The Gospel of Grace
The Gospel of Grace is the Core of the
Biblical Library.
It's a beautiful redemptive story of
God's Plan for Creation:)
And
here is why it matters;)...
If we are given a platform from God,
(it is a Gift from God)
and aren't preaching the Gospel of Grace,
We aren't preaching
-his Will-
It really is impossible to earn God's favor
through
legalism, pharisaism, social hierarchy, separatism, self-righteousness, self-will
-Or-
Rank based on Merit
The lower we humble ourselves, the higher God Exalts us
Jesus Christ is Grace.
Grace, and Grace alone.
Have you ever worked on
a
1,000 piece puzzle
with your
7 year old daughter?
It's grueling.
Of course along
---the way---
you find
more efficient ways of making the pieces fit,
such as building the borders first,
or putting all-like pieces together.
Each piece
is so unique, vibrant, and clear on their own.
My daughter was able to put about 40 pieces together,
but she just
struggled to get them all
to fit.
She was frustrated, because
she knew the author designed them
all to fit into a
beautiful, greater, more complete picture.
Luckily her mother had done the puzzle before,
and she
was a just a little more
higher up
so her perspective could
see much more.
Sometimes perspective changes the
whole outcome.
But how do we get there?
Maybe her mother let her stand
on the chair
to get a
more complete perspective.
Maybe her mother had
already put together a lot of puzzles,
maybe her mother had
read the instructions.
Maybe, her mother had grieved
her way through
thousands of puzzles and
vigorously studied them
throughout her lifetime.
She probably earned her right to know
how to finish the puzzle better than the 7 year old.
Who knows? Does the one her mothered
her know?
Is her
mother communicating well enough to help
her daughter?
I know when I have a struggle or delima in my life,
sometime it's easiest to
sift through all the excess
and
really search out the
bottom denominator.
What is that cornerstone, that foundation I
need?
Have you ever taken a test and been
clueless
on the last problem?
I'm sure we can all hear our parent whisper to us advice...
What is the strongest choice?
If you can get through a 12th grade math test,
you're doing better than me.
I was always more into the creative arts than
numbers and equations.
But if you can get through that,
you're struggles are minimal.
If Jesus was beaten, forsaken, Abandoned,
died, and rose again,
and triumphed higher than before,
then we know we
can focus on that level of sacrifice
and redemption when facing any of our
earthly struggles.
The glory of Christ
far
outweighs our earthly struggles.
Our God is a God
of
Redemption, Resurrection, Mercy and Grace.
He is not
the author of Confusion.
His
faithfulness never fails,
and
his desire is for us to
seek his Grace and share it in return.
In this,
we will know him
better.
We will know the Jesus
who came
down from heaven
in
human form,
walked among the broken people,
and
taught
them so much wisdom.
Jesus himself suffered a great deal,
and
through his sufferings
he was able to
relate to and heal
the
lost and broken people who were desperately suffering.
When we look at
all of humanity in all of its vastness,
it's so easy
to look at broken people
and
only see them for their struggles.
It's easy to see
their
brokenness, mistakes, and sins.
But we can't see what they're gone through, we can't see their hardship,
As disciples of Jesus
all we can do is offer them the same
grace he offers us.
Jesus related to the broken, struggling people.
He knew their pain. He comforted them.
He didn't look down on them, or make them feel inadequate.
He only looked down upon the
Pharisees,
who thought they were better than the sinners
because they followed
their idea of what the law was.
But they didn't know Jesus,
they
didn't follow the law of Christ.
The Pharisees
were expecting to be anointed by a
kingly priest,
but really,
they needed a lowly savior.
Jesus was a lowly, suffering servant.
Because
he made himself low,
God exalted him.
Because he went after the lost struggling sinner,
God gave him favor.
He followed God's will.
He helped the hurting people and met them where they were,
in
all humility.
He
lived, grieved, suffered, and humbled himself
to the
lowest of the low.
He went there. He understood. He related.
He gave grace, mercy, and unconditional love.
He wasn't better than them.
Often in life
if we haven't struggled, it is
so easy
to judge people
based on our own life experiences
and
taught beliefs.
Because of his mercy, they ran to him in open arms. We need to live that same example. Lowest of the low, in unity. We are all human beings, we are all sinners, we are all equal in God's eyes. The only thing he asks of us in return is to extend that same 'grace.
And if we have been
fortunate enough
to have been
given the platform
to
share this grace,
we need to.
We were
given the Gospel of Grace.
