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We're gonna take a couple psalm requests.
For afternoon service. Oh, there's hands up. Sorry. NC 137 okay, and Miss cubic.
Lawrence would like 4b all right and Naomi 113 a. Okay 1 3. So 137 4b and 113 a. That's that Lawrence's first psalm requests, I think today or ever. Yeah, oh. Here we go. Well, just a remember reminder of announcements there.
We have the ladies fellowship this week at the cubics Wednesday 10 a .m. And then there's a youth night this Friday at The cubics house at 715. Oh, there's lots going on at the cubics place The hub of.
So that's it for announcements. I'd ask you to stand for silent prayer and as we prepare our hearts to hear.
From the Lord calls to worship here. The Lord calls to worship.
Ho everyone who thirsts. Come to the waters and you who have no money come by and eat. Yes, come by milk wine and milk without money without price. Why do you spend money for what is not bread and your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me and eat what is good and let your soul delight itself in abundance. Incline your ear and come to me Here and your soul shall live and I will make an everlasting covenant with you the sheer mercies of David.
Let's pray. Father we thank you today for the the beautiful invitation That you give to your people to come and to feast upon things that are free. Things that you have provided to us that we are in need of.
Father thank you today for the salvation that you offer to us through your son Jesus Christ. Thank you that that is of no cost to ourselves in one sense as Jesus suffered and died and Bore the punishment that our sins deserve.
Paying the price to reconcile us to you and Father at the same time it does cost us because Jesus said if we want to follow him we have to we have to give up our lives and father. We confess that that is often a very difficult endeavor for us to completely Sacrifice ourselves and our will to follow you but nevertheless father we we come confessing even that sin and come praying that you would work grace in us that we might Live unto you.
Thank you for the glorious hope that we have in your son Jesus Christ. Thank you that as we gather before you we have the hope of Being clothed in his righteousness. Father we come confessing that our our clothing is dirty and soiled father and that we are truly in need of the garments of Christ and so Lord clothed us with the robe of righteousness.
Give us your glory upon us father that we might come in and That we might be accepted and thank you for the confidence we have of that. So bless us now we pray through Jesus our old. Or sorry our opening psalm from the book of Psalms for singing is Psalm 22.
G.
Our Old Testament scripture reading this afternoon is taken from the book of Deuteronomy.
We'll be reading from chapter 28 from verse 1 through to 14. So if you wish to turn in your Bibles, you may once again reading from Deuteronomy chapter 28 and Then beginning in verse 1 through to 14. Here now the word of the Lord.
Now it shall come to pass if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God. To observe carefully all his commandments, which I command you today that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth and all these blessings shall come upon you and Overtake you because you obey the voice of the Lord your God.
Blessed shall you be in the city? Blessed shall you be in the country? Blessed shall be the fruit of your body the produce of your ground and The increase of your herds the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks.
Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in less and blessed shall you be when you go out? The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face.
They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. The Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouse and In all which you set your hand and that he will bless you in the land Which the Lord your God is giving you.
The Lord will establish you as a holy people to himself Just as he is sworn to you if you keep the commandments of the Lord Your God and walk in his ways then all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord and they shall be afraid of you.
And The Lord will grant you plenty of goods in the fruit of your body and in the increase of your livestock. And in the produce of your ground in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you.
The Lord will open to you his good treasure. The heavens to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations. But you shall not borrow and the Lord will make you the head and not the tail.
You shall be above only and not be beneath if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today and Are careful to observe them. You shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you to this day to the right or the left.
To go after other gods to serve them. So that ends reading God's Word from the book of Deuteronomy. So we're encouraged to consider God's promise of blessing. As his people Continue obeying him and worshiping him we're now going to sing Psalm 137 from the book of Psalms for singing which is the first congregational selection so Psalm.
137 in the book of Psalms for singing for B is Psalm 113 a 113 A. Ask you to stand now for prayer.
Let's pray. Indeed who is like you Lord God? There is no God like you. We pray that we would be those who are able to praise your great and holy and majestic name. Lord open our eyes. That we may see your glory.
Lord we who are in the church. If we do not see your glory, how will others possibly come to see your glory? We pray that you would help us to know you as the glorious majestic God that you are. That we would see that you're exalted over all things and that there is no one like you.
Well Lord open our eyes. We may see your mighty power. You're the one who spoke and the world came into being by the mere word of your power. You are the one who can speak and Satan will flee immediately you can speak the word and He will be cast into the lake of fire forever.
