Grace Exemplified/It's Done In Faith
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Last Sunday we spoke to you about grace being exemplified in our lives. We show forth grace (unmerited favor) to others because God has shown grace to us.
Again, or text finds us at the scriptures that is found in the book of Luke 6:35-36 verses:
But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.
The greatest commandment that is given in scripture is to love.
Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
We know that verses 36-37 is pretty much self explanatory, although this statement by Jesus is a very deep statement (we won’t exegesis this scripture today). This commandment is the greatest commandment; that we are to love the LORD God with all of our heart, with all of our soul, and with all of our mind.
Jesus says the second is like the first or this next commandment is equally important and that command is to love your neighbor as thyself. Again, another self-explanatory statement that is not too deep for us to understand. We treat people as we would want people to treat us. We love people like we love ourselves. All of the law and the writing of the prophets were based upon this two principles:
Throughout the Old Testament, not only do we see the prophets prophesying about the coming of the Messiah, many times they prophesied about the state of Israel. One reoccurring theme that we see throughout the Old Testament scriptures is that the Israelites relationship with God and their relationship with others were in question. I strongly believe this was what Jesus was referring to when He said “On these two commandments hang all of the law and the prophets”.
It was so bad in the Old Testament that Isaiah wrote:
None sues or calls in righteousness [but for the sake of doing injury to others—to take some undue advantage]; no one goes to law honestly and pleads [his case] in truth; they trust in emptiness, worthlessness and futility, and speaking lies! They conceive mischief and bring forth evil!
They were living in a time in which people wanted to take people to court just so they could injure them or to take advantage of others. Here is what the LORD wants, he wants you to think about how you would want to be treated and treat people that way. You wouldn’t want no one to deliberately hurt you, so you shouldn’t do that to others. You would not want someone to take advantage of you, so you should not take advantage of others. There are a whole lot of other thoughts and actions that we could plug in there, the fact of the matter is that the LORD commands us to love others as we would love ourselves.
Power thought: You cannot truly love others if you don’t love yourself. When you have bad thoughts running through your mind about yourself, then it’s going to be hard to love others.
We need to learn how to see ourselves the way that God sees us. No we are not perfect, yes from time to time we make mistakes, yet the Lord is patient with us and the LORD loves us and the LORD isn’t so much interested with where we may currently be but where we are going and the thoughts and the plans He has for us:
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
And the law of reciprocation according to God says that even though our enemies may come against us, even though they may hate us, even though they may do things to hurt us or sabotage us we should want to see the peace of God in their lives, not evil, they may think evil towards us but we should think and desire good towards them!
Well preacher, I can not do that.....and I have to agree with you no you can’t do that. You cannot will this on your own, you can’t just go out immediately and start doing this of your own mental and physical abilities......YOUR HEART HAS TO BE CHANGED!
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
RENEW!
When you renew something it has to be stripped down it has to be washed, then it has to be built back up. It is the word of God that strips us down and sometimes when the word doesn’t work God will send a trial our way to strip us down. The word of God and the Spirit of God will cleanse you, it will take away what needs to be taken away, it will purge you of what needs to be purged, then it is the word of God that will build you back up! SOMEBODY SAY RENEW! Renew me, purge me, make me right in your sight LORD!
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
The world’s way is to handle your problems though the motions of the flesh. To be hostile to those who are hostile to us, wrong those who wrong us, to take advantage of those who take advantage of us. But the word says “be not conformed to this world” don’t act like them, do not adopted their culture, their customs and their mannerisms, instead be TRANSFORMED! BE CHANGED.....metamorphosis.......change to what? The image of Christ.....a disciple of Christ......the way of Christ. How can I do that, how can I change, how do we change? By the renewing of your mind! By the renovation of your mind! How is my mind renewed?
Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
YOU CANNOT LOVE YOUR ENEMIES, YOU CANNOT BE GOOD TO THEM, YOU CANNOT LEND TO THEM UNTIL YOUR MIND HAS TRULY BEEN RENEWED! You mind needs a bath, it needs to soak in the word of God, it needs to soak in the presence of the LORD, it needs to be bathed in the HOLY GHOST.....I need everyone to lift your hands and shout “LORD RENEW MY MIND”!!! Paul say “That you may prove (know) what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God”.
Close:
Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
(The Rev Up)
Peter, reaches back and grabs what the LORD had taught him on the mount and what the LORD had taught him in the plains and says “don’t return evil for evil or insult for insult (scolding, tongue-lashing, berating)......I feel like someone right there need to say “LORD HELP ME”, but on the contrary, blessing.....bless them, pray for their welfare, pray for their happiness, pray for their protection, have pity on them and love them.....WHY!? Because the LORD had mercy on you, the LORD had pity on you and didn’t give you what you deserved.....so you ought to reciprocate the blessings of God in your life to others.
You ought to do this because you have been called......You didn’t deserve to be called, but the LORD called you, you didn’t deserve to be saved but the LORD saved you, you didn’t deserve to be blessed but the LORD blessed you. God called you to inherit a blessing.....you need to know and realize that there is a blessing involved in doing the will of God. When you do what God tells you to do, when you do it the Bibleway, God will make you an heir of blessings, God will bring you welfare, God will bring you happiness, God will bring you protection.
If you want to enjoy life and see good days (verse 10) you need to keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies (treachery, deceit), you need to turn from evil (shun, run from it, avoid it). You need to search for peace (harmony; undisturnbess from fears, agitating passions, and moral conflicts) and seek it eagerly. Do not merely desire peaceful relations with God, with your fellowmen, and with yourself, but pursue, go after them!
For the eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous (stay there for a minute) and His ears are attentive to their prayer!
(Wind-down)
But the face of the LORD is against those who practice evil (to oppose them, to frustrate, and defeat them (Ps 34:12-16).