Gazing into the Riches of God’s Grace

As we gaze into the riches of God’s grace in the Lord Jesus Christ, there are simply not enough superlatives to describe the wonders of all He has given us!  These riches are all the more amazing in view of our helpless and hopeless sinful condition (see Eph. 2:1-3; Titus 3:3).  The Apostle Paul, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, couldn’t stop talking about the wealth of these riches!

 

  • “Oh the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable are his judgments and inscrutable his ways!” (Rom. 11:33)
  • “…according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us…” (Eph. 1:7-8)
  • “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us…” (Eph. 2:4)
  • “…so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Eph. 2:7)
  • “…to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ…” (Eph. 3:8)
  • “…to comprehend what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge…” (Eph. 3:18-19)
  • “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think…” (Eph. 3:20)

 

When Paul speaks descriptively of these riches in Titus 3:4-7, his intent is to spur believers on in living lives that overflow with good deeds.  In possessing, tasting, and growing in the knowledge of these riches by faith, believers are to eagerly obey God and zealously do good to others for His glory.

 

Beloved, living a godly life that abounds with good deeds involves effort and intentionality on our part.  But it should be effort motivated by deep joy, gratitude, and humility in view of all the Father has lavished upon us in Christ.  Hence our need is not just to try harder, but to gaze deeper upon all the riches of God’s grace.  Martin Luther expresses this well in his book The Freedom of a Christian:

 

“Although I am an unworthy and condemned man, my God has given me in Christ all the riches of righteousness and salvation without any merit on my part, out of pure, free mercy, so that from now on I need nothing except faith which believes that it is true.  Why should I not therefore freely, joyfully, with all my heart, and with an eager will do all things which I know are pleasing and acceptable to such a Father who has overwhelmed me with his inestimable riches?  I will therefore give myself as a Christ to my neighbor, just as Christ offered himself to me; I will do nothing in this life except what I see is necessary, profitable, and salutary to my neighbor, since through faith I have an abundance of all good things in Christ.”  (quoted by Matt Perman in What’s Best Next, Zondervan: 2014, pg. 110)

 

Amen!  What a joy to gaze, grow, and give together with you!

 

Greg

Resurrection and Godly Living

The assurance of Christ’s resurrection is likewise the assurance that believers will be raised with Him.  This is the heart of Paul’s exhortation in 1 Corinthians 15.  And this is no small matter, as Paul spends much time explaining the certainty and nature of believers’ resurrection in Christ.

There is great urgency and concern driving all that Paul expresses.  Many of the Corinthian believers were intoxicated with the false idea that there was no resurrection.  Such thinking destroys all motivation for godly living in an ungodly world – why worry about obedience if everything simply ends when you die?  You can almost imagine Paul jumping out of his skin when he declares,

“If the dead are not raised, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’ Do not be deceived: Bad company ruins good morals.’ Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.”  (1 Cor. 15:32-34)

Beloved, God has made us and saved us to live eternally.  We will live beyond the grave, as Christ has forever taken away the sting of death.  May we be increasingly confident in this great eternal hope, and may we persevere in faith and submission to Him day by day.

“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”  (1 Cor. 15:58)

Because He lives, and is returning,
Greg

The Good Works of God’s Grace

One of the most central truths in the Christian life, and likewise one of the most frequently misunderstood, is the truth of God’s grace.  Many misconceptions of grace have been proffered throughout church history, ranging from the weak and incomplete (God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense), to the downright false and heretical (“Hey, let’s keep sinning so that grace may abound!” – see Rom. 5:18-6:14).

 

Confusion about God’s grace inevitably leads to confusion about the place of obedience and good works in the lives of believers.  Countless individuals, families, and whole churches, have been deeply troubled and turned upside-down in spiritual fruitfulness and witness, all because of errors regarding the nature of God’s grace in Jesus Christ (Titus 1:10-11).  This is the very context in which Paul is writing Titus, that he might promote spiritual health and stability among churches on the island of Crete (Titus 1:5).  And Paul makes clear that the needed godly leadership in churches, and godly lifestyles among the saints, flows from a clear, robust understanding and application of God’s grace in Jesus Christ.

 

It is the fullness and richness of this grace that we considered together this past Lord’s Day, from Titus 2:11-14.  In these four short verses, Paul vividly describes the presence, power, and purpose of God’s grace.  He makes abundantly clear that God’s grace is centered in the person and work of Jesus Christ.  He likewise makes clear that the good work of God’s grace in His people produces the good works of God’s grace through His people.  Specific, practical, daily godliness!

 

Beloved, these truths are so essential and foundational to growth in godliness, I would encourage you to memorize Titus 2:11-14 – perhaps with a friend and/or family member.  And pray that God would give you grace to understand and live in light of the riches of His grace!  As you do, keep singing, to yourself and others, about God’s rich and free Grace Unmeasured.

 

Grace upon grace!

Greg

Where the Rubber Meets the Road

In all of our corporate gatherings on the Lord’s Days this past month (Equipping Hour, Corporate Worship, and our Evening Gathering), we’ve been focusing on God’s mission in Jesus Christ, and what this means for us as His people.  We’ve seen that the Father’s eternal purpose is to glorify Himself in His Son, in His people, through the power of His Holy Spirit.

 

We’ve likewise seen that this eternal purpose directly relates to God’s good, wise, and authoritative design for the local church.  The local church is where “the rubber meets the road” as we learn to walk together in God’s grace, helping one another grow in the particular roles, responsibilities, and relationships He has called us to.  These truths are clearly revealed in Paul’s letter to Titus, and many other places throughout the New Testament.  It is in and through our corporate life together that God’s designs to bear witness of Jesus Christ to the world around us.  Jonathan Leeman helpfully summarizes the significance of these matters:

 

“In other words, the witness of the church does not merely consist in the fact that it goes; it consists in the fact that it has a distinct corporate life.  Its witness consists in the fact that it’s distinct in holiness, love, and unity.  So Jesus promises, ‘By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another’ (Jn. 13:34,35).  The church’s internal work of holiness and love amongst its members is inextricably tied to its outward work of witness.  We must display Christ in our corporate life in order to display Christ in our individual lives.”  (Jonathan Leeman, The Church and the Surprising Offense of God’s Love, Wheaton: Crossway, 2010, p. 260.)

 

Beloved, what great privileges and responsibilities God has called us to in Christ, even as we grow together as His people, in accordance with His word.  May the Lord help all of us to be encouraged and strengthened in submitting to His purposes for us, looking to His word together, and praying for one another to this great end (Eph. 6:18).

 

Because He lives, and is returning,

Greg