Oh Lord. There is no one who can stand against you. And we pray that seeing that we might praise you and that we might gain confidence. Oh Lord. That we might not be afraid and that we might know. That you do whatever you please in heaven and earth and that we do not need to be afraid.
Only of you do we need to fear. Only you we need to fear. And father we pray that we would recognize as well that there is no one like you and mercy and grace. That you are a God who welcomes those who repent who recognize that you are God.
Who come to you humbly bowed down. Asking you for mercy and forgiveness. That you freely give them. Well, Lord, how could it be that one that is so holy and so mighty is also one of tender compassion and mercy.
Well, Lord, we come to you with confidence because Not only are you mighty and you can do everything but you're also compassionate and you receive us even though we are sinners. And we praise you for the hope that that gives to us.
How great is your name Lord? We also recognize that you are a God of all wisdom and understanding. How great you are Lord in this regard. Our understanding is so small in Comparison to yours and yet we boast of of great things.
We learn of things and figure out how they work. Something that you made and we think that we have them mastered. You are the creator of all of these things. You're the designer. You're the one who established the heavens.
Lord how we praise you and how we honor your name. We pray O Lord that when it comes to wisdom that we would not look at how you're running the world and Take it upon us. To call you into question about what you're doing.
We remember when Job did that. And it did not go well he was ashamed afterward and he realized that he had to put his hand over his mouth and repent. That you were the one who even though you were doing very hard things to him Things that were inexplicable to him that he realized that He was not there Beside you to counsel you when you made the world and to tell you how it ought to be done and how this should be Laid out and how that should be measured.
Father help us to see how small we are and how small our wisdom and counsel is Compared to yours that we might embrace your counsel with gladness. Father you're also excellent and glorious in holiness.
You are the God before whom the angels testify. Seraphim cherubim. Holy. Holy. Holy is The Lord God Almighty the whole earth is full of his glory. Father we know little of holiness. We pray O Lord that you would help us to come to see more and more clearly what it is that you are a holy God and father we sometimes Because of our twisted nature and fallen nature we think holiness is something that is kind of an ugly thing and Indeed it is ugly if we Run across it and we're Contrary to holiness for your glorious truth and purity and holiness will consume us.
Consuming fire. But Lord if we come to you as those again who are humble and who are seeking you We can begin to see and understand your holiness is something that is very beautiful that it's a perfection.
That is something that is unshakable and unmovable. And father we pray that we would aspire to be holy as you are holy. For you have said that you will help us with that that you will work in us that you will change us.
You will give us your spirit your Holy Spirit In order that we might be holy. Oh Lord do that work that only you can do. Lord there are so many other ways that we could look at it's your grand and glorious person.
We ask you in these ways and in many others that you would indeed Show yourself to us that we might know you. We want that Lord so that we can walk with you in Worship and adoration and praise as we ought.
We also want to know that so that we can tell others of you and not distort you or not. Look at you in an idolatrous fashion that is twisted and perverted we want to see you as you are and make you known as you are and We pray that you would help us to do that Lord and give us boldness and courage.
Because of who you are to be able to proclaim without relenting Your glory and majesty your beauty and perfection and holiness your wisdom and power. Lord help us we pray with these things. Please Lord minister to us through your word.
Speak to us now as we turn to your word help us to receive the word with faith and with joy. And to serve you with that same joy and gladness. Father be with us in all of our trials and testings. Help us to be steadfast.
And help us to know that we can look to you to bring grace to us as we're going to see in our study today. How we pray these things in Jesus name? Amen. Please be seated. We're continuing in the shorter catechism today and We're going to look at the continue to look at the benefits that we are we have in Jesus Christ when we're in him.
And I want to do a review of them today by confessing the different questions that we've already done and related to this starting with question 32 rather than skipping over 33 34 and 35 will do them today.
Because these are aspects of grace that we do have and we're looking at the increase of grace today is the benefit That we'll be focusing on. So let's confess these together starting with question 32.
Which is what benefits do they that are effectually call partake of in this life? They that are effectually called do in this life partake of justification adoption and Sanctification and the several benefits which in this life do either a company or flow from them.
Question 33, what is justification? Justification is an act of God's free grace wherein he pardoneth all our sins and Accepted us as righteous in his sight only for the righteousness of Christ Imputed to us and received by faith alone.
