In the parables that Jesus told, I think the one that raised the most eyebrows during His time and probably even now is the Parable of the Vineyard Workers. (Matthew 20:1-16 NIV)
The last verse says "So the last will be first, and the first will be last." No wonder that the first group of workers who toiled the longest were mad! They had worked the longest under the hot sun and these late comers who were doing nothing earlier but loafing around at the market square barely worked for a few hours they were given the job and they received the same pay cheque.
Let's examine his answer "Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? vs.14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. vs15. Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?"
The landowner hit the nail on the head! He asked if they were jealous because he was generous! I call it Generous Grace!
When Jesus told this story, He was giving us a parable about GRACIOUS GRACE, and yes God's grace is unfair because it cannot be measured, not by a day's wage or by our performance or good works. Jesus put it very plainly, "So the last will be first, and the first will be last." Grace means it is not about counting! Grace is not about our hard works and sacrifice only. Grace is a GIFT to be RECEIVED from God, we cannot do anything to earn it. Yes, God's grace is unfair, it is unfairly GOOD!
Philip Yancey in his book, "What's So Amazing About Grace?" sums it up so eloquently. "We like to think of ourselves as responsible workers, and the employer's strange behavior baffles us as it did the original hearers. We risk missing the story - that God dispenses gifts, not wages. None of us gets paid according to merit, for none of us comes close to satisfying God's requirements for a perfect life. If paid on the basis of fairness, we would all end up in hell."
Have you embraced this unfair grace? The gift of GRACE and RIGHTEOUSNESS! (Roman 5:15-17) tells us "much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. And vs. 17 says, "much more those who received abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One Jesus Christ."
The two group of workers I see were saints in the old covenant and the new covenant. These are bands of workers of the Old Testament saints. And those New Testament saints are called at the 11th hour are the New Covenant Grace workers believers. In the last days, God's grace is going to pour out into the church as never before in an over abundance, overflowing, overwhelming, overcoming and overtaking. And we cannot stop God's grace coming through strongly at us and in us. He is graciously good enough! Believe it! You are one of His 11th hour workers picked for the hour.
SERVICE FOR GOD
One thing this parable tells us is that whatever service we do for God it is not the amount of time and work that you do. It is the Grace of God in our lives that works that service and our service and ministry will be acceptable with God always. There is no rejection, no condemnation and failure in our service for God. When God looks at your work and ministry God looks at Jesus first at the Cross in you.
So the last will be first and the first will be last - Matthew 20:16 There are reasons why? Comparing Law and Grace dispensation, Grace will always be the first and never last. They will outlast the rest and just with a short time they can achieve good results. They will outlast and outrun most of those who go first in ministry, in jobs, in career, etc.........
Another way I see it, the first workers who spend the whole day in the service, were working under a legal agreement and they were working for wages represent LAW rather than for the joy (GRACE). Joy flows from the grace of God. These are new covenant believers in the last days. They went to the field with no binding agreement but free to trust God and give themselves entirely to God - they believe their BOSS JESUS.
Just think of Jesus giving. It is totally different kind of giving. When Jesus gives life, He give abundantly, overflowing and overjoying life. When I planted my seed it can goes to 30 fold, 60 fold and 100 fold. When He rewards us for service He gives 10,000 percent now in this life and in the age to come eternal life. We cannot out give God. He gives and gives 100 times the best and we can learn from Him. He never stops giving until we stop it by our limitation of vessels, strength or fear. Just like the oil of Elisha time it stopped when there was no vessels left.
Do you know we are living in the 11th hour now? YES! God is saying at the 11th hour I am going to be so, so, so generous with grace and I am going to give and give and give unless you stop me. Can you go too far with GRACE! Have we touch grace yet? Grace is like an ocean! And we are just playing around the beach and some go swimming! And we are so satisfied! THERE IS MORE TO COME DON'T LIMIT GOD NOW! GOD IS ABLE TO DO EXCEEDINGLY, ABUNDANTLY AND BEYOND WHAT WE ASK OR THINK. What are you thinking or asking now?
COMMAND THIS DAY TO DELIVER AND BRING FORTH FRUITS!
