Killer Grace – No Not Awesome

Grace has been with us from the “foundations of the world.“ What does that phrase “foundations of the world” mean to you? I recognize how many might take this question as being too simple, however, there is much to be considered in the simplest of matters.

To most people this phrase signifies the creation event described in Genesis 1 where out of God’s will, He expressed His desire to create ALL through the power of His voice. The question you need to ask yourself then becomes this: In this moment of creation, where, or how, is grace displayed? Go ahead, think about it? If you have difficulties come up with an answer it might be because your “foundation” is off.

I am going to continue exploring this but allow me to ask you a question. What does Paul mean when he says that we, “…are in the world, but not of the world…”? Does he mean that we are in creation but not of creation? Of course not, since this would be a ridiculous claim. We all understand that he means we are not of this worldly mindset, right? Right?

So then, Paul gives us an insight into the fact that there are actually two “worlds” being represented within the text of the bible. To claim something to be from the “foundations of the world” requires us as the reader to know which, if not both worlds, is being spoken about. So, let’s look at the foundation of Paul’s second world.

A World Apart

Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch. Gen 4:17

This is the first record of the creation of a city in the bible. A city can be called “a world unto itself” and rightly so because those who inhabit it determine how it functions across a broad social stratosphere. To this end, we each live in a “world” outside of creation and this is the “world” which Paul is referencing to.

Let me ask you the same question from above: In this world (the one created by Cain in the form of a city), where, or how, is grace displayed? Most of you will find it difficult to answer this question too because you’ve never considered there even being another world, even one defined by a social structure.

Yet, you have lived the entirety of your life in this “world”, and it has openly defined what you believe grace is, what it looks like, how it operates and when is deserved. Regrettably, this is the lowest form of grace available to humanity and in many ways is more of a construct of the societal pressures in this world, than the divine measure of grace.

Let me call this type of grace what it truly is: Killer Grace. No, this is not a descriptive name of how awesome grace is but a factual representation of how this measure of grace functions throughout society. Allow me to explain.

Cain is one of the offspring of the man and women whose eyes were opened to the desires of their heart when they disobeyed the only commandment of creation. Cain, and his brother Abel, were the first farmer and rancher described in the bible. Farmer Cain killed his brother after an offering ceremony to God where the offering of Cain was not pleasing to the Lord.

When Cain is confronted by God about the whereabouts of Abel, and he denies know anything, the Lord tells him that the soil, that medium which allows you to grow and nourish your life, has the blood of Abel crying out for…

Okay, what is Abel crying out for? He is the victim. Recognize that any answer you’re about to give has to be placed next to the comment which Paul made declaring how the blood of Jesus speaks greater than the blood of Abel. Both victims, both have blood spilled before the foundations of the “world,” both are crying out for us to hear…

What Have You Done?

Let’s backup a moment. God asks Cain where his brother is, not why he did what he did. God knows what occurred. Yet it is Cain’s unwillingness to see the importance of familial relationships that exacts his punishment, which isn’t on him, but on the source of his identity – the soil. (There’s much more to unpack here, but that will have to be in another post.)

Grieved by the punishment he receives, Cain claims how he will die in the land by anyone who finds him. God rectifies this erroneous declaration by placing a “Do Not Disturb” sign upon him and issuing a curse upon anyone who takes Cain’s life. It is at this point where Genesis 4:17 kicks in.

We now come to where it’s time to look at what is the foundation to the world of Cain, and what Killer Grace looks like. Any city is a formation of many individuals who collectively adopt a system of governance to maintain peaceful constraints of the masses to insure prosperity. This is a basic description I acknowledge since it doesn’t include what or how restraint will be administrated or even who will be responsible for this administration.

Just the Facts, Mam…

Cain is a murderer. His punishment was placed upon the soil of not just a particular spot, but on all soil. He doesn’t need to worry if others will take his life because a greater punishment falls upon anyone who does kill him. Killer grace is fabricated on a false sense of justice. The guilty is reprieved by the judge to allow them to continue on their life while the victim is crying out for their justice in their pleas.

Cain’s shift of punishment to another who might take his life becomes a deterrent to future generations from repeating the same act believing there will be no repercussions. However, this only applied to Cain, not to a social structure as a whole. Grace in this world of Cain therefore becomes skewed to mean how much can I get away with to reduce or eliminate a just decision on my actions.

This form of grace isn’t concerned with the pleas of the victim since it recognizes how the victim is always demanding vengeance, an eye for an eye. Such restitution is prohibitive to peaceful restraint because it has the potential to turn the accused into a victim of the justice enacted. Grace then becomes more of a compromise with the harshness of judgment.

In order to keep grace from being touted as a compromise within the social order, it becomes sold as “divine grace” because it has a higher purpose, thereby elevating the judicial nature of the offense. Judges now become a component of a sacred institution acting not only on behalf of the community but of the shared gods in that community. Killer grace is therefore merely a perception of a higher good prevailing over a perception of evil.

Think about how you have been using grace throughout your life – even before you became “religious.” How much of it was focused from a judicial perspective, a reprieve from a lifetime sentence? How often were you at the receiving end of this form of grace or even the administrating end? How often were you the victim seeking grace as compensation for your injury? In either case, how often did you believe that what came about was divine grace? Killer, isn’t it?

If you got this far, you’re possibly wondering what then is true grace like. For the answer to this you’ll need to wait for the next posting. However, let this song give you some idea about what I’ve just spoken about and where we might be moving towards. This is called Reborn in Your Grace.

Reborn in Your Grace

Take me to Grace-filled Music