They are both gifts meant to be given. They both leave someone at a loss. They both leave someone submitted, wounded, ashamed. They are equal in consequence. The fundamental difference?
Who takes the fall. Does the wronged or the wrongdoer end up paying.
I have developed this view of justice as this harsh, and unreasonable act. Statements like "God will bring justice on the wicked" and such make justice a tool of fear. And then I think of grace as a fluffy, nice, pleasantry; the picture of Jesus as a lamb sitting peacefully in a meadow. The fact of the matter is that grace is just as gruesome as justice, just as horrible and fitting. The reason why it is inherently good is because we don't have to experience the utter harshness of it.
The parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 is one of Jesus' most interesting parables. It illustrates two sons; one son gone astray from the will of the father, another that obeys all of the father commands. Essentially, the "fallen" son has a realization of wrong, and there is an incredible re-receiving by the father back to the family, complete with a party and the father's highest blessing. Needless to say, the son who did all the right things is bitter, angry and jaded.
Both the son and the father both had choices of what they were going to give, justice or grace. Both realities were equal, the sons actions would have to taken on by one of the two. The father lovingly choosing to bear the burden of his son's action; the son retained a spirit of ultimate fairness and justice.
Grace has to hurt. I would argue that if it doesn't hurt it isn't grace. It hurts to turn that cheek, take that second punch in the face when your assailant is the one who deserves it. It's humiliating to your manhood to let someone walk over you and then let them off scott free. It's embarrassing to sit there and be ridiculed but not offer any retaliation. Forgiving someone a large debt is harsh and will really hurt your pocketbook. Telling a woman ensnared in prostitution she is loved is uncomfortable and shameful.
Grace is just as gruesome. It might even leave you lashed, verbally abused, repeatedly humiliated and finally lead to your timely cursed death on a tree.
But the road to glory is one of grace and submission.
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