Surprised by Grace

Surprised by Grace

John Newton spent his early life as a slave trader — a fact he never minimized or excused in later years. After a near-fatal storm at sea in 1748, he began a slow, stumbling journey toward faith. He continued in the slave trade for years afterward, which is a sobering reminder that conversion does not immediately fix everything. But God's grace kept working. Eventually Newton became a minister, a tireless abolitionist alongside Wilberforce, and the author of one of the most beloved hymns ever written: 'Amazing Grace.' He dictated his own tombstone inscription: 'John Newton, Clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slavers in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long laboured to destroy.' Grace that can reach a man like Newton can reach anyone.

Grace is the word Paul returns to again and again in his letters, because it is the word that changes everything. The Greek charis — grace — points to something freely given, unearned, unexpected. Paul is emphatic: it is 'not from yourselves.' It is a gift. Not a wage, not a reward, not something you unlocked. This should be deeply humbling and deeply freeing simultaneously. Humbling because it removes all grounds for spiritual pride. Freeing because it removes all grounds for spiritual despair. You cannot earn it — which means you cannot lose it by failing to earn it. The same grace that saved you yesterday is sustaining you today, not because you have maintained your performance but because the Giver is generous and faithful. Boasting is excluded. Resting is invited.