Question 34 what is adoption? Adoption is an act of God's free grace. Whereby we are received into the number and have a right to all the privileges of the sons of God. Question 35 what is sanctification.
Sanctification is the work of God's free grace whereby we are Whole man after the image of God and are enabled more and more to die unto sin and to live unto righteousness. Question 36. What are the benefits which in this life do a company or flow from?
Justification adoption and sanctification. The benefits which in this life do a company or flow from. Justification adoption and sanctification are assurance of God's love peace of conscience joy and the Holy Ghost increase of grace and perseverance therein to the end.
So so far we have looked at the first three of these Additional benefits that accompany or flow from justification adoption and sanctification. Today we're going to look at the fourth one, which is called increase of grace.
For our scripture reading associated with this. I've chosen a reading from John's Gospel chapter 1 and We'll do the first 18 verses. So listen now as I read to you from God's holy and infallible Word John 1 1 in the beginning was the word and the word was with God.
And the word was God was God. He was in the beginning with God all things were made through him and without him nothing was made. That was made in him was life and the life was the light of men and The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it.
There was a man sent from God whose name was John. This man came for a witness to bear witness of the light that all through him might believe. He was not that light but was sent to bear witness of that light.
That was the true light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world and the world was made through him and the world did not know him. He came to his own and his own did not receive him.
But as many as received him to them he gave the right to become the children of God. To those who believe in his name who are born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God and The word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory.
The glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth. John bore witness of him and cried out saying This was he of whom I said he who comes after me is preferred before me for he was before me 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. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father.
He has declared him. May the Lord add his blessing to the reading of his holy and infallible word. I have no intention of expounding this whole portion that we have read today. But did you notice in particular what it says about grace?
Because that is our subject today. We meet the word grace for the first time at verse 14. Where we're told that Jesus Christ was full of grace and truth. We are told that we the church saw the glory of this one who is the only begotten Son of God when he became flesh and What what what was that glory that we saw?
Well, it was that he was full of grace and truth that is the most glorious thing about our Lord Jesus Christ that stood out about him in terms of our Viewing of him when he came into this world. That was what was especially manifested.
The marvelous thing about this grace that he was so full of is that we who are redeemed Have received that grace and that we keep on receiving it. It's not like it was only here and available when he was here.
It's something that we keep on receiving and keep on beholding. It's what it says in verse 16 John says. Writing after Jesus was gone back into glory and of his fullness. We have all received and grace for grace.
This grace that Jesus brought to us. He keeps on giving of that grace more and more and more of it to us and This is where I want to begin that our God marvelously gives grace to those that he redeems.
John tells us here that Christ lavishes it upon us. He was full of grace verse 14 and we have received his fullness. So there's a bounty here involved. That's what verse 16 says that you of his fullness.
We have received these words grace for grace. Speak of what the Catechism refers to as the increase of grace it could be translated Grace after grace or grace on top of grace or grace upon grace. In other words the thing that is called grace that Jesus was so full of is Like a river that keeps on coming and keeps on coming and there's more and more and more and it never is Exhausted.
That's the way we need to see it one grace after another grace is lavished on us as his people Keeps coming. John explains in verse 17 that Moses gave us the law. What did the law do? It told us what is required of us to be God's people.
It gave us the moral law and it declared to us. Also the need for blood atonement and For a righteous substitute in our behalf the offerings and things that God gave them they all testified to what was required.
So Moses was the lawgiver. But as clear as the law was it could not provide The things that were required it could only tell us what was required and set them forth to us in pictures and shadows. It did not provide what we need to be God's people.
No, the law Was given by Moses but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ and If we are his we have received his fullness fullness of that grace. When the Son of God came into the world he went to the cross and He brought this grace that we so desperately need to us.
He distributes it to each one of us personally by the working of the Holy Spirit kind of related to what we looked at this morning. The grace is brought into the world by him and then it is brought to each one of God's elect people.
Individually grace upon grace one gift after another by the working of his spirit Within us so that we can be very thankful for this. But just what is this grace? That is brought to us. What is it? Well God's grace.
Grace is God's free provision of all that we need in Order to be his people and to continue as his people all that we need. All that is needed for a once ruined people to be a people who pleases him. We who are sinners are given all that we need to live happily with God forever.
This grace is a combination of God's favor and God's help. Now think about how those two things go together. Take Noah. God was going to judge the world with the flood but Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.