When I taught high school in
poor and
struggling communities,
it took a lot of time to adjust and
really see
my students
through their struggling life experiences.
I couldn't help them by thinking
I was better than them.
I could only
help them
when I related to their struggles,
and they felt comfort in knowing
that.
They needed to be heard,
valued
and understood.
They needed more than growing development and resources.
they needed unconditional
Grace.
We don't
look
at that kid with the
needle in his arm
and wonder why we are better than them and
why
our choices led us on a
"better path'
No.
That's not what God's says.
Jesus left the 99 and went after the lost.
We are to
give grace
and
understanding
in all
humility.
If we bring ourselves to
where they are,
we can
bring them up
with us.
If we only look down on them from
our
self-assumed position,
we can't help them.
Many of us have grown up with the
Gospel of Grace,
The Gospel
of
Jesus Christ
It's not difficult to recognize the
Gospel of Grace,
having ears to hear and eyes to see it's message.
Although, now and again, it's easy to get pulled to and fro
by doctrines that pull you
too far from the center.
As
Christ being the head,
he has all authority, and rightfully so.
Jesus Christ earned it, he paid the price,
he
suffered, he prevailed, he triumphed,
and in the end,
He earned God's Favor.
Grace Won and
always will..
Surely,
have Faith in knowing that-
Jesus Christ, the author of all Grace always wins.
He already won all of our battles,
all we have to do is
Trust him,
and place our
Faith in him,
by
Knowing him intimately,
knowing his Word of Truth.
The bible is the Word of God,
and the
entire
Word of God
is how we
come to know
our lord
Jesus Christ
and
his will for us.
The scripture is to be studied,
contemplated,
earnestly seeked-
and in that,
we will find him.
He will meet us where we are, when we
seek his word.
The core message of
his word,
needs to be the center and grounding for theology
and
all of our biblical teaching
in order to
carry out his will for humanity.
How do you know if You are not preaching the
Gospel of Jesus Christ...
How can you identify, discern,
and illuminate the biblical message of Jesus Christ?
Maybe God
is
calling all of us to work together
to
DELIVER
the GOSPEL of GRACE and TRUTH
to a
broken world, needing to hear
the
TRUTH.
Have you ever wondered
how you could earn
God’s favor?;)
Or maybe you have heard
a message that teaches you
how to earn God’s favor in
your life!
Traditional teaching often tells us that if we read our Bible enough, pray enough, show kindness to others, or never, ever sin…. we will be in good standing with God. We will be in His favor.
As a pastor’s daughter, this is what I remember hearing as a young girl. And woe unto me if I messed up. I felt the wrath of both my earthly and Heavenly Father.
My husband, who was also raised by a pastor during the same era, received a different message.
His father understood and preached
the
gospel of grace and forgiveness
which is ours when we
accept
Christ into our lives.
After we were married, it took years before I could
fully understand and
grasp that truth.
Consequently, I now understand how difficult it is for many Christians to come out from that guilt-ridden teaching that they will never do enough.
They must always strive to do more.
Earn God's Favor
A few years before my father went to his heavenly home,
he told me how his eyes were opened to the truth of the
message of grace.
How that thrilled me because it confirmed what my husband was teaching me in those early years of our marriage.
Our desire, as Christians, is to feel close to God by reading the Word, praying, and helping others.
But it is not what God requires of us to receive His favor.
Trying to establish favor with God by law-abiding,
or right conduct is a
lie the
enemy wants you to believe.
He does not want you
to know, grasp, or understand
that you
ARE in God’s favor.
The devil wants you to
try to earn it
He wants you to struggle and strive and bring doubt
into your mind so that
you
question your salvation.
Satan does not want you to
believe the truth of the Word,
which says
"For You, oh Lord, will bless the righteous with favor.
You will surround him with a shield”
Psalms 5:12.
God’s favor surrounds you like a shield and His righteousness
is not right doing but a gift from God.
“God imputes righteousness, not to those who STRIVE to obey
the law,
but to anyone who
believes in His Son, Jesus”
Galatians 2:16.
Read that again.
Then read Romans 8:1 and
get that message of grace
deep into your spirit.
You have
no right to live in guilt.
"There is, therefore, now, NO condemnation
who are in
Christ Jesus.”
Message of Grace
Could the Word be any clearer than that?
I don't think so.
That is your
key.
If anyone tries to say that you aren't righteous enough,
or good enough,
or read your Bible enough, or pray enough, or
do enough for other people –
point
them to the message of grace.
