Grace

It’s Amazing

Somewhere in time, July 24, 1725, John Newton was born.  If you never heard of John Newton, he wrote the hymn, Amazing Grace.  I have been thinking about Grace a lot lately.  I have a plaque, which says in big letters, Grace, and below that in smaller letters, it’s amazing.  It was given to me as a gift by a former student, and it has moved with me to every new work place.  I have also been reading a book about Grace.  All of this made me think about grace and the song, Amazing Grace.

John Newton was born into the family of a merchant sailor.  His mother filled his young life with spiritual instruction, but she died and he went on board ship with his father.  In 1744 he was impressed into service on another ship. This was not quite the same as working with his Dad. He was treated terrible and he deserted.  They found him, beat him and put him to work on a slave ship.   This wasn’t much better, but he was able to find a way to captain his own ship, but it was another slave ship. 

He did this for a few years, but one night, May 10^th 1748, his ship was caught in a violent storm and he feared all would be lost.  Not sure what else to do he cried out to God for mercy and his ship survived.  He credits this as the day of his conversion.  His life changed at that moment.

John Newton left the sea faring life and went on to become a minister.  He wrote many hymns, but Amazing Grace has lasted the test of time.  I think all of us understand the benefits of Grace.   We know there is nothing we can do to make us good enough for heaven, but we don’t have to worry. Christ took our punishment on the cross.  He paid the price we couldn’t pay and gave it to us as a free gift if we only believe.  That’s grace.

Ephesians 2:1-10 (The Message Bible) “It wasn’t so long ago that you were mired in that old stagnant life of sin. You let the world, which doesn’t know the first thing about living; tell you how to live. You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief, and then exhaled disobedience. We all did it, all of us doing what we felt like doing, when we felt like doing it, all of us in the same boat. It’s a wonder God didn’t lose his temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense mercy and with an incredible love, he embraced us. He took our sin dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus our Messiah

Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t play a major role. If we did, we’d probably go around bragging that we’d done the whole thing. No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both making and saving. He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.”

There is a dispute over the melody of Amazing Grace, some say it was the melody of a folk song.  Others say it was the melody of a song the slaves sung in the hold of the ship while they were being transported.  I choose to believe this version.  It would be just like God to stamp redemption on the sound of captivity.

The words to the song have been changed over the years, new versus added and slight changes made, but the words below are believed to be original to the song.  I found this on www.anointedlinks.com/amazing-grace

Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound)
That sav’d a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears reliev’d;
How precious did that grace appear,
The hour I first believ’d!

Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promis’d good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease;
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who call’d me here below,
Will be forever mine.

John Newton cried out to God in the storm of his life and God heard him.  The change made in John’s life has been evidenced for over two hundred years. 

I was not saved from running a slave ship, but I was saved none the less from my sins and transgressions against God.  It doesn’t matter what God has brought you out of, Grace still brought you out and grace will always be amazing.

Chris Tomlin - Amazing Grace from wowonline on GodTube.

The video is from the movie, Amazing Grace.  One of my all-time favorite movies.