Arbitrary: based on random choice or personal preference rather than any reason or system
Church-goers like myself have become so familiar with the doctrine of undeserved grace that we treat it like it’s normal. We subconsciously think “Of course God gave us grace; that’s what he’s supposed to do!” Well, I hate to break it to you, but salvation is the absolute LAST thing God was supposed to do to us. I was reading a Jonathan Edwards sermon that pointed out the fact that “God might have rejected fallen man as he did the fallen angels.” Wow. Reading that quote woke me up to the fact that I severely under-appreciate God’s grace. He very well could have left us for destruction like he did with the fallen angels. This thing called “grace” that we have come to expect from God is completely, utterly, and totally arbitrary—it could have never happened if he had a different preference. As scary as that is, it should make us all the more humble and thankful about the reality that it did actually did happen.
Let this increase your appreciation for the grace God has shown us in providing a way of salvation.
