Holy Justice

We often blame God for injustices done to us and harbor in our souls the bitter feeling that God has not been fair toward us. Even if we recognize that He is gracious, we think that he has not been gracious enough.  We think we deserve more grace.

Please read that last sentence again.  We think we deserve more grace.  What is wrong with that sentence? Grammatically it is fine.  But there is something seriously wrong with the content, with the meaning of the sentence.

It is impossible for anyone, anywhere, anytime to deserve grace.  Grace by definition is undeserved.  As soon as we talk about deserving something, we are no longer talking about grace; we are talking about justice. Only justice can be deserved.  God is never obligated to be merciful.  Mercy and grace must be voluntary or they are no longer mercy and grace.  God never "owes" grace.  He reminds us more than once: "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy" (Exod. 33:19).  This is the divine prerogative.  God reserves for Himself the supreme right of executive clemency.

It is the confusion between justice and mercy that makes us shrink in horror when we read the stories of Nadab, Abihu, and Uzzah.  When God's justice falls, we are offended because we think God owes perpetual mercy.  We must not take His grace for granted.  We must never lose our capacity to be amazed by grace.

The Holiness of God, R.C. Sproul, Ligonier, pages 154-56.