A New Day

By: Pastor Johnie Akers  

2 Corinthians 9:8, “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you.”  A story is told about Fiorello LaGuardia, who was mayor of New York City during the worst days of the Great Depression.  He was a colorful character of only five foot four in height and noted for his spontaneous antics. One bitterly cold night in January of 1935, the mayor turned up at a night court that served the poorest ward of the city. LaGuardia dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself.   Within a few minutes, a tattered elderly woman was brought before him, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She told LaGuardia that her daughter’s husband had deserted her, her daughter was sick, and her two grandchildren were starving. But the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, refused to drop the charges. LaGuardia turned to the woman and said “I’ve got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions--ten dollars or ten days in jail.” But even as he pronounced sentence, the mayor was already reaching into his pocket. He extracted a bill and tossed it into his famous sombrero saying: “Here is the ten dollar fine which I now remit; and furthermore I am going to fine everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat. Mr. Bailiff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant.” So the following day the New York City newspapers reported that $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered lady who had stolen a loaf of bread to feed her starving grandchildren, fifty cents of that amount being contributed by the red-faced grocery store owner.  My dear friends, that’s grace.  No, as John Newton would pen, that’s amazing grace.  The good news is that God’s grace is still amazing.  Like the poor lady in court that cold night, we were all guilty.  But because of God’s grace, after our admitted pronouncement of guilt, He then, in full, paid the penalty for our sin and thereafter, bestowed upon us benefits of which we were not worthy, enabling all of us to live in the fullness of His grace for each new day.