Glossing over something … giving it a lustre or shine. Gloss is meant to refer to a thing, not a behaviour, character trait, or a person.
Before giving my heart to the Lord, I glossed over nothing, nor was I grace-filled. Neither of which was a good thing.
I have come to notice however, since my re-birth, that - for the sake of peace - I have become somewhat adept in giving a shine to what doesn’t sit well with me, and giving a gloss-over to things that I know are not sound according to the Word of God; this behaviour I have mistakenly called “grace”. Someone has called me on it and rightly so.
Grace is God’s unmerited favour bestowed upon an individual. I wonder then, when we extend grace to someone, are we giving them favour that is undeserved? I believe not. God gives it to us; we don’t deserve it. Why then would we be stingy with grace where others are concerned?
Grace before truth . . . this is a core value … an example of a behaviour that Jesus walked out. He never lied or covered up His thoughts, His beliefs, His values, and He never glossed over the actions of others that demanded correction. The “before truth” portion of Grace before Truth is fundamental; it infers the truth will be spoken. We are saved by grace – by God’s goodness and loving-kindness toward us. His unconditional love is expressed always, but never at the expense of correction; what father who loves his child does not correct him?
I wonder sometimes, as a Christian, if I have come to confuse grace with gloss? Who doesn’t like a nice sparkle and shine? When grace is extended however, a risk is taken - the possibility exists that the truth – when it is spoken – may very well result in exactly the opposite of what the grace was hoped to accomplish when it was given before truth. Without His grace and truth, we can accomplish nothing.
“For while the Law was given through Moses, grace (unearned, undeserved favour and spiritual blessing) and truth came through Jesus Christ.” John 1:17 AMP.
