Only Grace

Song Number 4256144 Authors Kenny Greenberg
Matthew West Copyright 2005 Word Music, LLC (a div. of Word Music Group, Inc.)
Westies, Inc. Music Publishing (Admin. by Word Music Group, Inc.)
Greenberg Music (Admin. by Bug Music, Inc.)

 

There is no guilt here

There is no shame

No pointing fingers

There is no blame

What happened yesterday has disappeared

The dirt has washed away

And now it's clear

 

There's only grace

There's only love

There's only mercy and believe me it's enough

Your sins are gone

Without a trace

There's nothing left now

There's only grace

 

You're starting over now

Under the sun

You're stepping forward now

A new life has begun

Your new life has begun

 

And if you should fall again

Get back up, get back up

Reach out and take my hand

Get back up, get back up

Get back up again

 

 

If I could write a song…I would write one just like “Only Grace”.  This song by Matthew West is a song that could have only been written by someone who has truly experienced the supernatural cleansing of the Holy Spirit…and for someone who needs encouragement that there is hope beyond willpower.

It is almost impossible to grasp that no matter what I’ve done, no matter what mess I’m in now, no matter what I might do in the future Grace has me covered.  When I can comprehend this even in a small way I am left feeling amazed and full of gratitude.  The most valuable gifts a hurting person can receive are grace and mercy.  I think of the adulteress woman that Jesus saved from her accusers.  She deserved death…did she not commit a crime worthy of such punishment?  But Jesus chose to give this woman what she needed, not what she deserved.

There are three characters in this song:  The hurting person, Jesus, and the helping person.  I love the part in the song where it says “if you should fall, get back up again, reach out and take my hand.”  When we fall, and we will fall, we can reach out and grasp the hand of Jesus and He will lift us up.  But, for those who don’t know Jesus like we do, then we get to be the one saying, “take my hand”.  We must reach out to a hurting world and show the same grace that was shown to us.

It is hard to understand that when we fall we can use those opportunities for growth instead of guilt and shame.  Get up quickly and move forward.  And if you see your brother or sister fall you must remember to not give up on them.  We, as Christians, must possess the attributes of Jesus:  Grace and Mercy…and believe me, it’s enough.