When we accept Jesus Christ into our hearts, the Bible says that
our sins are as
far as the east is from the west.
In other words,
He does not see them,
and
He will remember them
no more.
Print this out
and keep it in your sight until the message is in your heart:
I am not righteous
because of what I have done or not done.
I am righteous ONLY because of the blood of Jesus,
the
finished work on the cross,
and what
HE DID FOR ME.
God has imputed that righteousness to us because
of what
His Son did for us.
So, we learn to expect God's favor and adopt that attitude
in our
Christian walk.
Then we will see the changes we hoped for.
“And of His fullness, we have all received,
and grace for grace.
For the law was given through Moses,
but grace and truth came -through-
Jesus Christ”
John 1:16.
The Law Was Given But Grace Came
Did you see that?
The LAW was Given, but then
CHRIST CAME
The words grace and favor are interchangeable from the original text.
We have favor because of Jesus and
God’s grace.
We can’t earn it.
Christ GAVE it to us.
It is ours because of what He did for us.
When we find ourselves in situations where we
need the favor of man
and understand that we are in God’s favor,
we will realize that the world sees that as well.
People are drawn to us.
We can have favor in our marriage, our job, school,
and
other aspects of life.
To illustrate let’s look at three examples in the Old Testament.
“And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man,
and
he was in the house of his master the Egyptian”
Genesis 39:2.
Later in the same chapter,
"But the Lord was with Joseph, and
showed him mercy,
and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison”
Genesis 39:21.
Remember how Joseph got to prison?
It was not for something he did.
He was there because of the hatred of his brothers.
His brothers knew that their
father’s favor was on their younger brother,
and they were jealous.
But when he was in prison, Potiphar, Joseph’s boss saw God’s favor on him.
You may wonder why God allowed Joseph to be in that state.
God Will Bless Us Beyond Anything
Sometimes we want to blame God for something we are going through but when we remember that
our lives are orchestrated by God and that no matter what happens,
He is with us.
He will bless us beyond anything we could hope for
when we put our trust in Him.
Many times, we may not understand why some things happen,
but we know
that
all things work together
for our good
according to God’s promises.
During 13 years in prison.
Joseph may have had his moments.
He was human.
But his focus was on God. He chose to trust God,
not question
him.
Joseph saved his family
and his nation.
Through many of the traumas I endured in 40 years
of struggle and loss,
I maintained a prayer of thanksgiving and praise
that God knew the end of my story
and that He was my
source and my strength.
I was always a victor and never a victim –
it was my choice to believe that.
My prayer was one of thanksgiving.
I learned how to pray the answer and NOT the problem.
Esther was a captive in Babylon
who
entered a beauty contest and won.
She won FAVOR from all who saw her.
“And Esther obtained favor
in the
sight of all them that looked upon her:
Esther 2:15.
Remember Daniel?
“Now God had brought Daniel into favor with the prince of the eunuchs”
Daniel 1:9.
When God shines His spotlight on you, others see it.
When you realize God’s favor is on you
and you begin to thank Him for it,
you will see situations change in your life.
I can only imagine our the first apostles felt.
They had the most
unbelievable, glorious message
to
DELIVER.
Having some receive and not recieve the message of
our salvation in the
gospel of Grace in Jesus Christ
must have been
frustrating.
But in the end it was worth it all,
no doubt.
Do Not Judge;)
Be merciful,
just as your Father is merciful.
Do not judge, and you will not be judged.
Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Give, and will be given to you.
A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap.
For with the measure you use, it will be measured
back to you:)
The Bible talks a lot about
suffering for the sake of Christ.
I will suffer for my Testimony,
I will Testify no other name, and
no other Gospel
In the era in which the New Testament was written,
followers of Jesus
were often ostracized by their own
families and communities.
Some of the worst persecution came
from the
religious leaders
(Acts 4:1–3).
Jesus told His followers,
"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of
righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"
(Matthew 5:10).
He reminded His disciples,
"If the world hates you,
keep in mind that it hated me first"
(John 15:18).
Second Timothy 3:12 says,
"Everyone who wants to live a
godly life in Christ Jesus
will be persecuted."
As in biblical times, many Christians today have found that making a
public declaration of faith in Christ
can result
in imprisonment, beatings, torture, or death
(Hebrews 11:32–38; 2 Corinthians 12:10; Philippians 3:8; Acts 5:40).
Often those of us in free nations shudder at the thought, but we feel relatively safe. We understand that there are thousands who suffer daily for the sake of Christ and are thankful we don’t have to.
