Are you a grace abuser?

A few weeks ago I read a book by Mark Steele called Christianish.  There are a number of interesting and thought provoking insights in the book, but one continues to ring in my head.  He says some important and tough things about a very important part of our faith and our ongoing relationship with God: grace.

Here is what he says:

We love that Jesus died for our sins and that His grace cancels out the Old Testament need for sacrifice . . . Jesus died on the cross.  He took the blame.  His scars and blood and death replaced the need for mine.  That’s what grace is – and we love, love, love grace. 

Sadly, we also abuse it.

In an attempt to be a more free church – less bound up in legalism – we have embraced grace so heartily that we have also eradicated responsibility.  We cave to sin and temptation and desires and whims and preferences very easily, especially in the church, and we feel bad fleetingly.  Then grace comes in and spanks guilt and we have a half hour of worship and feel awesome.  But we don’t do a whole lot of dirty work to truly seek permanent healing – to truly sprint away from sin with all our might.

Grace is the greatest gift anyone could have ever given us.  It should humble us, prompt us to make our lives right.  It should make us want to please that sort of caring Savior so much that every time we fail and need grace, it drives us toward purity – toward accountability.  Grace should be met by gratefulness, and gratefulness should prompt reasonable action. 

Instead, daily sins, shortcomings, and affliction are rampantly increasing in the modern church.  Why?  Because we are seeing grace as a coupon – as a voucher that allows us to not worry about destructive actions leading to disastrous consequences.  It is as if we believe that for everyone else sin leads to hell and death, but for us it leads to a scolding that is quickly forgotten.  We act like sinful actions are a cakewalk because we are lucky enough to know about the grace discount. 

To live in such a way disrespects grace.  It shames grace – it insinuates that Jesus suffered and died so that we could sin more freely . . . What happened to the reverence?  The heartbreak that is supposed to come from displeasing God?  Have we gone so far to the other extreme that the only part of sin that matters to us is whether or not it is going to keep us out of heaven? (2420-2431)   

Have you been a grace abuser?  What makes that possible?

Steele argues that we abuse grace because we believe the lies that our actions don’t matter and that our lives are not ministry. 

Grace comes from God and makes us right with Him.  However, the presence of God’s grace does not mean the absence of my responsibility.  Change to please God is still necessary, but now, for the first time, grace makes change possible and worth it.  God’s real grace is making me grateful and true gratitude never takes grace for granted.

What do you think about Steele’s words?  How do we overcome our tendency toward grace abuse?