Thank you Father for the Precious Gift and Grace of Jesus! Today I declare and decree that this is the day the Lord has made specially for me! I will rejoice and exceeding glad in it. TODAY I AM PREGNANT WITH MY BLESSINGS, BENEFITS AND BREAKTHROUGHS! TODAY, I am going to expect many Great and Wonderful Things happen in my life. My hope is from the Lord. Yes I today I receive the BLESSING OF HIS GRACIOUS GRACE AND GOODNESS! AND I AM OVERFLOWING AND FULL WITH HIS GOOD GRACE. TODAY I CHOOSE TO LIVE THE LIFE OF OVERFLOWING, OVERCOMING, OVERTAKING ABUNDANT LIFE OF THE ALMIGHTY GOD. I CHOOSE TO REACH OUT AND RECEIVE THE ABUNDANT GENEROUS GRACIOUS GRACE OF GOD!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
GRACE WELCOMES YOU BACK
Story of the Father and the Prodical Son
God's Grace welcomes the son back. His father ran and met him and hugged him. The grace of God flows out of the Fathers heart instead of putting a condemnation, guilt and fear in his son. He embraced him and kissed him instead. Grace will kiss and forgive you. God grace will not find fault with you even you are wrong and failed.
Sin does not stop God's grace from flowing, but God's grace will stop sin. The word says, "Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more" I like to share grace! The Grace of the Lord Jesus! Grace is in a person not in a doctrine or in a teaching. Head knowledge does not saved us. Grace and truth is with Jesus Christ. Grace empowers us to live holy lives. We don't struggle to be holy. We are holy by faith trusting Jesus.
You say, how to be holy then? Holiness comes knowing where you are seated. The bible says, "you are raised up together and made to sit (you have no choice) together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus - that in the ages to come (which is now) He might show the exceeding riches of His grace towards us..." The riches of His grace pour out upon you when you know your spiritual position. And that is where your power comes from and your blessings too.
When you know where you are seated and its where the Holy Throne of Grace is, then His Grace will empower you to live holy lives. Just believe in His Holy Grace! The Grace of Holiness! That is why I agree with some ministers that we don't preach holiness, we don't preach obedience, we don't preach performance - we preach grace first and who you are in Christ because when you have a revelation of who you are, what you are then your obedience will flow from your spirit, holiness will flow from your spirit and power will flow from your spirit. It is just that easy! For durians (Malaysian fruit) will come from durian trees and mangoes can only be pluck from mango trees. So God says, "Be ye holy for I am Holy"
True holiness is not behavior that changes character; it is character that changes behavior, and character can only be changed by God from the inside out. (Rob Rufus)
The devil want us to be self-conscious (you and your sins) and sin conscious but God wants you to be grace and holy conscious! Grace consciousness will set you free today! The devil wants you to be so self-righteous but God wants you to be so righteous conscious in Christ.
Let grace kill sin consciousness! Someone says "O well, why I still can sin or fall?" The reason we tend to sin is because of an unrenewed mind not because of a sin nature. That old man is crucified at the cross already. So we need to recognize it as dead. Our old man is dead. Just as an old road that has not been used, it will slowly disappear and wipe off its tracks. Nobody will notice it is a road before. So don't use the old road - its too dark. You walk in the new road of the New Man - a Highway of Holiness. That's your direction and destiny! Amen!
God's Grace welcomes the son back. His father ran and met him and hugged him. The grace of God flows out of the Fathers heart instead of putting a condemnation, guilt and fear in his son. He embraced him and kissed him instead. Grace will kiss and forgive you. God grace will not find fault with you even you are wrong and failed.
Sin does not stop God's grace from flowing, but God's grace will stop sin. The word says, "Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more" I like to share grace! The Grace of the Lord Jesus! Grace is in a person not in a doctrine or in a teaching. Head knowledge does not saved us. Grace and truth is with Jesus Christ. Grace empowers us to live holy lives. We don't struggle to be holy. We are holy by faith trusting Jesus.
You say, how to be holy then? Holiness comes knowing where you are seated. The bible says, "you are raised up together and made to sit (you have no choice) together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus - that in the ages to come (which is now) He might show the exceeding riches of His grace towards us..." The riches of His grace pour out upon you when you know your spiritual position. And that is where your power comes from and your blessings too.
When you know where you are seated and its where the Holy Throne of Grace is, then His Grace will empower you to live holy lives. Just believe in His Holy Grace! The Grace of Holiness! That is why I agree with some ministers that we don't preach holiness, we don't preach obedience, we don't preach performance - we preach grace first and who you are in Christ because when you have a revelation of who you are, what you are then your obedience will flow from your spirit, holiness will flow from your spirit and power will flow from your spirit. It is just that easy! For durians (Malaysian fruit) will come from durian trees and mangoes can only be pluck from mango trees. So God says, "Be ye holy for I am Holy"
True holiness is not behavior that changes character; it is character that changes behavior, and character can only be changed by God from the inside out. (Rob Rufus)
The devil want us to be self-conscious (you and your sins) and sin conscious but God wants you to be grace and holy conscious! Grace consciousness will set you free today! The devil wants you to be so self-righteous but God wants you to be so righteous conscious in Christ.
