Genesis 33:6-8
Then the handmaidens came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children came near, and bowed themselves: and after came Joseph near and Rachel, and they bowed themselves. And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which I met?
And he said, These are to find grace in the sight of my lord.

One by one, Jacob’s family comes forward.

The handmaidens and their children.
Leah and her children.
Then Joseph and Rachel.

All of them bowing. All of them approaching carefully. It is a tense moment, but the storm Jacob feared has already passed. Esau is no longer standing there as an enemy. He is standing there as a brother.

Then Esau asks the obvious question. “What was all that about? What did all those droves mean? Why the waves of animals? Why the gifts sent ahead?”

Jacob answers, “These are to find grace in the sight of my lord.”

And there it is.

Jacob is still thinking like a man who has to secure favor. He is still operating as though grace must be helped along. As though mercy needs a little assistance. As though acceptance can be purchased by enough goats and sheep and camels.

And before we shake our heads at Jacob, we ought to admit how often we do the very same thing.

We say we believe in grace. We sing about grace. We talk about grace. But deep down, we still tend to think we need to send something ahead of us.

A little better effort.
A little more sincerity.
A little more promise making.
A little more cleanup.
A little more proving.

We imagine the Lord standing there with folded arms, and we start piling up our little gifts, hoping somehow they will soften Him toward us.

But grace does not work that way.

Grace is not a wage.
Grace is not a response to your gift.
Grace is not God saying, “Well, that was impressive. I suppose I will now be kind to you.”

No, grace is grace.

That is why it is so hard for us to receive it. We have been trained by this world to believe that everything must be earned. There is no free lunch, we are told. Somebody always pays. Nothing just comes to you.

And then the Lord says something so foreign to our natural thinking that it almost sounds too good to be true.

Isaiah 55:1
Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money
come ye, buy, and eat
yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Without money.
Without price.

That is the language of grace.

The Lord says, “Come and dine.” Not, “Come and negotiate.” Not, “Come and impress Me.” Not, “Come and see if you have brought enough.” Just come.

That offends our pride a little bit, because we would rather contribute something. We would rather bring a cartload of goats than come empty handed. At least then we could say we had some part in it.

But the gospel leaves no room for that.

You do not pay for grace.
You receive it.

Jacob did not need to buy Esau’s favor at this point, because Esau had already run to him. And you do not need to buy the Lord’s favor either, because in Christ, the heart of God has already run toward you.

So stop trying to send droves ahead.

Stop thinking you need one more offering, one more vow, one more season of self punishment before the Lord can receive you.

Come thirsty.
Come hungry.
Come broke.
Come honestly.

There is a free lunch.

And breakfast and dinner, too.