A LICENSE FOR PRESUMING ON GRACE

So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. Ruth 2:17 

Why do we dislike a spoiled brat? Usually, it is because we realize that he has imposed upon his parents’ goodness. He feels entitled to everything his parents possess.

The same thing can happen in Christian circles. There is a common misunderstanding that grace requires no change or responsibility on the part of the believer. You are entitled to what God has given. But such thinking fails to fully understand grace. Grace does not give anyone the license to act however he would like. In fact, just the opposite is true. Paul wrote that grace instructs us that by “denying ungodliness and worldly desires, we should live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age” (Titus 2:12). God saves you, not so that you can presume upon His grace, but so that you will faithfully grow in Christlikeness.

Ruth experienced this. Even though she was a recipient of grace, she still had to do her part. Boaz gave her the barley, but she had to glean it, beat it into an ephah, and carry it into the city (all 25-30 lbs.). This would have involved hard labor, but she willingly did it.

“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13)

Philip Moeller