God was displeased with the world and Noah found favor and That grace that favor then provided his salvation. We are saved by grace that is how God provides for us. So Jesus brings to us everything that we need.
We who are cut off by sin need to please God. He brings everything. Forgiveness and new life. He does it all the law told us what was needed with shadows and things and Jesus brought us what we needed.
Grace and truth and he gives it to us if we're his people. Grace is completely undeserved. That's what the word entails in Romans 11 6. Paul explains that if our salvation is by grace. Then it is no longer of works.
Otherwise grace is no longer grace if you work for it, then you're getting paid. It's a reward. The whole point is that Grace is of grace. Is that God brought it to us? Freely when we could not purchase it or we could not earn it or we could not merit it or we could not achieve it.
He brought it by his spirit. It is not what we deserve. It is not what we do, but what he does that saves us. So grace is what you desperately need. You could not provide a sacrifice for your sin. You could not provide.
What was required to change your simple heart? Only Jesus can do that only Jesus working also by his spirit. So we can't please God without grace. So grace is Jesus freely bringing to us everything we need in order to please God and If you're one of God's elect people.
This grace is freely given to you throughout your whole life. Grace upon grace upon grace upon grace. We can identify four stages in which grace flows to the elect. There is first what we call common grace.
That enables all people to live on the earth since the fall it is only because of grace that death is postponed and that God told Eve that Though with sorrow and trouble that she would still bring forth children and Adam that though with much affliction and sweat and grief that he would still be able to bring forth food from the earth that was needed for survival.
If Christ had not been coming God would have wiped Adam and Eve out immediately. But because of his purpose of grace in Christ He sustains the earth in order to Bring forth his people that he will bring forth to fill his church.
So the whole population is sustained for the sake of Christ and his church. This is what we call common grace, but God's grace comes even more to us in the next stage. Secondly God's grace comes to us in our effectual calling.
Do you remember what that is? We looked at effectual calling a while back is the work of God's Holy Spirit. When he shows us and convinces us of our sin and our need for Christ he shows us the sufficiency of Christ to meet that need and his work of salvation and the work that he does and then he causes us to to turn to him so that we desire to to have the blessing that he brought and we look to him for it and We trust in him we Receive and rest upon him alone for our salvation as our catechism would put it if you are elect.
This grace of effectual calling was at work in you all through your life preparing you for conversion. Jesus is the one that brought the Spirit to you and then worked in you to Open your eyes to who he is to your need of salvation and all of these things.
And he did it through many you if you look back on your life. If you were converted later in life, you can look back and see the work that God had done along the way and in bringing that about and then even more grace comes in the third stage in our conversion when we repent and believe as Soon as we embrace Jesus Christ with believing faith.
We are immediately forgiven and Completely justified by his righteousness immediately, we're sealed with the Holy Spirit and Who gives us new life? We're forgiven by grace. We're made alive by grace. But the Lord does not just leave us then with that.
Whatever grace we have at conversion in The fourth stage he continues to give us more and more grace. Grace upon grace. That's what John is talking about grace like a ever-flowing river to constantly supply us with what we need to please God.
The help that we need to do his will for this reason almost all the epistles written to God's people begin with the words such as grace and peace be multiplied to you through Jesus Christ and We have benedictions like the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all if you are in Christ.
Grace is something that is not static. It's something that keeps on coming at you your whole life long as James reminds us in chapter 4. He gives more grace. Just a simple little phrase. It's packed of meaning.
He gives more and more and more and more grace. That brings us to our next point you need fresh and constant supplies of grace to go on for God. You need to grow in grace. You need grace itself to grow your life in Jesus Christ is a living thing and it should never be stagnant.
Living things are growing things. We grow by grace. Jesus pours out his grace on us and we grow. What are some of the ways that you need to for grace to grow up in you. First you need grace to grow in knowing God.
Jesus said this is eternal life that they may know the Father and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. So I would ask you do you know God as you ought? That's something he said. Oh, yeah, I know God quite well enough now.
Do you know his love as you ought you know his wisdom? Do you know his power? Do you know his mercy his justice his holiness his wrath his judgment you filled with all the knowledge that you need of that.
Do you delight in his glorious ways as you should and who he is and what he has done? Is there a full grasp of all that? Of course you do not. But I have very good news for you. God's grace is working in you to help you grow in your relationship with God and in your knowledge of him.
