Praying with Paul 13 - What to Appreciate - Grace

Ways for you because of the grace of God. That was given you in Christ Jesus. Oh, this is Paul lifting up a prayer of appreciation that God has given us Grace in Christ. Jesus. But before we go any further, let's just ask the Lord to richly. Give us wisdom as we open up his work tonight. So let's pray. Father. I thank you so much that in the craziness of the week and even in the craziness of the day, we can come together as a church family tonight and we can listen to your word. We can read it. We can study it and by your spirit, we can understand it and we can apply it to our lives. And so father, I pray that you would do the work that you have promised. Father. I pray that as we hear your voice tonight, we would follow you. I pray that as your word is taught, we would understand it and receive it with hearts of full surance and conviction that we I hear your word as it truly is your word not the word of any man. And so father, give us Grace tonight to understand the grace that we have in Christ Jesus. We ask this in Jesus name. Amen. Okay. So here in verse for Paul, makes it very clear that he is thanking God for the grace. That is given both him and other believers in Christ Jesus. When he writes, I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace given you in Christ Jesus, but I want to bring out for you all tonight. How Paul thanks God for the fact that the grace that guy has given us in Christ is not a one-time momentary thing but isn't that a if you want an ecosystem and environment of Grace that surrounds the believer from beginning to end, just as the psalmist says? In Psalm 23 verse 6 that surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. So also Paul. Thanks God for the past Grace, the present, Grace, and the future Grace. That is ours in Christ Jesus. So, that is the life of a believer in Jesus. It is a life of Grace Grace behind us. Grace, besides us grace before us. And we are thing. We are appreciate how God has given us first and verse for past Grace, Pastor Grace. He says, in verse for, I give thanks to my God, always for you because of the grace of God that was giving you in Christ Jesus. And that's in the past tense in the Greek. In other words, when we were placed into Jesus Christ, at the moment of our Salvation at. Very distinct moment. In time. We became recipients of God's Amazing Grace. You still, what is that Grace? That we received at the Ramona salvation for accounting of it. No human being could ever tell. In fact, will be spending all eternity marveling at the grease that we received that Saving Grace. The moment we were placed into Christ, but in short, you can say, it's Jesus. It's Jesus. Paul says, here in verse for that are passed. Grace was given to us when we were when we were United to Christ. When God placed us. He says, in him in cry. Jesus and then he says later in person that the present Grace that we are receiving, we are enriched in Christ again, and then he says, in verse 7. Our final Grace is given when our Lord Jesus Christ himself is revealed in the end. So in a very real sense, Jesus is the full expression of God's grace, to his children. He is God's inexpressible gift from which all other gifts of God's grace flow, but in terms of considering What Grace? We were getting past tense. The moment we trusted in Christ. And for the sake of tonight's message, since verse five, kind of talks about how we how Grace enriches Us in price. I just want to briefly workout tonight, how God Saving Grace removed from a certain things. The moment we trusted in Christ and I want to summarize it in three, three things that Grace removed from us. Guilt obligation, in marriage. When we were placed into Jesus Christ, God's grace, eliminated for more lies or ought to have eliminated from our lives. Any sense of guilt, any sense of human obligation and any sense of human Merit. So think about it first, there is no guilt in grapes, right? When you were safe. No sin or guilt will ever be held against you before God for all of eternity. As we studied in Colossians 2 verse 14, this he set aside. Nailing it to the cross. That record of debt is gone from us. So there is no guilt in Grace. S, there is no obligation in Grace when you are saved. There is no excuse. You are given the freedom to never have to pay God back. Because frankly you never could you never could as Romans 4 verse 4 and Romans 11 verse 6. Says, if there is a requirement for grace for works, then Grace can no longer be called Grace. And that's why Romans 7 verse 6 says that we as Believers serve in the new way of the spirit and not in the old way of the written code, right? We serve God, as followers of Jesus because we Delight you not because we externally have to There is no guilt and Grace. There is no obligation and Grace and through, there's no merit increase when you were saved. God saved you and you did not deserve it. Roman spy six and eight says, while we were still weak at the right time Christ. Died for the ungodly, when we were yet, sinners Christ died for us as one of the reformers wrote. The only thing that we bring to our Salvation is the sin that made it necessary. We did not deserve our Salvation. There is no merit in Gray. So this is, I guess, if you could mention a thousand things that were received trusted in Christ, but in terms of a summary, right, this is the pastor Grace given to us than Christ. The moment God's grace was given to us in Christ. We stood before God in that moment with no guilt. No obligation. No merit of our own. We got to thank God for this. We got to thank God for his past Grace that he is removed from us. All guilt, all obligation, and all Merit of our own. We have to appreciate that. God has given us past. Secondly, I appreciate that God is giving us present Grace. That's kind of been verses 5 through 7. Paul says here, I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you. That was giving you in Christ. Jesus verse five. That in every way you were in rich in Him in all speech and knowledge.