But is there only one kind of persecution?
Jesus stated clearly what it means to follow Him:
"Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world,
and yet lose or forfeit their very self?"
(Luke 9:23–25).
Our modern understanding of the phrase
"take up their cross and follow me"
is often inadequate.
In Jesus’ day the cross always symbolized death.
When a man carried a cross, he had already been condemned to die on it. Jesus said that, in order to follow Him, one must be willing to die.
We will not all die
martyrs’ deaths.
We will not all be imprisoned, beaten, or tortured for our faith.
So what kind of death did Jesus mean?
Paul
explains in Galatians 2:20,
"I have
been crucified with Christ
and I no longer live,
but
Christ lives in me.
The
life I now live in the
body,
I live by faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and
gave himself for me."
To
follow Christ
means we die to our own way of doing things.
We consider our will, our rights, our passions, and our goals
to be crucified
on the cross with Him.
Our right to direct our own lives is
dead to us!
(Philippians 3:7–8).
Death involves suffering.
Paul suffered more than most for Jesus’ sake.
He said this to the Christians at Phillipi:
"For it has been granted to you
on
behalf of Christ
not only to believe in him,
but also to suffer for him"
(Philippians 1:29).
The word granted here means
"shown favor, given freely as a gift."
Paul does not present suffering as a curse, but as a benefit.
Suffering can take many forms.
By
choosing to obey
the
Lord Jesus Christ,
we are setting ourselves at odds with the world. Galatians 1:10 says,
"For am I now
seeking the favor of men,
or of God?
Or am I striving to please men?
If I were still trying to please men,
I would not be
a
bond-servant of Christ"
By closely adhering to
the
teachings of the Bible,
we set
ourselves up for rejection, mockery,
loneliness, or betrayal.
Often, the cruelest persecution
comes from those who consider
themselves spiritual
but have defined God according
to
their own ideas.
If we
choose to take a stand
for righteousness
and
biblical truth,
we ensure that we will be
misunderstood, mocked, or worse.
We need to keep in mind
that no threat of
suffering
deterred the apostles
from
preaching Christ.
In fact,
Paul said that
losing everything was worth it
"that I may know Him and the power of His
resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings,
being conformed to His death"
(Philippians 3:10, NASB).
Acts 5:40–41
describes the reaction of the
apostles
after they
received
another beating
for
preaching about Jesus:
"The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they
had been counted worthy
of
suffering disgrace for
the Name."
Suffering in some form
is
always going to be a part
of being a
true
follower of Christ.
Jesus said the path that leads to life is difficult
(Matthew 7:14).
Our hardship is also a way of identifying
with
His suffering in a small way.
Jesus said if we deny him
before men,
He will deny us before His Father in heaven
Even Peter, the apostle close to Jesus,
denied him three times.
I'm sure that was painful for Jesus, knowing
Jesus gave Peter the Keys to the Kingdom
for
everyone else to
experience his Grace.
(Matthew 10:33; Luke 12:9).
There are many subtle ways
to deny Christ.
If our actions, words, lifestyle, or entertainment choices
do not reflect His will,
we are denying Christ.
If we claim to know Him but live as though we didn’t,
we are denying Christ
(1 John 3:6–10).
Many people choose those forms of denying Christ
because they do not want to
suffer for Him.
Often our greatest suffering comes from
within as we
battle for control over a
heart
that must die to its own will
and
surrender to Christ’s lordship
(Romans 7:15–25).
The Will of God
comes through the 'gospel of Grace,
The
Redemptive Plan
Through the 'work of Jesus Christ Alone
In whatever form suffering comes, we should embrace it as
a badge of honor and a privilege that we,
like the apostles,
have
"been counted worthy
of
suffering disgrace
for the
Name."
I have been so fortunate to have
known and seen the love and grace
of
Jesus through loved ones.
I have been offered so much Grace in my life,
more than words could ever express.
I never earned or deserved it, but Jesus showed up anyway.
He paid our debt,
and our job is to follow his example.
Grace is a safe place- and it should never be exhausted,
it should be the ultimate
ideal.
I pray
that everyone can experience
The
Grace of Jesus like I have
in my life.
As surely as the morning of new beginnings and
Grace Arise,
so does our opportunity to
Share the good News
Keep the 'faith, friends! surely he is coming soon-
let's help deliver
the
Message of Good Tidings,
Grace, Mercy, and Peace be with you!
