Oh, free, rich, glorious grace!

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(Anne Dutton's Letters on Spiritual Subjects)

"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" 1 John 3:1

What! Did the Lord of all love us, and give Himself for us?
For us creatures,
for us sinners,
for rebels against His crown,
for His enemies, and
for haters of His ways,
who deserved to be companions with devils,
and were fit fuel for everlasting burnings!

Oh, free, rich, glorious grace!
What could the King of glory see in us to attract His love? Were we not the most loathsome, abominable objects in His sight? And yet we, even we, found grace in His sight!
O! He loved us freely from the infinite grace of His own heart, and the sovereign good pleasure of His will. And He so loved us, that rather than we should die--He Himself would die for us; that rather than we should perish in our guilt and pollution--He Himself, His righteous, holy Self, would . . .
bear our sins,
be made a curse for us, and
endure all that flaming wrath that we had deserved!

Oh, never was there such a lover as our dear Lord Jesus!

Oh, glorious Lover! He ever lives, He ever loves, and from His love and life He will raise us from all sin and misery--unto all grace and glory, and crown us with Him to reign in life eternal. And in all, He will rejoice over us to do good, with His whole heart and His whole soul. Yes, He will delight . . .
to honor us,
to lift us beggars from the ash-heap,
to set us among princes, and
to make us inherit the throne of glory!

"For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will--to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One he loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace!" Ephesians 1:4-7

Oh, free, rich, glorious grace!

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