On "Giving Grace"

"It may come as a shock to many Christians to discover that there lies ahead of them a life in which God, precisely because he is treating us as sons and daughters, will refuse to spoil us or ignore us, will refuse to let us get away for ever with rebellion or folly, with sin or stupidity."

- N.T. Wright, commenting on Hebrews 12.4-11 in Hebrews for Everyone.

I serve in a Christian school community. This means that, among other characteristics, grace is supposed to permeate the environment of the institution. In the classrooms, hallways, staff meetings, drama performances, and everything other aspect of the school, grace is there. We even use a phrase to refer to this. When we talk about demonstrating grace to someone, we call it "giving grace." Maybe that's a little too colloquial, but I think you get the point.

That might be a very comforting thought for families and staff connected to the school. Grace is a good thing. Recently, I informed an acquaintance of my anticipated move to another school in another state. He asked, "Is it also a Christian school?" "Yes," I replied. "I make too mistakes to work in an environment in which grace is not the operative principle." Perhaps others connected to the school feel the same way. Grace is good.

But what does "giving grace" mean? Grace, in more or less theological terms, refers to the goodness or love of God given to those who have no right to it (at least that's a summary of Berkhof says). Grace is God's goodness to us. But where I think we begin to slip is when we assume that God's goodness is always pleasantness, either the absence or active removal of things that are unpleasant.

Here's a common example. A student does not turn an assignment in on time. It happens. Frequently. In response, a teacher might decide to "give him some grace," which often means that the teacher will not hold the student to the standard for turning in assignments. That might translate into extra time given to complete the assignment without docking the grade, or something similar. In this way, "giving grace" means the teacher removed any unpleasantness for the student in his failure to complete the assignment on time.

But is this what "giving grace" means? Does "giving grace" mean the absence or removal of unpleasantness? Maybe in some way, but not in every way. At least according to the passage references above (Hebrews 12:4-11). There, the writer draws our attention to another way the Bible speaks of grace - that is the active application of or even refusal to remove unpleasantness.

Hebrews 12 seems to suggest that not having to face consequences for your actions is not always gracious. Sometimes facing those consequences is. The crazy thing is that the text says that God uses that unpleasantness to do something redemptive in us. Why? Because he loves us enough not to protect us from ourselves all the time.

So maybe the most gracious (loving and good) thing a teacher can do for a student who doesn't turn in an assignment on time is to apply the standard and allow him to experience the result (docked grade, 'F', or whatever), and through that allow God to work in his life as he works on that rebellion or folly, sin or stupidity, as Wright mentions above.

This is very hard to do, but it's mostly hard to do, not because we don't want to see God's grace applied to a student, but because the application of this kind of grace in someone's life makes us uncomfortable. It's easier to protect a student from the consequences of his actions. It's harder to step back and let him meet God. Meeting God is scary, and it's uncomfortable to watch. And God should be about making me feel comfortable. Right?

So I'm all for giving grace. I simply want to be given sufficient wisdom to know the difference in how it can be applied and not get in the way of God's love for the other.