I grew up afraid of monsters. Under the bed, in the closet, waiting to get me. Name any scary movie you’ve ever seen and you have an idea of what my monsters looked like. I later learned there was nothing to be afraid of, because monsters don’t exist.

I say now that they do. And what makes them scarier is that they look just like you and me.

To me, a monster is someone who would sell a child to do sexual acts with men. A monster is any man who would pay to have sex with a child. A monster is anyone who would fly a plane into a building. A monster is anyone who profits off the explotaition of others.

But the scariest part of all is that there’s a little bit of monster in each of us. In me and in you. Whenever we look in the mirror, if we’re brutally honest, we may not like all of what we see staring back. Like anger that tends toward rage. Lust and desire than can turn depraved at any moment. Greed that is insatiable and envy that knows no bounds.

The idea of sin and the depravity of humanity is that we are all capable of the worst sorts of thoughts and actions. Only grace keeps any of us from being another Ted Bundy or Charles Manson. Before I can condemn anyone, I have to ask myself what I would have done given the same background and similar circumstances. I don’t always like the answers I get back.

The beautiful part is that Jesus died for monsters. He died for the monster inside me and inside you. His love says there is no one too far gone, who has crossed the line and can’t be redeemed. Even Ted Bundy. His blood covers every kind of sin and His grace is deep and wide enough to cover anything.

Jesus loves monsters. Don’t get me wrong. There are consequences to our actions. Ted Bundy still had to pay for his crimes. But Grace says that you are not too ugly or depraved or scarred for the love of Jesus to reach in and capture and transform and turn into something beautiful. Anyone who repents of their sin and says a resounding YES to Jesus gets Jesus and Heaven and eternal life, at any point in their life.

So there are still monsters to be afraid of. But we know that perfect Love casts out fears. And monsters, too.