He is eager to give you more grace for that purpose. Thus Paul prays for the Ephesians in 117 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the father of glory may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation and the knowledge Of him.
I love there's several passages in Ephesians like that. I love those passages about growing and the knowledge of God is by his grace that we do that. Second you need grace to grow in the fruit of the Spirit.
I Ask you here. Do you love God and your brothers and sisters in Christ as you ought? Do you have the fullness of joy of the Holy Spirit that we spoke about last week? Do you have all the patience that you need?
What about holiness? What about obedience? What about gentleness? Do you have all of those fruits of the Spirit in full measure? The good news is that you can look to God's grace to work in you to bring you those fruits as well.
The fruits of the Spirit he gives you this grace when Paul speaks of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5. His whole point is that the fruit does not come by works. But it comes by grace by faith. That's what he's telling the Galatians because they've gotten mixed up about grace and works in Galatians 3 3.
He says are you so foolish you Galatians? Have you begun in the Spirit and are now being made perfect or complete by the flesh? So did you start out doing this by grace? You came to God and you're saved by grace and now you're gonna go on by by making this all happen by your own effort.
The third thing that you you need grace to grow in your service and usefulness to others. Don't you want to be more useful to other Christians as a Christian? Do you of course you do you want to be a blessing to your family?
To other believers you want to have a part in advancing Christ's kingdom in the world. Well, let me tell you what a man who served more than anyone else had to say about service. 1st Corinthians 15 10.
But by the grace of God, he said I am what I am and his grace toward me was not in vain. But I labored more abundantly than they all. Yet not I but the grace of God which was with me. So you see that you're not given grace to be saved and then left to go at it on your own.
No, you are given more grace and That you might grow in knowledge and the fruits of the Spirit and in Christian service. But that is not all that God gives you more grace for. You also need grace to face daily challenges of living for Christ.
Grace for each trial and test that comes along. Our Lord gives you grace to stand in the day of temptation. Ephesians 6 Speaks of the evil day that comes when the devil and the rulers of darkness of this age Come against you with all of their craftiness and deceit.
They try to deceive you and they try to lead you off to other things. It is the day when you feel the pull of sin in any different way. You can feel that when it is a great struggle for you to do the will of God when you want to complain or when you want to unleash your anger or When you want to let go of your lusts and let them have free reign.
Those are the days of evil and temptation and those are days when you need the grace of God. You don't need more of your own strength and effort. You need the grace of God. He does strengthen you but you need to learn to turn to him.
This is grace. There is grace for such days. You're instructed to be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. To put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
How kind God is to give us this grace? How faithful he is in giving it? He also gives you grace to enable you to escape temptation that has already got hold of you. When you have yielded to temptation and you are caught in the grip of sin.
And you're so helpless as we looked at David under the iron jaws of sin when he kept going on and on into deeper. Depths of sin when it has you when it's dragging you away from the Lord. There is grace from God to escape first.
Corinthians 10 13 Says that no temptation has overtaken you except as is common to man. God is faithful and will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you're able but with the temptation Will also provide make the way of escape that you may be able to bear it.
You could never say that you cannot escape from your sin, whatever it is. God has grace to deliver you. Thirdly, he gives you grace to hold you up when you are weary. I spoke to a man that was a good friend of mine a number of years ago.
And I heard that he was giving up on his marriage. I had been away at seminary and when I came back Found out he was giving up on his marriage, even though he had no legitimate grounds for divorce. He said it was too hard.
He did not want to spend the rest of his life Slugging it out with his wife. He was going to Enjoy an affair with another woman. He was weary. I Have talked to many a minister who felt like throwing in the towel in their ministry.
They're weary and worn like Moses in the wilderness. In writing to the Corinthians Paul explained how he himself had been brought to the breaking point but how God had delivered him by grace and Second Corinthians 1 8 through 10.
For we do not want you to be ignorant brethren of our trouble which came to us in Asia. That we were burdened beyond measure above strength so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves.
But in God who raises the dead. Who delivered us from so great a death and does deliver us in whom we trust that he will still deliver us. The Lord often puts us in temptations. Deliberately where we need his grace and where we cannot deal with the situation.
Apart from his grace in our own strength. He does that to teach us to rely on his grace. The grace is not just for great apostles like Paul. It is for you when you're weary of doing whatever God has given you to do.
