Part 8- Grace for Others: Extending What You’ve Received

Grace is never meant to stop with you.

If you’ve truly experienced the grace of God, grace that forgives your sin, lifts you out of shame, and walks with you through life, then you carry a responsibility: to give it away.

We love receiving grace. But giving it? That is where the challenge comes in.

Freely You Have Received—Freely Give
Jesus said in Matthew 10:8 (LSB), “…freely you received, freely give.”

Think about that. Everything you have in Christ, your salvation, forgiveness, peace, and hope, came to you as a gift. You didn’t earn it. You didn’t deserve it. God simply gave it.

So why would we ever make others earn from us what God gave so freely to us?

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
In Matthew 18:21–35, Jesus tells a story that should shake us.

Peter asked, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus replied, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”

Then He told a parable: A servant owed his master an impossible debt—millions in today’s terms. The master forgave it completely. But that same servant went out and refused to forgive a fellow servant who owed him a few dollars.

When the master heard about it, he was furious. Why? Because someone who has been forgiven much should never withhold forgiveness from others.

That’s what grace is. You pass on what you’ve received.

Grace in Action
Giving grace doesn’t mean ignoring sin or pretending wrong never happened. It means responding the way God has responded to you: with compassion, mercy, and forgiveness.

Forgive quickly. Don’t let bitterness take root.

Show mercy generously. Even to people who “don’t deserve it.”

Love sacrificially. Grace always costs something.

Colossians 3:13 (LSB) says, “Bearing with one another, and graciously forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord graciously forgave you, so also should you.”

Grace is not about keeping score. It’s about keeping your heart open.

Why It’s So Hard
Let’s be honest, extending grace can feel impossible, especially to people who have hurt us deeply. But here’s the truth: you don’t extend grace because people deserve it. You extend grace because you didn’t either.

The more you remember your own story, how far you were from God and how He brought you near, the easier it becomes to open your hands and let grace flow through you.

So What Does This Mean for You?
If there’s someone you’re holding back grace from, ask yourself: “Am I treating them better than I deserved when God found me?”

If the answer is no, then today is the day to release them. Forgive. Show mercy. Extend grace.

You never look more like Jesus than when you give grace to someone who can’t repay you.

Next Up: Part 9 – “Growing in Grace.”
Grace doesn’t just save you and flow through you—it grows you. In the next blog, we’ll see how to live in a constant state of receiving and growing in the grace of God.

In Love,

Pastor Jody