The Gospel of Grace
The Gospel of Grace is the Core of the
Biblical Library.
It's a beautiful redemptive story of
God's Plan for Creation:)
And
here is why it matters;)...
If we are given a platform from God,
(it is a Gift from God)
and aren't preaching the Gospel of Grace,
We aren't preaching
-his Will-
It really is impossible to earn God's favor
through
legalism, pharisaism, social hierarchy, separatism, self-righteousness, self-will
-Or-
Rank based on Merit
The lower we humble ourselves, the higher God Exalts us
Jesus Christ is Grace.
Grace, and Grace alone.
Have you ever worked on
a
1,000 piece puzzle
with your
7 year old daughter?
It's grueling.
Of course along
---the way---
you find
more efficient ways of making the pieces fit,
such as building the borders first,
or putting all-like pieces together.
Each piece
is so unique, vibrant, and clear on their own.
My daughter was able to put about 40 pieces together,
but she just
struggled to get them all
to fit.
She was frustrated, because
she knew the author designed them
all to fit into a
beautiful, greater, more complete picture.
Luckily her mother had done the puzzle before,
and she
was a just a little more
higher up
so her perspective could
see much more.
Sometimes perspective changes the
whole outcome.
But how do we get there?
Maybe her mother let her stand
on the chair
to get a
more complete perspective.
Maybe her mother had
already put together a lot of puzzles,
maybe her mother had
read the instructions.
Maybe, her mother had grieved
her way through
thousands of puzzles and
vigorously studied them
throughout her lifetime.
She probably earned her right to know
how to finish the puzzle better than the 7 year old.
Who knows? Does the one her mothered
her know?
Is her
mother communicating well enough to help
her daughter?
I know when I have a struggle or delima in my life,
sometime it's easiest to
sift through all the excess
and
really search out the
bottom denominator.
What is that cornerstone, that foundation I
need?
Have you ever taken a test and been
clueless
on the last problem?
I'm sure we can all hear our parent whisper to us advice...
What is the strongest choice?
If you can get through a 12th grade math test,
you're doing better than me.
I was always more into the creative arts than
numbers and equations.
But if you can get through that,
you're struggles are minimal.
If Jesus was beaten, forsaken, Abandoned,
died, and rose again,
and triumphed higher than before,
then we know we
can focus on that level of sacrifice
and redemption when facing any of our
earthly struggles.
The glory of Christ
far
outweighs our earthly struggles.
Our God is a God
of
Redemption, Resurrection, Mercy and Grace.
He is not
the author of Confusion.
His
faithfulness never fails,
and
his desire is for us to
seek his Grace and share it in return.
In this,
we will know him
better.
We will know the Jesus
who came
down from heaven
in
human form,
walked among the broken people,
and
taught
them so much wisdom.
Jesus himself suffered a great deal,
and
through his sufferings
he was able to
relate to and heal
the
lost and broken people who were desperately suffering.
When we look at
all of humanity in all of its vastness,
it's so easy
to look at broken people
and
only see them for their struggles.
It's easy to see
their
brokenness, mistakes, and sins.
But we can't see what they're gone through, we can't see their hardship,
As disciples of Jesus
all we can do is offer them the same
grace he offers us.
Jesus related to the broken, struggling people.
He knew their pain. He comforted them.
He didn't look down on them, or make them feel inadequate.
He only looked down upon the
Pharisees,
who thought they were better than the sinners
because they followed
their idea of what the law was.
But they didn't know Jesus,
they
didn't follow the law of Christ.
The Pharisees
were expecting to be anointed by a
kingly priest,
but really,
they needed a lowly savior.
Jesus was a lowly, suffering servant.
Because
he made himself low,
God exalted him.
Because he went after the lost struggling sinner,
God gave him favor.
He followed God's will.
He helped the hurting people and met them where they were,
in
all humility.
He
lived, grieved, suffered, and humbled himself
to the
lowest of the low.
He went there. He understood. He related.
He gave grace, mercy, and unconditional love.
He wasn't better than them.
Often in life
if we haven't struggled, it is
so easy
to judge people
based on our own life experiences
and
taught beliefs.
Because of his mercy, they ran to him in open arms. We need to live that same example. Lowest of the low, in unity. We are all human beings, we are all sinners, we are all equal in God's eyes. The only thing he asks of us in return is to extend that same 'grace.
And if we have been
fortunate enough
to have been
given the platform
to
share this grace,
we need to.
We were
given the Gospel of Grace.