Let grace kill sin consciousness! Someone says "O well, why I still can sin or fall?" The reason we tend to sin is because of an unrenewed mind not because of a sin nature. That old man is crucified at the cross already. So we need to recognize it as dead. Our old man is dead. Just as an old road that has not been used, it will slowly disappear and wipe off its tracks. Nobody will notice it is a road before. So don't use the old road - its too dark. You walk in the new road of the New Man - a Highway of Holiness. That's your direction and destiny! Amen!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
PREACHING GRACE WITHOUT BALANCE
We emphasize grace because grace is the emphasis of the New Testament. In fact, the word grace is used 128 times—it is the most emphasized word in the New Testament. The Apostle Paul used the word grace 94 times in his writings.
Like book ends Paul begins his epistles with “Grace and peace with you all” and ends his epistles with the same pattern everywhere from Romans to Philemon with “the grace of the Lord be with you or your spirit” For me it is like two book ends that hold us all the books (believers) together and no one can fall out of place. Believers are rubbing shoulders to shoulders but with his grace holding us together into one. Here we all stand and not fall away.
We need to preach is radical grace because if try to balance grace we will nullify grace. If we try to balance grace it will hinder grace in our lives. Grace cannot be balance even with obedience. This is not to do away with obedience. I believe obedience comes only with the power of grace.
Many people believe obedience must come first. I tell you, you are pushing the cart without the horse. The horse must pull the cart of goods (blessings). So Grace gives you the strength to obey God. Grace does not replace obedience but grace empowers obedience. So that’s our obedience is the obedience of faith from God. This blessings can only flow through grace only.
We emphasize grace not to make light of sin. Sin is sin and God is not soft on sin. His wrath on sin is demonstrated in the Old Testament with his wrath. This shows the severity of his actions. God came hard on sin. He is fire and brimstone God. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah in a few seconds. So we don’t get easy grace. We don’t get cheap grace or soft grace. We get severe grace. We get a grace from God that sent Jesus to die on the bloody cross with so much pain with we could not even bear. Sin was so severe that is why it took such tremendous gracious grace to quench it. God for us is a good loving God and for all mankind.
People stress obedience over grace and say we think too lightly of sin; however, I believe the exact opposite. Those who stress obedience over grace do not understand how deadly sin is. We are saying that sin is a monster that we do not have any ability to conquer in ourselves, although we hate it—we want sin out of our lives, and the only way to get it out is to rely on grace. That is why we have to emphasize grace.
Grace is not God overlooking sin but Grace is God killing sin as someone says. When God saved us, judicially He killed our sin; in fact, judicially He killed us (our old man). The Lord God can now look at me as perfect because of God imputed righteousness on me and He had already paid the death penalty for my sin. That is the grace that saved me, the grace that sustains me and blessed me. Let the layer of grace comes upon us – grace upon grace like Jesus.
The grace that saved me was God judicially killing off every bit of sin at the Cross.
That is the grace we proclaim! Amen! May the grace of God be with you all in your spirit. Why spirit – because it must be embedded in our spirit to manifest the power of His works, love and blessings in our lives. By Sunny
Like book ends Paul begins his epistles with “Grace and peace with you all” and ends his epistles with the same pattern everywhere from Romans to Philemon with “the grace of the Lord be with you or your spirit” For me it is like two book ends that hold us all the books (believers) together and no one can fall out of place. Believers are rubbing shoulders to shoulders but with his grace holding us together into one. Here we all stand and not fall away.
We need to preach is radical grace because if try to balance grace we will nullify grace. If we try to balance grace it will hinder grace in our lives. Grace cannot be balance even with obedience. This is not to do away with obedience. I believe obedience comes only with the power of grace.
Many people believe obedience must come first. I tell you, you are pushing the cart without the horse. The horse must pull the cart of goods (blessings). So Grace gives you the strength to obey God. Grace does not replace obedience but grace empowers obedience. So that’s our obedience is the obedience of faith from God. This blessings can only flow through grace only.
We emphasize grace not to make light of sin. Sin is sin and God is not soft on sin. His wrath on sin is demonstrated in the Old Testament with his wrath. This shows the severity of his actions. God came hard on sin. He is fire and brimstone God. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah in a few seconds. So we don’t get easy grace. We don’t get cheap grace or soft grace. We get severe grace. We get a grace from God that sent Jesus to die on the bloody cross with so much pain with we could not even bear. Sin was so severe that is why it took such tremendous gracious grace to quench it. God for us is a good loving God and for all mankind.