Cheer Paul says that we were in rich in Christ. We were in Richton him. And considering verse 7. The sense that Paul is talking about here is that when we were placed into Christ, we were enriched and we are being enriched continually in Christ. We are receiving from our connection to Christ, just as branches to the vine. We are receiving from him, present continual ongoing Grace. Is they will how Paul says, in every way in other words, we are being enriched in Christ in every way needed and in every way necessary. In other words, we received from Jesus Christ Grace upon Grace for everyday and for every Duty and Paul gives two areas in which we need daily grace in our lives. He says in all speech and in all knowledge Paul reminds us here. You were in Richton Christ and you received all the knowledge that is necessary to glorify God and you received all the ability needed to testify for Christ. And when did this happen? Is it after you took a 10-week workshop on how to effectively evangelize? Is that when you received it? That's what we think is Christian's, right? I don't know if I know and I don't know if I have a great enough public speaking skill to open up my mouth and share the gospel with this individual, and Jesus is like, are you kidding? If you know Christ, you can share Christ, you were in Rich. T says, even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you, you can say that we're also has implanted them on you. In other words. We as Believers receive all the speech and knowledge necessary to glorify God and to testify for Jesus Christ in this world when we first believed the testimony about Jesus and the Holy Spirit and dwelt and filled Us in that moment. So how much I ask you again? How much knowledge do you need to effectively witness to? Someone was lost? No more knowledge than you have already received, and believed the trews that you yourself, understood when you accepted Jesus Christ, as your own Lord, and Savior yourself. You have a saving understanding of the gospel and you have the indwelling Holy Spirit. That is why the Great Commission is given to every believer. Every believer, you have all speech and you have all knowledge and I'm not just saying this generically impactful for me. You have this, you have a speech, you have all knowledge and Beyond even that can we just add to what Paul says? Even though he doesn't stay here. He said that other places, right? Beyond that. You have the knowledge of God hated to you in his word by his Spirit, a second Peter. 2 3 says, all that you need for life and godliness. You have Beyond just the understanding of what Christ has done for you in the gospel. I'm beyond the empowering of the holy spirit that has come to indwell you is so in short pulses, in verse 7, in light of this so that you are not lacking in. What? Any gift? You are not liking any gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord. Jesus Christ, right? You have been given all necessary knowledge. You have been given all necessary speech. Therefore you are not lacking in any spiritual gift. We are complete in him as Paul says over in Colossians 3:10 by the present and continual in Rich and Grace, that is given to you in Christ Jesus. You are able to live for the glory of God and a testify for Christ in this world until the implication of Paul is making even though he's not giving a commandment, your is the implication is so do it, right. Let's not wait until we think that we have finally been better equipped or trained for it. We came equipped for this Mission, the moment. We were United to Christ. We came with all knowledge necessary to live for the glory of God and all ability needed to testify for Christ. And so let's be busy doing it notice. She says this as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, You said what? Why would we be waiting for that? And it's because our experience of God's Amazing Grace isn't finished yet, because we ought to appreciate that. God is Not only given his past Grace and his giving his present Grace will appreciate that. God in Christ is going to be giving us future Grace in verses 8 through 9 losses here in verses eight through nine. That God notice will sustain you that word sustain. Means he will settle you, he will make you steadfast immovable to the end Guiltless in the day of our Lord. Jesus Christ.

This is something that I was thinking about as I was studying. This is just think about this one, thought how we often think it's going to be terrifying someday. Stand for God. Because in that moment, we can think for ourselves. You know, what, if God puts up a big projector screen play as my life is going to be the end of the world, right? Every thought every intention reveal for everybody. Here's what this verse says. How many sins are going to be held against you when Jesus comes? None. Not. Total forgiveness, buried beneath the blood of Jesus Christ. None is Ephesians 5 says when Jesus does come, he's going to present us to the father without spot or blemish or any such thing as holy and without blemish a complete transformation. That is Crazy when I can see forget this bunker when I consider the old my own spiritual state of theirs. Do you see the one day guys going to create out of this? Depraved human being? Someone is pure and spotless and undefiled before God and Heaven. Wow. That is what you call Grace, Grace. All by his grace is 1st. John 3:2 says we know that when he appears we shall be like him for. We shall see him as he is. So how do we know that we should be liking that. How we know what we know that because verse 9 verse 9 God is faithful by whom you were called into the fellowship of his son. Jesus Christ, Our Lord. And there's so much more. I wish I could say about this person to finish this up. Listen the same God who called you. Is the same God that will glorify you. She who is faithful to shower you with? With Indescribable Grace in the past. And the same God that Showers of crime, you in measurable, Grace in the present. Is the same God that will shower upon you and wish Grace in the future? God is faithful by whom you were called into the fellowship of his son. Jesus Christ, Our Lord, just like what? Romans 8 verse 36, those who he called? He also justifies. I know. So we justify see. Also glorifies by his grace, by his grace, just like what we saw. Singing that in that him, twas grace, that brought us safe. Thus far, and Grace will lead us home. It's all God's grace.

I don't know what to talk to God about tonight. Thank him for the grace that yours in Christ, the past Grace, that he is giving you an all the things that he has freed you from the present Grace, that he gives you even tonight. Do you understand the words that are given the grace that surround you at present, and thank him for the grace that is to come when you step in the glory, in to see a space someday. This is our God, is a God of all Grace. You showers upon his grace, upon Grace, in our Lord, Jesus Christ, and he should be thanked for it. You should be thanked for it. We should thank him for the past. Gracie is he has given us the present Gracie is getting us in the future Grace that he will give us. We should thank God In Prayer that he has given us Grace. And so, let's keep that in mind as we break up into groups tonight. And pray is that man. We are thank God for the rich blessings. He has given his past present and future as believe. In Christ.