When I taught high school in
poor and
struggling communities,
it took a lot of time to adjust and
really see
my students
through their struggling life experiences.
I couldn't help them by thinking
I was better than them.
I could only
help them
when I related to their struggles,
and they felt comfort in knowing
that.
They needed to be heard,
valued
and understood.
They needed more than growing development and resources.
they needed unconditional
Grace.
We don't
look
at that kid with the
needle in his arm
and wonder why we are better than them and
why
our choices led us on a
"better path'
No.
That's not what God's says.
Jesus left the 99 and went after the lost.
We are to
give grace
and
understanding
in all
humility.
If we bring ourselves to
where they are,
we can
bring them up
with us.
If we only look down on them from
our
self-assumed position,
we can't help them.
Many of us have grown up with the
Gospel of Grace,
The Gospel
of
Jesus Christ
It's not difficult to recognize the
Gospel of Grace,
having ears to hear and eyes to see it's message.
Although, now and again, it's easy to get pulled to and fro
by doctrines that pull you
too far from the center.
As
Christ being the head,
he has all authority, and rightfully so.
Jesus Christ earned it, he paid the price,
he
suffered, he prevailed, he triumphed,
and in the end,
He earned God's Favor.
Grace Won and
always will..
Surely,
have Faith in knowing that-
Jesus Christ, the author of all Grace always wins.
He already won all of our battles,
all we have to do is
Trust him,
and place our
Faith in him,
by
Knowing him intimately,
knowing his Word of Truth.
The bible is the Word of God,
and the
entire
Word of God
is how we
come to know
our lord
Jesus Christ
and
his will for us.
The scripture is to be studied,
contemplated,
earnestly seeked-
and in that,
we will find him.
He will meet us where we are, when we
seek his word.
The core message of
his word,
needs to be the center and grounding for theology
and
all of our biblical teaching
in order to
carry out his will for humanity.
How do you know if You are not preaching the
Gospel of Jesus Christ...
How can you identify, discern,
and illuminate the biblical message of Jesus Christ?
Maybe God
is
calling all of us to work together
to
DELIVER
the GOSPEL of GRACE and TRUTH
to a
broken world, needing to hear
the
TRUTH.
Have you ever wondered
how you could earn
God’s favor?;)
Or maybe you have heard
a message that teaches you
how to earn God’s favor in
your life!
Traditional teaching often tells us that if we read our Bible enough, pray enough, show kindness to others, or never, ever sin…. we will be in good standing with God. We will be in His favor.
As a pastor’s daughter, this is what I remember hearing as a young girl. And woe unto me if I messed up. I felt the wrath of both my earthly and Heavenly Father.
My husband, who was also raised by a pastor during the same era, received a different message.
His father understood and preached
the
gospel of grace and forgiveness
which is ours when we
accept
Christ into our lives.
After we were married, it took years before I could
fully understand and
grasp that truth.
Consequently, I now understand how difficult it is for many Christians to come out from that guilt-ridden teaching that they will never do enough.
They must always strive to do more.
Earn God's Favor
A few years before my father went to his heavenly home,
he told me how his eyes were opened to the truth of the
message of grace.
How that thrilled me because it confirmed what my husband was teaching me in those early years of our marriage.
Our desire, as Christians, is to feel close to God by reading the Word, praying, and helping others.
But it is not what God requires of us to receive His favor.
Trying to establish favor with God by law-abiding,
or right conduct is a
lie the
enemy wants you to believe.
He does not want you
to know, grasp, or understand
that you
ARE in God’s favor.
The devil wants you to
try to earn it
He wants you to struggle and strive and bring doubt
into your mind so that
you
question your salvation.
Satan does not want you to
believe the truth of the Word,
which says
"For You, oh Lord, will bless the righteous with favor.
You will surround him with a shield”
Psalms 5:12.
God’s favor surrounds you like a shield and His righteousness
is not right doing but a gift from God.
“God imputes righteousness, not to those who STRIVE to obey
the law,
but to anyone who
believes in His Son, Jesus”
Galatians 2:16.
Read that again.
Then read Romans 8:1 and
get that message of grace
deep into your spirit.
You have
no right to live in guilt.
"There is, therefore, now, NO condemnation
who are in
Christ Jesus.”
Message of Grace
Could the Word be any clearer than that?
I don't think so.
That is your
key.
If anyone tries to say that you aren't righteous enough,
or good enough,
or read your Bible enough, or pray enough, or
do enough for other people –
point
them to the message of grace.