People stress obedience over grace and say we think too lightly of sin; however, I believe the exact opposite. Those who stress obedience over grace do not understand how deadly sin is. We are saying that sin is a monster that we do not have any ability to conquer in ourselves, although we hate it—we want sin out of our lives, and the only way to get it out is to rely on grace. That is why we have to emphasize grace.
Grace is not God overlooking sin but Grace is God killing sin as someone says. When God saved us, judicially He killed our sin; in fact, judicially He killed us (our old man). The Lord God can now look at me as perfect because of God imputed righteousness on me and He had already paid the death penalty for my sin. That is the grace that saved me, the grace that sustains me and blessed me. Let the layer of grace comes upon us – grace upon grace like Jesus.
The grace that saved me was God judicially killing off every bit of sin at the Cross.
That is the grace we proclaim! Amen! May the grace of God be with you all in your spirit. Why spirit – because it must be embedded in our spirit to manifest the power of His works, love and blessings in our lives. By Sunny
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
KINGDOM GRACE
KINGDOM GRACE
Text: Heb. 12:22-29 - ". . .we receiving a kingdom. . .let us have grace. . ." Hebrews 12:28
When you are carrying the cross, you keep your eyes on the King. Knowing that the King is mastering your cross journey, you thereby understand that you are a part of His Kingdom.
"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
There is a spiritual kingdom of light active on this planet; King Jesus is in its kingdom. All those who believe and faithful are citizens of that realm.
1) KINGDOM UNSHAKABLE – “ the Kingdom of Jesus ". . .cannot be moved. . ."
That is, it is stable. All else in this life is unstable. It is always in the process of vanishing. One day in history's future, the earth will be folded up as an old garment and done away with. Everything but the Monarch and His citizens will be obliterated.
2) KINGDOM GRACE- ". . .let us have grace. . ." Grace permits you see eternal fact. Grace gives you the power and strength to carry the vision and positions you then to make the eternally correct decisions for your gospel witness here. Grace is the ingredient that allows us to succeed even went we fall short. Without His grace you can’t even live your Christian walk with God. You’ll be walking in the law and flesh trying to obey, trying to pray, to serve and to love Him – yet we feel like a failure 100 times. God’s grace is limitless and there is abundance of grace and we never run dry of His grace. There is always more and more grace abounds and full of it.
For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. (John 1:16)
The message of grace is spreading with increasing speed! The light is shining in the dark, and the darkness can’t overcome it!
Luther emphasized “GRACE ALONE”, “faith alone” and “Christ alone”. All forms of legalistic religion fall to the ground in the light of the Gospel. Paul says: “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the grounds of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.” (Rom.11:6) The fullness is only by grace - grace upon grace!
3) KINGDOM GRACE TO SERVE. Let us have grace for what? - ". . .whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear." This godly fear is not the fear of God’s judgment but the fear of the Lord in doing right not wrong. The grace gift has one purpose--to provide us with the wherewithal to bring all our efforts to the King for His praise. We don’t serve God out of fear but out of love.
Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
Ephesians 6:7-8
You will be hard-pressed to find someone who will do something for nothing. People say things like, “You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.” “If you hook me up with this, I’ll hook you up with that.” It’s all about the payback.
God’s economy doesn’t work that way. He doesn’t want us to give just to get; he doesn’t want us to serve just because of what we’ll receive in return. Kingdom service is different because grace is there.
Serving is all about placing other people’s needs before your own. And when you do that humbly and with a pure heart, it allows God to work through you to touch the lives of others in a supernatural way.
4) KINGDOM COVENANT - JESUS’ BLOOD SPEAKS BETTER THINGS
Hebrews 12:24
… 24 “to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel”.
Today, forensic science tells us that blood has a voice. DNA can be extracted from just one swab of a murderer’s blood and the results used in court as evidence.
So blood in a sense can speak. And when it is the blood of Jesus, it speaks better things than that of Abel. Abel’s blood cried out, “Vengeance! Vengeance!” after his brother Cain murdered him. (Genesis 4:8–11) But Jesus’ blood cries out forgiveness for our sins, healing for our bodies, and peace and soundness for our minds. It cries out protection for our coming-ins and going-outs, prosperity for the works of our hands, the righteousness of Christ as our acceptance before God and much more!
