During Communion one Sunday at a large downtown church, the pastor saw a former burglar kneeling beside a judge of the Supreme Court of England - the judge who had sent him to jail for seven years. After his release, the burglar had converted to Christianity. Yet, as the judge and the former convict knelt there, neither seemed to be aware of the other. After the service, the judge was walking home with the pastor and said to the pastor, "Did you notice who was kneeling beside me at the Communion rail this morning?" The pastor replied, "Yes, but I didn't know that you noticed." After a few more moments, the judge said, "What a miracle of grace." The pastor nodded in agreement, "Yes, what a marvelous miracle of grace." Then the judge said, "But to whom do you refer?" And the pastor said, "Why, to the conversion of that convict." The judge said, "but I was not referring to him. I was thinking of myself!" The pastor, surprised, replied: "You were thinking of yourself? I don't understand."
"Yes," the judge replied, "it did not cost that burglar much to get converted when he came out of jail. He had nothing but a history of crime behind him, and when he saw Jesus as his Savior he knew there was salvation and hope and joy for him. And he knew how much he needed that help. But look at me. I was taught from earliest childhood to live as a gentleman; that my word was to be my bond; that I was to say my prayers, go to church, take Communion, and so on. I went through Oxford, took my degrees, and eventually became a judge. Pastor, nothing but the grace of God could have caused me to admit that I was a sinner on a level with that burglar! It took much more grace to forgive me for all my pride and self-deception, to get me to admit that I was no better in the eyes of God than that convict I had sent to prison!"
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