It might be shepherding your children that you're weary of it might be going to work tomorrow or Having problems at work or it might be washing dishes that you don't want to wash when you're tired. It might be doing your homework at school.
God has grace for the weary so that you can do your work with joy even the mundane things. Everything is for his glory and he has grace for his people. If we would receive of this bountiful storehouse of God's grace.
It would change and transform our whole world if God's people would do that. God's grace for the weary so that you can do what he calls you to do. He also gives you grace for settling quarrels. James talks about this grace in chapter four of his epistle in short.
He explains that wars and fights among us. Come when we have our own agenda and we refuse to let go of it basically when we have things that that we want to have. Like a spouse to treat us our spouse to treat us in a certain way, you know.
We want other people you should treat me like this. You should be doing this for me, or we're thinking that maybe we don't even say it. And we demand this instead of looking to please God in that relationship.
James calls it spiritual adultery. He then said but God gives it was then that he said but God gives more grace. I quoted that out of context earlier. Indeed he does he gives grace to turn from your pride that thinks what you want is the most important thing.
Instead of looking to God in that time to fill you with his grace. So that you can bear patiently when you're not getting what you want. God reveals his glory to you so that his glory will delight you when you're not delighted with whatever it is that you are wanting to be delighted in and.
Then you at least on your part can stop contributing to the quarrel. Because that's what happens, you know we say I want I Wanted you to do this and you didn't do it. Another person says why couldn't do that because I had to do this and you should Have done this for me and it goes back and forth.
That's how quarrels come and instead you say I have what I need. From the Lord. It doesn't mean that we never call people out on things that they need to do. But anyway, that's a whole nother sermon. Fifth he gives you grace to honor him in persecution.
The greatest comfort when you see persecution coming is not that God is able to prevent it. Though that is true or that he might prevent it. That also is true. The great comfort is that he will pour grace on you so that you can glorify Him in the way that you respond to that persecution so that you can be patient so that you can be bold.
So that you can love your enemies so that you can keep on for God when it is difficult. And you want to kind of like slacken off so that you won't be persecuted as much the prayer of Acts 429 that the persecuted church prayed is a model for us and that prayer was not That the persecution would stop but rather they said now Lord.
Look on their threats and grant your servants that with boldness. They talk about themselves we may speak your word and the outcome was it in verse 31. The place where they were assembled together was shaken and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
They received in other words More grace to meet the eventuality that had come upon them the challenge that had come upon them in that persecution. Six his grace. He gives grace for you when you are sick.
The Apostle Paul talks about what he calls a thorn in the flesh that he prayed that it might be removed. But instead the Lord told him that his grace would be sufficient for him to bear it. 2nd Corinthians 12 8 and 9 Paul says concerning this thing.
I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me and he said to me My grace is sufficient for you for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Therefore Paul says most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
The grace of God is in fact such a wonderful thing to receive that Paul goes on to say in verse 10. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities and Reproaches and needs and persecutions and distresses for Christ's sake for when I am weak then I am strong.
The grace of God is so powerful and so effective that you actually that you can actually be Excited when you see trouble coming because when trouble comes you can look to God that grace may come with it.
And when grace comes you will be stronger than ever. God has grace for you Christian. It's not for other people. It's for you as a believer. Do not despair his grace is sufficient. It is not so much sent to stop hard things, but to help you.
Please God when hard things come. Indeed, he will even give you grace for facing death when it approaches. Psalm 23 reminds you verse 4. Yay, though. I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. I will fear no evil for you are with me your rod and your staff.
They comfort me. Do you see then what you have to look forward to all your life long? The increase of grace. There will be more grace for you from your heavenly father more and more and more and more.
Grace to help you grow and grace to help you thrive in the struggles of life. Grace begins to flow to us from our mother's womb and If we are God's elect it keeps on coming to us all through our lives all through eternity.
There is more and more grace. There is a constant increase of grace. So, how does God bring this grace to you? Well, we saw in John 1 that Jesus brought grace to us in history when he came in the flesh and We have seen that.
He also brings it to us individually kind of Related to again what I talked about this morning of his fullness fullness. We have all received and grace upon grace. So, how does he bring it to us as in the individual ways that I have described?
Well first understand that he gives it to us freely. He lavishes it upon us when we have not sought for it or even asked for it. In Romans 10 20 Paul speaks about the calling of the Gentiles in this way.