In the Bible, Jesus’ blood speaking of “better things” is found in the context of the last days when things are being shaken, so that the things that cannot be shaken will remain. (Hebrews 12:27) God wants you to know that you will not be shaken when you put your faith in Jesus’ blood, which speaks for you.
5) KINGDOM VOICE of Grace is the voice who speaks from heaven will keep you from being shaken in these last days. We heard of what is coming to this world – it will shake the world. The kingdom of this world will be shaken. There’s another kind of spiritual shakening.
But what kind of shakening? Not earthquake, but waking up of His church in Heaven and earth.
• Removal – those trusting the law like Paul’s day – human effort, religion, rituals, etc.
• Remain – unshaken. Grace will be unshaken, Zion, Holiness, blood of the Lamb and the Word of God and His eternal covenant. God’s love for you will be unshaken. Only grace can shake the devil out of their place, Mt. Zion (grace) that must shake the law out of our lives that the devil gave us before. We must be free to serve in Grace.
We received a Grace kingdom that cannot be moved or shaken. There are better things coming and the best is yet to come. We are going to see His Kingdom manifesting through Grace. Grace will perfect us esp. our spirits of just men made perfect. God is perfecting you through His grace.
Text: Heb. 12:22-29 - ". . .we receiving a kingdom. . .let us have grace. . ." Hebrews 12:28
When you are carrying the cross, you keep your eyes on the King. Knowing that the King is mastering your cross journey, you thereby understand that you are a part of His Kingdom.
"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
There is a spiritual kingdom of light active on this planet; King Jesus is in its kingdom. All those who believe and faithful are citizens of that realm.
1) KINGDOM UNSHAKABLE – “ the Kingdom of Jesus ". . .cannot be moved. . ."
That is, it is stable. All else in this life is unstable. It is always in the process of vanishing. One day in history's future, the earth will be folded up as an old garment and done away with. Everything but the Monarch and His citizens will be obliterated.
2) KINGDOM GRACE- ". . .let us have grace. . ." Grace permits you see eternal fact. Grace gives you the power and strength to carry the vision and positions you then to make the eternally correct decisions for your gospel witness here. Grace is the ingredient that allows us to succeed even went we fall short. Without His grace you can’t even live your Christian walk with God. You’ll be walking in the law and flesh trying to obey, trying to pray, to serve and to love Him – yet we feel like a failure 100 times. God’s grace is limitless and there is abundance of grace and we never run dry of His grace. There is always more and more grace abounds and full of it.
For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. (John 1:16)
The message of grace is spreading with increasing speed! The light is shining in the dark, and the darkness can’t overcome it!
Luther emphasized “GRACE ALONE”, “faith alone” and “Christ alone”. All forms of legalistic religion fall to the ground in the light of the Gospel. Paul says: “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the grounds of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.” (Rom.11:6) The fullness is only by grace - grace upon grace!
3) KINGDOM GRACE TO SERVE. Let us have grace for what? - ". . .whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear." This godly fear is not the fear of God’s judgment but the fear of the Lord in doing right not wrong. The grace gift has one purpose--to provide us with the wherewithal to bring all our efforts to the King for His praise. We don’t serve God out of fear but out of love.
Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
Ephesians 6:7-8
You will be hard-pressed to find someone who will do something for nothing. People say things like, “You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.” “If you hook me up with this, I’ll hook you up with that.” It’s all about the payback.
God’s economy doesn’t work that way. He doesn’t want us to give just to get; he doesn’t want us to serve just because of what we’ll receive in return. Kingdom service is different because grace is there.
Serving is all about placing other people’s needs before your own. And when you do that humbly and with a pure heart, it allows God to work through you to touch the lives of others in a supernatural way.
4) KINGDOM COVENANT - JESUS’ BLOOD SPEAKS BETTER THINGS
Hebrews 12:24
… 24 “to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel”.
Today, forensic science tells us that blood has a voice. DNA can be extracted from just one swab of a murderer’s blood and the results used in court as evidence.
So blood in a sense can speak. And when it is the blood of Jesus, it speaks better things than that of Abel. Abel’s blood cried out, “Vengeance! Vengeance!” after his brother Cain murdered him. (Genesis 4:8–11) But Jesus’ blood cries out forgiveness for our sins, healing for our bodies, and peace and soundness for our minds. It cries out protection for our coming-ins and going-outs, prosperity for the works of our hands, the righteousness of Christ as our acceptance before God and much more!
In the Bible, Jesus’ blood speaking of “better things” is found in the context of the last days when things are being shaken, so that the things that cannot be shaken will remain. (Hebrews 12:27) God wants you to know that you will not be shaken when you put your faith in Jesus’ blood, which speaks for you.
