This concept was not originally mine but when I saw it in a commentary, it made a whole lot of sense. Truly, grace does not run in the blood, or else, good fathers will not have evil children. Put another way, you cannot inherit grace. It is not in our DNA. You cannot claim any family has grace and another does not, regardless of a lopsided justice system.
Why is this important to know? Your father’s grace cannot help you in the same way that a mother’s faith cannot save her child. Grace belongs to God and He bestows it on whom He will, as you know from Esau’s and Jacob’s account. But that does not mean He is haphazard in His distribution of grace. Perhaps that is why He did not leave it to DNA or family line.
Natural fathers would give more grace to their favorites. Thank God that Grace does not run in the blood. To dispense grace, God looks at your heart for some qualities and it is up to ensure you have those qualities. And it should not be too tedious because God is standing by to be gracious to you. That same verse contains the qualities God is looking for before He will give His grace to you.
Let us read it together. “Therefore, the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you. And therefore, He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him.”
Respect The Majesty Of God
Consider that first line which says the Lord will wait. Do you accord God the majesty to perform at His own pace rather than yours? We are often in a hurry for answers and try to fit God into our timeline. Don’t expect God to give you His grace. He is God and His timing is the best.
Secondly, God will be exalted. How many times today have you described God to someone in lofty terms? When was the last time anyone heard you exalting the name of the Lord and describing His wondrous deeds? Sorry, but mercy may be far from you and your situation. Just as grace does not run in the blood, so does it not abide in complaints and grumblings.
Next, we read that He is a God of justice. And unless you know that God is totally balanced, you may wonder why justice in the middle of grace. But that is precisely the point that grace does not run in the blood. According to His pure justice, unlike the human corrupt system, He bestows grace to deserving believers. Am I deserving? Are you? May we qualify to receive grace from God, in Jesus’ name.
Finally, for the avoidance of doubt, the verse ends with “blessed are all those who wait for Him. All, not some, who wait for Him. Not only must you allow Him to be God, but you must also exalt Him and recognize His justice. You must wait patiently for Him. When you want something from your Governor, do you not sit patiently in his reception room? How much more the God of Heaven and of the earth? If you want grace and mercy, respect His Majesty because grace does not run in the blood.
Samuel Failed To Recognize That Grace Does Not Run In The Blood
Yes, the same prophet Samuel whom God assigned the role of earthly kingmaker. The Man was great, regularly hearing from God, anointing Kings on God’s behalf, and generally interacting with God. But he failed to see that such grace does not run in the blood. Toward the end of his life, he lined up his sons as judges in Israel but there was no inauguration.
The nation rejected Joel and Abijah because the grace of God upon his life did not extend to his sons. After much consideration, the elders said to Samuel “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways.” Definitely, the grace of God does not run in the blood otherwise, Samuel’s children would have made great justices.
Samuel was not the only man of God whose children turned out wicked. The classical example is Eli, the priest. He was the priest at the time of Samuel’s birth and served as his mentor. But he turned a blind eye on the faults of his children. They therefore did not learn that God is a God of justice; they did not exalt Him. Most definitely, they failed to wait for God, taking what they wanted from the altar at will.
The way God described their actions is that they and their father despised Him. God responded by lightly esteeming them. I hope you know that God treats us the exact same way we treat Him. He removed them from the priesthood forever because Eli did not know that grace does not run in the blood. In essence, when you come to God, do not depend on your parent’s life. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Reigning Sin Also Does Not, Just As Grace Does Not Run In The Blood
Mercifully, this also means you have no familial excuse for not enjoying God’s grace. You cannot assume that just because your dad was evil, you have to be evil. You can reach out for God’s grace by doing the things we described in an earlier section. Take the many kings of Israel as an example.
Rehoboam the father of Abijah was evil and so was Abijah but consider Asa, Abijah’s son, a wonderful king. And that is because grace does not run in the blood, even though another good king came out of Asa. His name is Jehoshaphat and you know he was good but his son was Jehoram, a wicked king.
Once you know that grace does not run in the blood, forget about your parents’ grace or lack thereof. Seek the face of God for yourself and He will give it to you.
Maranatha!
