Our Daily Bread Easter: Amazing GraceSmakprov

Graded with Grace My son’s bright eyes sparkled with excitement as he showed me a paper he had brought home from school. It was a math test, marked with a red star and a grade of 100 percent. As we looked at the exam, he said he had three questions left to answer when the teacher said time was up. Puzzled, I asked how he could have received a perfect score. He replied, “My teacher gave me grace. She let me finish the test although I had run out of time.” As my son and I discussed the meaning of grace, I pointed out that God has given us more than we deserve through Christ. We deserve death because of our sin (Romans 3:23). Yet, “while we were still sinners” Christ died for us (5:8). Jesus—sinless and holy—gave up His life so we could escape the penalty for our sin and one day live forever in heaven. Eternal life is a gift from God. It’s not something we earn by working for it. We are saved by God’s grace, through faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:8–9). —Jennifer Benson Schuldt Grace and mercy are unearned blessings.