He says. But Isaiah is very bold and says. I was found by those who did not seek me. I was made manifest to those who did not ask for me. I Mentioned before that if you are elect that even from childhood the Lord is often beginning his work to draw us into himself.
Jesus makes it clear that nobody comes unless the father draws him. So you covenant children who have served the Lord for as long as you can remember need to know. That the reason you have served him for as long as you can remember is all on account of his grace.
His grace met you At a very early time in your life and what a blessing that is. Salvation is by grace through faith. It's not of ourselves. It's not your own goodness. It is a gift of God not of works lest anyone should boast.
This is true of all who believe who come to believe in Jesus Christ at whatever age. Now someone will object here and say. But I was the one who sought him. I cried and cried and I prayed and prayed to God and it was a long time before he heard me and Revealed himself to save me.
I cried long and hard and finally he answered. Does the scripture not speak of those that do that that people that cry out to God and they're not heard and they cry out. More it does indeed. Of course.
There are many who seek God. But if God had not stirred them by his grace Then they would never have sought him. So you see there is a grace that causes you to seek him and that grace may prevail for a long time and be very Strong before he then responds to that grace.
That that those that seeking and brings the blessing that you're seeking. This is why Jesus could say to all of his disciples. I Chose you you did not choose me, but I chose you. I was the one that came to you and that's why you now have come to me.
But this is not the end of the story of how grace comes to us. There is a dynamic interaction with God in receiving of his grace. The normal way is that God operates before giving us his grace in the way I described a minute ago to stir up to stir you up to seek his grace that Stirring of his grace is to is is a the preliminary a preliminary kind of a grace.
But this there is this principle that we must be humble to receive the grace of God. The Bible plainly says that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. James 4 6. 1 Peter 5 5 do you know why God will not give grace to a proud person.
A Proud person is a person who supposes that he and his own desires are more important than God and God's will. So whatever he brings to God is the most important thing. Such a person may pray to God.
But God will not hear him because he prays to advance his own purposes instead of to honor God. What would happen if God answered the prayers of a person like that all the time? That person will become more proud more and more proud more and more displeasing to God.
God resists such a person. A humble person is one who realizes that his very problem is his own sinful desires and ways. He realizes that he needs grace to please God he needs forgiveness and he needs daily help to do what God commands.
That is a person who is longing not just for answered prayer of whatever kind. But for what we have defined as grace here. He does not merely want to be spared from trouble. But he wants God to give him grace to honor God in trouble whether in trouble or not.
Now we can pray for God to take things away that are hard but our Foundational prayer should be for grace. Whether there they remain or whether they don't God gives grace to that kind of person. Humility is a foundational grace to receiving more grace.
Once you have come to Christ you have an underlying humility. You still have plenty of pride in you many a time. You still make your own desires number one. Many a time you still forget that you need God's help.
Whenever that happens God and fatherly love will resist you. Until you repent because he loves you. Then he will give you his grace. Of course in actuality the resisting of you in this case is a gracious act of God Itself to bring you to repent.
So really you're getting grace. Even though to you it does not seem like grace because he's resisting you as far as you're concerned in order to graciously Break you and bring you back to him to humble you.
So you see that God brings his grace to us by first making us humble. That is one part of the dynamic and how he does it, but there's a second part of the dynamic. Second God delivers his grace to us through what we call the means of grace.
The means of grace or the ordinances that he has given us things that he has given us to do. That impart or that bring grace to us from that God uses to bring his grace to us I should say through which we may obtain grace now.
We're going to study about these means of grace a whole lot more in the future. We're going to study about them in detail. In fact when we get down the road in the Catechism to question 88. Go all the way from question 88 to question 107 is about the means of grace.
But today we're going to just look at them briefly. The first one means of grace is his word. He uses his word to bring grace to us. 2nd Timothy 3 16 and 17 Spall Paul speaks of how useful God's word is to us and helping us to please God.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine. It tells us about what God has done who God is doctrine teaching. For reproof it shows us what is wrong with us for correction.
It shows us how to change. For instruction and righteousness it instructs us how to live a life that pleases God. Verse 17 that the man of God may be complete thoroughly equipped for every good work. That means that it gives the church everything that we need to know in order to please God.
So you see from this that the scriptures are means a means of grace. And Reading of the scripture and preaching of the word or ordinances that God uses to bring grace to his people. When you come humbly to the Word of God.