When we accept Jesus Christ into our hearts, the Bible says that
our sins are as
far as the east is from the west.
In other words,
He does not see them,
and
He will remember them
no more.
Print this out
and keep it in your sight until the message is in your heart:
I am not righteous
because of what I have done or not done.
I am righteous ONLY because of the blood of Jesus,
the
finished work on the cross,
and what
HE DID FOR ME.
God has imputed that righteousness to us because
of what
His Son did for us.
So, we learn to expect God's favor and adopt that attitude
in our
Christian walk.
Then we will see the changes we hoped for.
“And of His fullness, we have all received,
and grace for grace.
For the law was given through Moses,
but grace and truth came -through-
Jesus Christ”
John 1:16.
The Law Was Given But Grace Came
Did you see that?
The LAW was Given, but then
CHRIST CAME
The words grace and favor are interchangeable from the original text.
We have favor because of Jesus and
God’s grace.
We can’t earn it.
Christ GAVE it to us.
It is ours because of what He did for us.
When we find ourselves in situations where we
need the favor of man
and understand that we are in God’s favor,
we will realize that the world sees that as well.
People are drawn to us.
We can have favor in our marriage, our job, school,
and
other aspects of life.
To illustrate let’s look at three examples in the Old Testament.
“And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man,
and
he was in the house of his master the Egyptian”
Genesis 39:2.
Later in the same chapter,
"But the Lord was with Joseph, and
showed him mercy,
and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison”
Genesis 39:21.
Remember how Joseph got to prison?
It was not for something he did.
He was there because of the hatred of his brothers.
His brothers knew that their
father’s favor was on their younger brother,
and they were jealous.
But when he was in prison, Potiphar, Joseph’s boss saw God’s favor on him.
You may wonder why God allowed Joseph to be in that state.
God Will Bless Us Beyond Anything
Sometimes we want to blame God for something we are going through but when we remember that
our lives are orchestrated by God and that no matter what happens,
He is with us.
He will bless us beyond anything we could hope for
when we put our trust in Him.
Many times, we may not understand why some things happen,
but we know
that
all things work together
for our good
according to God’s promises.
During 13 years in prison.
Joseph may have had his moments.
He was human.
But his focus was on God. He chose to trust God,
not question
him.
Joseph saved his family
and his nation.
Through many of the traumas I endured in 40 years
of struggle and loss,
I maintained a prayer of thanksgiving and praise
that God knew the end of my story
and that He was my
source and my strength.
I was always a victor and never a victim –
it was my choice to believe that.
My prayer was one of thanksgiving.
I learned how to pray the answer and NOT the problem.
Esther was a captive in Babylon
who
entered a beauty contest and won.
She won FAVOR from all who saw her.
“And Esther obtained favor
in the
sight of all them that looked upon her:
Esther 2:15.
Remember Daniel?
“Now God had brought Daniel into favor with the prince of the eunuchs”
Daniel 1:9.
When God shines His spotlight on you, others see it.
When you realize God’s favor is on you
and you begin to thank Him for it,
you will see situations change in your life.
I can only imagine our the first apostles felt.
They had the most
unbelievable, glorious message
to
DELIVER.
Having some receive and not recieve the message of
our salvation in the
gospel of Grace in Jesus Christ
must have been
frustrating.
But in the end it was worth it all,
no doubt.
Do Not Judge;)
Be merciful,
just as your Father is merciful.
Do not judge, and you will not be judged.
Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.
Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Give, and will be given to you.
A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap.
For with the measure you use, it will be measured
back to you:)
The Bible talks a lot about
suffering for the sake of Christ.
I will suffer for my Testimony,
I will Testify no other name, and
no other Gospel
In the era in which the New Testament was written,
followers of Jesus
were often ostracized by their own
families and communities.
Some of the worst persecution came
from the
religious leaders
(Acts 4:1–3).
Jesus told His followers,
"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of
righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"
(Matthew 5:10).
He reminded His disciples,
"If the world hates you,
keep in mind that it hated me first"
(John 15:18).
Second Timothy 3:12 says,
"Everyone who wants to live a
godly life in Christ Jesus
will be persecuted."
As in biblical times, many Christians today have found that making a
public declaration of faith in Christ
can result
in imprisonment, beatings, torture, or death
(Hebrews 11:32–38; 2 Corinthians 12:10; Philippians 3:8; Acts 5:40).
Often those of us in free nations shudder at the thought, but we feel relatively safe. We understand that there are thousands who suffer daily for the sake of Christ and are thankful we don’t have to.
