Dear reader,

Welcome back to the second part of our little series of articles dedicated to the study of God’s character. As you may remember already, we based our meditation on the Bible verse found in Exodus 34:6: “And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.” The essence of God’s glory is disclosed in this verse, and each attribute helps us understand it deeper and deeper. How wonderful!

In this reading, we will focus on the study of the second attribute: “gracious”.

It comes from the Hebrew adjective “khanun”, which derives from the noun “khen”, translated as “grace” or “favour”. Within the Bible, this term is often used to describe someone offering a gift, doing a favour or just doing something good for someone else uncondi-tionally. What is interesting is that someone who shows “khen”, does it in a disinterested way, and the motive behind the gesture is love for the receiver. Let us take an example.

“Then Esther the queen answered and said, If I have found favour in thy sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request.” Esther 7:3. We all know the story very well. Queen Esther went against the royal custom and showed herself before the emperor, with a heartfelt petition. Although she did not deserve it, she was pleading for “khen”. And the king, who took delight in Esther, was gracious enough to grant her request. This context surely helps us understand the way our God is a gracious God. But let us keep studying.

Another interesting Bible passage where the term “khen” appears is found in the story of Jacob who reunites with his brother Esau, after 20 years. It was not an easy task for him, since Jacob had wronged his brother by stealing his birthright and cowardly running away from home. “And Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me.” Genesis 33:10

With contrite heart, ashamed of his wrongdoings, Jacob now approaches his brother with humility, asking for “grace”. He does not ask to be treated as he deserves, instead, he begs Esau for forgiveness and asks to be gracious to him. Thankfully, forgiveness was exactly what Esau was ready to give to him. He decided to take delight in his brother and show “grace”.  “Khen”, means not treating someone the way they deserve. This explains a lot about God’s generous spirit and unconditional love. The Lord is a gracious God, and He proved Himself so many times in the Bible history, especially with the people of Israel, who kept going back and forth from the way of conduct God had instructed them to follow. As an example, right after He had set them free from Egypt’s slavery, they did not hesitate to build a golden calf and worship it as their god. How terrible that must have felt for the Lord! Understandably, God’s anger kindled against the people of Israel, and Moses had to plead for them not to be totally consumed. Moses “reminded” the Lord of His “khen”, which is unconditional. Sister White comments about this episode: “He [Moses] has borne an overwhelming weight of responsibility; when the people sinned, he suffered keen remorse, as though he himself were guilty; and now there presses upon his soul a sense of the terrible results should God leave Israel to hardness and impenitence of heart. . . . Moses presses his petition with such earnestness and fervency that the answer comes: I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in My sight, and I know thee by name.” –Conflict and Courage, p. 99

This is how God shows His grace: without considering our merits, He is ready to bestow His grace upon us whenever we come before Him with a contrite heart and sincere repentance. The Lord was already going to forgive His people even before Moses pleaded for them. However, this experience was necessary for Moses so that he could fully understand God’s “khen,” which only He can give. Our God is a gracious God. How wonderful!

When we move to the New Testament, the authors translate the Hebrew “khen” with “kharis,” which means “gift of grace” in the Greek language. Interest-ingly enough, this word appears for the first time in the gospel of John talking about Jesus.

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

Jesus is the Word, full of grace (“kharis”) and truth. He made Himself flesh and dwelt among us who, as Paul would say, are like living dead. Because men have chosen darkness over light, far from God’s approval, they suffer the consequences of their selfish choices. But the Bible tells us that the Lord is so gracious that through His “khraris”, we are saved.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” Ephesians 2:8

Christ—His life, death and resurrection—embodies God’s grace. Through the immense gift that Jesus represents for us, we have access to a new life stronger than death. You see, “kharis” is a gift, which means all we can do is to simply accept it.

“Grace is unmerited favor. . . . It was grace that sent our Saviour to seek us as wanderers and bring us back to the fold. No man can look within himself and find anything in his character that will recommend him to God, or make his acceptance sure. It is only through Jesus, whom the Father gave for the life of the world, that the sinner may find access to God. Jesus alone is our Redeemer, our Advocate and Mediator” –God’s Amazing Grace, p.182

How many times may we look at our sinful, helpless state and think: ”I have no merit so that I can come before God,” and humbly shaking, we may plead for forgiveness? Will the Lord answer us? Will He not be gracious unto us?

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16

Our heavenly Father will respond generously to those who rely on Him. Let us have faith that through Christ, we are depositaries of God’s grace.

See you in the next episode!

May God bless you!

Amen

By Ylenia Gallo