.
“Imputed righteousness” means that when we surrender fully to Jesus Christ, the Perfect Savior, His righteousness is counted as our righteousness. God sees us as righteous because He is looking at us through Jesus, His perfect Son. Left to our own devices, there is no way that we can find our way or work our way to righteousness or “right-standing” with God.
The responsibility and obligation that accompany God’s saving grace is two-fold:
- We are to grow in understanding and right living under the Holy Spirit’s guidance and through God’s Word.
- And, we are to flourish in our position as ambassadors for the cause of Christ. We are to be ready, willing, and able to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with anyone and everyone in need of a Savior.
Because we are incredibly blessed to be called children of the Living God, we are obligated to share the gospel message with those who have not yet heard or have not made the decision to surrender to Jesus. Our salvation and our relationship with God through Jesus Christ are gifts of immeasurable value. They are not to be taken for granted or set on a shelf and forgotten. More than a duty, testifying to others of the great gift of eternal life, enduring peace, and joy must be shared with others.
Don’t waste this excellent gift you have been given.
It is good for you.
It is good for others.
It’s more than good, it is essential.
“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:20-21 ESV