But is there only one kind of persecution?
Jesus stated clearly what it means to follow Him:
"Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world,
and yet lose or forfeit their very self?"
(Luke 9:23–25).
Our modern understanding of the phrase
"take up their cross and follow me"
is often inadequate.
In Jesus’ day the cross always symbolized death.
When a man carried a cross, he had already been condemned to die on it. Jesus said that, in order to follow Him, one must be willing to die.
We will not all die
martyrs’ deaths.
We will not all be imprisoned, beaten, or tortured for our faith.
So what kind of death did Jesus mean?
Paul
explains in Galatians 2:20,
"I have
been crucified with Christ
and I no longer live,
but
Christ lives in me.
The
life I now live in the
body,
I live by faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and
gave himself for me."
To
follow Christ
means we die to our own way of doing things.
We consider our will, our rights, our passions, and our goals
to be crucified
on the cross with Him.
Our right to direct our own lives is
dead to us!
(Philippians 3:7–8).
Death involves suffering.
Paul suffered more than most for Jesus’ sake.
He said this to the Christians at Phillipi:
"For it has been granted to you
on
behalf of Christ
not only to believe in him,
but also to suffer for him"
(Philippians 1:29).
The word granted here means
"shown favor, given freely as a gift."
Paul does not present suffering as a curse, but as a benefit.
Suffering can take many forms.
By
choosing to obey
the
Lord Jesus Christ,
we are setting ourselves at odds with the world. Galatians 1:10 says,
"For am I now
seeking the favor of men,
or of God?
Or am I striving to please men?
If I were still trying to please men,
I would not be
a
bond-servant of Christ"
By closely adhering to
the
teachings of the Bible,
we set
ourselves up for rejection, mockery,
loneliness, or betrayal.
Often, the cruelest persecution
comes from those who consider
themselves spiritual
but have defined God according
to
their own ideas.
If we
choose to take a stand
for righteousness
and
biblical truth,
we ensure that we will be
misunderstood, mocked, or worse.
We need to keep in mind
that no threat of
suffering
deterred the apostles
from
preaching Christ.
In fact,
Paul said that
losing everything was worth it
"that I may know Him and the power of His
resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings,
being conformed to His death"
(Philippians 3:10, NASB).
Acts 5:40–41
describes the reaction of the
apostles
after they
received
another beating
for
preaching about Jesus:
"The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they
had been counted worthy
of
suffering disgrace for
the Name."
Suffering in some form
is
always going to be a part
of being a
true
follower of Christ.
Jesus said the path that leads to life is difficult
(Matthew 7:14).
Our hardship is also a way of identifying
with
His suffering in a small way.
Jesus said if we deny him
before men,
He will deny us before His Father in heaven
Even Peter, the apostle close to Jesus,
denied him three times.
I'm sure that was painful for Jesus, knowing
Jesus gave Peter the Keys to the Kingdom
for
everyone else to
experience his Grace.
(Matthew 10:33; Luke 12:9).
There are many subtle ways
to deny Christ.
If our actions, words, lifestyle, or entertainment choices
do not reflect His will,
we are denying Christ.
If we claim to know Him but live as though we didn’t,
we are denying Christ
(1 John 3:6–10).
Many people choose those forms of denying Christ
because they do not want to
suffer for Him.
Often our greatest suffering comes from
within as we
battle for control over a
heart
that must die to its own will
and
surrender to Christ’s lordship
(Romans 7:15–25).
The Will of God
comes through the 'gospel of Grace,
The
Redemptive Plan
Through the 'work of Jesus Christ Alone
In whatever form suffering comes, we should embrace it as
a badge of honor and a privilege that we,
like the apostles,
have
"been counted worthy
of
suffering disgrace
for the
Name."
I have been so fortunate to have
known and seen the love and grace
of
Jesus through loved ones.
I have been offered so much Grace in my life,
more than words could ever express.
I never earned or deserved it, but Jesus showed up anyway.
He paid our debt,
and our job is to follow his example.
Grace is a safe place- and it should never be exhausted,
it should be the ultimate
ideal.
I pray
that everyone can experience
The
Grace of Jesus like I have
in my life.
As surely as the morning of new beginnings and
Grace Arise,
so does our opportunity to
Share the good News
Keep the 'faith, friends! surely he is coming soon-
let's help deliver
the
Message of Good Tidings,
Grace, Mercy, and Peace be with you!
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