5) KINGDOM VOICE of Grace is the voice who speaks from heaven will keep you from being shaken in these last days. We heard of what is coming to this world – it will shake the world. The kingdom of this world will be shaken. There’s another kind of spiritual shakening.
But what kind of shakening? Not earthquake, but waking up of His church in Heaven and earth.
• Removal – those trusting the law like Paul’s day – human effort, religion, rituals, etc.
• Remain – unshaken. Grace will be unshaken, Zion, Holiness, blood of the Lamb and the Word of God and His eternal covenant. God’s love for you will be unshaken. Only grace can shake the devil out of their place, Mt. Zion (grace) that must shake the law out of our lives that the devil gave us before. We must be free to serve in Grace.
We received a Grace kingdom that cannot be moved or shaken. There are better things coming and the best is yet to come. We are going to see His Kingdom manifesting through Grace. Grace will perfect us esp. our spirits of just men made perfect. God is perfecting you through His grace.
PROPHETIC GRACE
2010 The Year of Abounding Grace
This will be a Year of Double Portion of Grace for some and others. It will be a Year of Unlimited Grace, Blessing and Anointing. It will be a Year of Acceleration and Manifestation - a Year that every Grace and Anointing that God is pouring out today. It is His set Time for Grace to Abound - Its the Set time for His Church to Reign in life. Be prepared to receive the Unlimited Grace to do what the Spirit of God has told you to do.
This will be a Year of Double Portion of Grace for some and others. It will be a Year of Unlimited Grace, Blessing and Anointing. It will be a Year of Acceleration and Manifestation - a Year that every Grace and Anointing that God is pouring out today. It is His set Time for Grace to Abound - Its the Set time for His Church to Reign in life. Be prepared to receive the Unlimited Grace to do what the Spirit of God has told you to do.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
River of Gracious Grace
The Grace of Persevering - I Peter 5:10,11
Grace is not a doctrine. Grace is a lifestyle. It is something for us to live in and through us. Paul says, "I am what I am by the Grace of God". Galatians 2:21: says, "the grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain." I do not set aside, invalidate and frustrate and nullify Grace (unmerited favor) of God in my life. No grace - no life in you! The grace of God must not be in vain - that means "useless or to no purpose". God does not want to pour His grace upon you for no reason. God is the author and finisher of grace in us.
Grace is the power of God in us, with us and through us. This gospel of grace is not about right living but it is right believing. Right believing produces power to right living. If we believe what is right then it will manifest its power to change us and transform us from inside out not outside in. If an egg is broken from outside, life ends but if an egg is broken from inside out - life begins. A miracle and life transformation begins inward through the power of God's grace.
Paul says,"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ (grace) for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who BELIEVES (not who works or obey first) Right believing give us the power to obey God and serve Him with fresh and flourishing fruitfulness.
Paul says, "For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son (Grace), that without ceasing I make mention of you, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you." Roman 1:9 We can serve God in the spirit of grace by the power of Jesus His Son.
Here Peter was writing to Christians scattered throughout Asia Minor, Turkey today. Peter calls them "God's elect, strangers in the world" 1 Peter 1:1 The believers there had been suffering many kinds of trails. These trials included malicious slander from unbelievers, persecution from their government authorities and spiritual assaults from the enemy. Peter wanted them to be encouraged and strengthened for the hope of the coming glory of Christ.
The promises of God's will will do for them four things: The God of all Grace will restore them perfect, establish, strengthen and settle them.
1) God Will Perfect You (Restore or Complete)
KJV "perfect" means "to make fully ready" or "to complete". Just as fisherman making fishing nets ready by mending them to be used. Saint Peter who fell and fail Jesus to deny Christ three times but was restored. But remember God is a God of all Grace. That means whatever grace you need in your life and problems God is there to help. God grace is boundless and He has large resources of grace ready to make you complete in Christ. God wants you to understand and live in that kind of grace.
After you have fallen a little while. That means to say you have fallen - we have all fallen - we fail - we can sinned - we blew it - we are weak but in our weakness God does not condemn us instead He reinforces us to be stronger and stronger. Grace of God leaves you strong and calm; your good works and effort rent you weak and powerless, frustrated and worry. Only through faith the grace of God works. Faith in the Word of Grace will build us stronger not weaker.
When I fall - God is a God of second chance. God will be gentle with me and not angry - for He will restores and take up my mistakes and failures and work together for good into His purposes and plans.
