What kind of grace is there for me?

If you do what is good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? (Luke 6:32)

I was meditating on that phrase this morning. The interesting thing is that the word translated “credit” is often translated differently in most of the Bible.

It’s translated “grace.”

But it’s a bit hard to translate that verse using, “grace.” “What grace is that to you?”

So many translate it “credit.” The implication being, “Should you earn special praise for acting this way?”

Some translate it “benefit”, as a synonym to “reward” in Matthew 5:46.

But one “literal” translation puts it, “What grace have ye?” (YLT)

The New Japanese Bible essentially says, “What kind of grace/blessing is there for you?”

So here’s what I was thinking this morning.

What kind of grace am I expecting from God if the “grace” I’m giving is based on whether people love me or do good to me?  

What if God only gave me what I “deserve?”

If that’s the kind of “grace” I show to others, do I really know God’s grace to me? Do I truly understand it?

Lord, search my heart. Do I truly know and understand your grace? Help me to know your grace more deeply, to truly grasp it. And having grasped it, help me to be a channel of your grace to all those around me. In Jesus’ name, amen.