Not just as a mirror ritual. But as one hungering and searching and looking for the grace of God to come to you to strengthen you and help you. Then he will be pleased to visit you. That way you will find grace grace that enables you to please him.
The word comes in various ways that he has appointed. Besides the word. The sacraments are means of grace in baptism. The Lord shows us plainly that he is the one who washes away our sins. We looked at that this morning that he He gives us the washing that we need through Christ and his Holy Spirit.
Peter speaks of baptism as. Not the removal of the filth of the flesh. Not a washing of your body that's that's required. But the answer of a good conscience toward God. In other words being pardoned and cleansed by Jesus Christ.
We know and are able we know him and are able to serve him all our life wrong. We are to improve our baptism to recognize that we have been put into God's hands to be washed. Okay, we have come to Jesus Christ to be watched baptism.
We were there to be washed by him so that we look to him in faith to do what his spirit Alone can do what is represented in baptism. He and his spirit the Lord's Supper our Lord testifies. Especially about what we're talking about here today the increase of grace in our lives through the symbolic elements of bread and wine.
Christ presents himself as crucified to us for our spiritual nourishment and growth and grace. So Paul reminds us in 1st Corinthians 10 16 that we come to feed upon him the couple blessing which we bless.
Is it not the communion of the blood of Christ the bread which we break? Is it not the communion of the body of Christ when we partake of the outward elements? We look for a true communion with Christ to strengthen us.
By grace, he strengthens us. And then there is prayer as a means of grace. To put quite simply the scripture says whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. That is what Christians do. We see our need of God's help and we pray.
But again, don't just pray for a raise or pray for all those things that any anyone would want. You can pray for those things and you should pray for those things but pray most of all. That you'll be able to do all those things we talked about that we need grace for to know God to serve God.
To love God to deal with trials all of those things. Seeking you will find knock and it will be open to you come to God in prayer. Many times God makes us wait for answer to our prayers. Even prayers that are rightly prayed for things agreeable to his will.
He does this in order that we might know. More clearly and fully that is only by his grace that we're saved. But truly it is his delight to answer our prayers. He does it in the best way that he can. He gives us many commands invitations promises and examples.
About prayer to encourage us and call us to pray if grace is important to us. Then we will pray. We will pray for the increase of grace. So you see that God has us? Interact with him in order to receive grace.
We are to humble ourselves and then we're to use the means of grace. That's the dynamic. Humble yourself and then use the means of grace the word sacraments and prayer. What does this mean then for you?
Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. Acknowledge your need of him. Then you will then then make diligent use of the means of grace looking to him to do what's pleasing. He has an inexhaustible supply of grace for you in Christ.
There's a whole lot more grace for you to obtain than you have yet obtained. Grace is like this beautiful river that flows into your life with more and more grace. That bursts forth with joy and love for God as it fills you up.
Don't act as if you got all the grace that you're going to get at conversion. Don't live in the wilderness of this world without the streams of living water. You'll dry up in the wastelands of this world.
There is a river that makes glad the city of our God. Draw from the wells of salvation and drink from those wells of salvation. Drink deeply the Bible says and be filled. Open your mouth wide and God will fill it.
Keep on drinking all of your life. Jesus has the water of life. Drink and thirst no more grace upon grace. Grace upon grace. That's what you have. Christian is promised to you from your God, please stand and let's pray.
Oh Lord our God. We thank you for the rich supply of grace. That you give to your people. That there is an increase of grace. There is grace upon grace and we pray O Lord that you would be pleased to lavish this grace upon us.
That we might grow in grace. That we might grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That by grace we might become more like him. That by grace We might be able to love others and to serve them according to your calling.
That by grace we might be able to stand in the day of temptation and that we might be able to To be delivered when we have been entrapped by some sin. Oh Lord, we thank you that grace is such a wonderful thing a thing to give us hope and Encouragement.
We pray O Lord. Do not turn a blind ear to us. But hear us and do not hide yourself from us O Lord, but answer us as we would cry out to you. Thank you for the hope that we have in our Lord and Savior risen and reigning.
It is in his name we pray. Amen. Let's sing a song about advancing by God's grace. Psalm 84 B. Talks about how wonderful it is to be in God's house. And then it talks about us advancing from strength to strength in the second part of the psalm that we're singing.
84 B. Blesses. He places all his trusts in thee. Receive the blessing of our great God who has so much grace to give to his people the grace of the Lord Jesus and The love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Amen.