2. God Will Establish You
When our enemy attack us, yes our home, our marriage, our joy and our health, etc. People will shut us off or pass over us. There is pressure everywhere and should we compromise our faith or stand on? Should we deny Jesus as Peter did it? All forms of testing and temptations to give up at times. But God who creates the universe and earth will hold you up. The bible says, if the enemy comes in like a flood - God will raise up a standard against them. You don't have to do anything but believe (the gospel has the power to those who believe) in His Grace. His Grace will fight for you. Every time we fail just look up to His grace and He will lift you up and establishes you.
Isaiah 54:13 "And all they children (believers) shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace (blessings) of they children." vs. 14 says, "In righteousness shall you be established; you shall be far from oppression for you shall not fear and from terror; for it shall not come near you."
As you established yourself in your faith and righteousness - God says you shall be strong and blessings shall come upon you and your children. And terror and oppression from the enemy shall not even come near your tent.
3) God Will Strengthen You
How will God strengthen you? By His power. Power is out of His grace.
2 Timothy 2:1 "Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus". Confess that: "I am strong in the Grace of God". Paul didn't tell Timothy to be strong in himself; he told him to be strong in the grace of the Lord. Your strength is only in God. Your help is only in God's grace and nothing else. The scriptures say, "they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength" Here "renew" means "exchange". When you wait upon the Lord in faith you will exchange His strength with your weakness, sin, doubt, disappointment. Your disappointment will be God's appointment.
That is why when you come to the Holy Communion table every time, you exchange strength with Jesus, you exchange sickness with His health, you exchange your poverty with His riches, you exchange your sins with His righteousness. He was rich and he became poor (at the cross) so that we might be rich. An exchange for all His blessing at the cross. This is the New Covenant of Grace - an exchange for life and life more abundantly.
Let His Righteousness and Grace strengthens you.
Isaiah 52:1 says "Awake, awake; put on they strength O Zion (church); put on your beautiful garments." Your beautiful garments speak of Christ righteousness. When you put on you have activated Christ righteousness in you - you will put on His strength. Your garments are spotless, pure and holy.
4) Finally, God Will Settle You (Rest you)
This is the last of the four promises is that God will settle us. The word means "to be made to rest securely" like strong building on a sure foundation. Through a lot of circumstances the devil makes us uneasy and unsettle. But God wants you to stand. Paul says in 1 Peter 5:12 "I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying "that this is the true grace of God in which you stand."
God wants you to stand resting in His Grace. The strength we have is to rest in His Gracious Grace. His grace will perfect us in weakness and is sufficient for us for the day. Keep standing on that Marvelous Grace and it will last. Remember grace never strengthen you to sin and live immoral life. Grace is not a license for you to do wrong but power for you to do right.
I tell you grace is your birthright of every child of God. Your are born with it in Christ. It is like your birth mark. It cannot go away. God's grace will stick with you forever as your believe in Him. Grace cannot leave you alone. It will lift you up again and again. Many of us will say "Can God ever use me again?" Des He even want me?" Will things ever be the same again with us?" God will settle that for you because He loves You.
Finally, just run into His arms of grace. Don't run away from God's grace. You belong to the God of all grace. Run into His grace! Cast your care upon His grace! And Grace will restore you, establish you, strengthen you and settle you for His glory.
Grace is not a doctrine. Grace is a lifestyle. It is something for us to live in and through us. Paul says, "I am what I am by the Grace of God". Galatians 2:21: says, "the grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain." I do not set aside, invalidate and frustrate and nullify Grace (unmerited favor) of God in my life. No grace - no life in you! The grace of God must not be in vain - that means "useless or to no purpose". God does not want to pour His grace upon you for no reason. God is the author and finisher of grace in us.
Grace is the power of God in us, with us and through us. This gospel of grace is not about right living but it is right believing. Right believing produces power to right living. If we believe what is right then it will manifest its power to change us and transform us from inside out not outside in. If an egg is broken from outside, life ends but if an egg is broken from inside out - life begins. A miracle and life transformation begins inward through the power of God's grace.
Paul says,"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ (grace) for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who BELIEVES (not who works or obey first) Right believing give us the power to obey God and serve Him with fresh and flourishing fruitfulness.
Paul says, "For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son (Grace), that without ceasing I make mention of you, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you." Roman 1:9 We can serve God in the spirit of grace by the power of Jesus His Son.
Here Peter was writing to Christians scattered throughout Asia Minor, Turkey today. Peter calls them "God's elect, strangers in the world" 1 Peter 1:1 The believers there had been suffering many kinds of trails. These trials included malicious slander from unbelievers, persecution from their government authorities and spiritual assaults from the enemy. Peter wanted them to be encouraged and strengthened for the hope of the coming glory of Christ.
The promises of God's will will do for them four things: The God of all Grace will restore them perfect, establish, strengthen and settle them.
1) God Will Perfect You (Restore or Complete)
KJV "perfect" means "to make fully ready" or "to complete". Just as fisherman making fishing nets ready by mending them to be used. Saint Peter who fell and fail Jesus to deny Christ three times but was restored. But remember God is a God of all Grace. That means whatever grace you need in your life and problems God is there to help. God grace is boundless and He has large resources of grace ready to make you complete in Christ. God wants you to understand and live in that kind of grace.
After you have fallen a little while. That means to say you have fallen - we have all fallen - we fail - we can sinned - we blew it - we are weak but in our weakness God does not condemn us instead He reinforces us to be stronger and stronger. Grace of God leaves you strong and calm; your good works and effort rent you weak and powerless, frustrated and worry. Only through faith the grace of God works. Faith in the Word of Grace will build us stronger not weaker.
When I fall - God is a God of second chance. God will be gentle with me and not angry - for He will restores and take up my mistakes and failures and work together for good into His purposes and plans.
2. God Will Establish You
When our enemy attack us, yes our home, our marriage, our joy and our health, etc. People will shut us off or pass over us. There is pressure everywhere and should we compromise our faith or stand on? Should we deny Jesus as Peter did it? All forms of testing and temptations to give up at times. But God who creates the universe and earth will hold you up. The bible says, if the enemy comes in like a flood - God will raise up a standard against them. You don't have to do anything but believe (the gospel has the power to those who believe) in His Grace. His Grace will fight for you. Every time we fail just look up to His grace and He will lift you up and establishes you.
Isaiah 54:13 "And all they children (believers) shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace (blessings) of they children." vs. 14 says, "In righteousness shall you be established; you shall be far from oppression for you shall not fear and from terror; for it shall not come near you."
As you established yourself in your faith and righteousness - God says you shall be strong and blessings shall come upon you and your children. And terror and oppression from the enemy shall not even come near your tent.
3) God Will Strengthen You
How will God strengthen you? By His power. Power is out of His grace.
2 Timothy 2:1 "Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus". Confess that: "I am strong in the Grace of God". Paul didn't tell Timothy to be strong in himself; he told him to be strong in the grace of the Lord. Your strength is only in God. Your help is only in God's grace and nothing else. The scriptures say, "they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength" Here "renew" means "exchange". When you wait upon the Lord in faith you will exchange His strength with your weakness, sin, doubt, disappointment. Your disappointment will be God's appointment.
That is why when you come to the Holy Communion table every time, you exchange strength with Jesus, you exchange sickness with His health, you exchange your poverty with His riches, you exchange your sins with His righteousness. He was rich and he became poor (at the cross) so that we might be rich. An exchange for all His blessing at the cross. This is the New Covenant of Grace - an exchange for life and life more abundantly.
Let His Righteousness and Grace strengthens you.
Isaiah 52:1 says "Awake, awake; put on they strength O Zion (church); put on your beautiful garments." Your beautiful garments speak of Christ righteousness. When you put on you have activated Christ righteousness in you - you will put on His strength. Your garments are spotless, pure and holy.
4) Finally, God Will Settle You (Rest you)
This is the last of the four promises is that God will settle us. The word means "to be made to rest securely" like strong building on a sure foundation. Through a lot of circumstances the devil makes us uneasy and unsettle. But God wants you to stand. Paul says in 1 Peter 5:12 "I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying "that this is the true grace of God in which you stand."
God wants you to stand resting in His Grace. The strength we have is to rest in His Gracious Grace. His grace will perfect us in weakness and is sufficient for us for the day. Keep standing on that Marvelous Grace and it will last. Remember grace never strengthen you to sin and live immoral life. Grace is not a license for you to do wrong but power for you to do right.
I tell you grace is your birthright of every child of God. Your are born with it in Christ. It is like your birth mark. It cannot go away. God's grace will stick with you forever as your believe in Him. Grace cannot leave you alone. It will lift you up again and again. Many of us will say "Can God ever use me again?" Des He even want me?" Will things ever be the same again with us?" God will settle that for you because He loves You.
Finally, just run into His arms of grace. Don't run away from God's grace. You belong to the God of all grace. Run into His grace! Cast your care upon His grace! And Grace will restore you, establish you, strengthen you and settle you for His glory.
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