Oh Wait! There's More!

A father called his son to him and said, “I have a gift for you. Do you want it?”

The son eagerly acknowledged his desire for the gift. The father opened up his wallet and gave his son a $100 bill. The son grabbed it and said, “Wow! Thanks Dad” before running off with the money.

As the child ran away, the father said, “Wait I have more!” But the child did not hear him and the father was not able to give the child the full gift.

We have had four books full of "Gifts from God" but more recently God has given victory, blessing, and deliverance. Yet is seems that the people had grabbed the gift and ran, forgetting there was more.

Oswald Chambers wrote in his devotional, "My Utmost for His Highest"

"When God blesses us, most of us run-off before receiving the full blessing which God has to give us. We tend to be satisfied with God’s first gift and never claim His whole gift…God wanted Moses to leave the mountain because God had promised to give Moses and the Israelites, a land of their own … The Promised Land. As long as Moses remained at Horeb, which he cherished, he would never receive the full gift God had for Him."

They came to this mountain after their marvelous deliverance from Egypt in Exodus 19:1-2 and left it on the twentieth of the second month of the second year. So they were on this mountain for almost a whole year. (Adam Clarke)

In Romans 6:22 Paul exclaims, "But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life."

I want us to notice a couple of things about this verse -

It is wonderful to be made free from sin - Oh I'm so thankful for those promises in the Bible that teach us that Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost. That there is victory in Jesus

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Think of that - we have committed sins - gone against the word of God and God's will. brought shame and guilt and regret upon ourselves and if we come to Jesus and confess our sins - this scripture says that God is Duty bound because he is faithful and Just and will forgive us our sins. And will cleanse away the unrighteousness. Romans 6:14 - For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Oh It is wonderful to be a Christian. To know your sins are forgiven, that you stand before God justified. That the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses you from your sins. That you are a CHILD OF GOD. - - - - But wait… THERE'S MORE!!!

Not only are we free from sins - but now we become the servants of God.

Now the nature of sin is two-fold in nature

Committed sins - actual sin Original sin - Carnality - the inward bent toward sin. The plan of salvation covers this very well - as we noted earlier - from 1 John 1:9 forgiveness & cleansing. Another way we see two works of grace spiritually is found in Romans 12:1 The Christian's Calling

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

In order for you to present your body a living sacrifice,

Holy & acceptable unto God

It must first be HOLY & ACCEPTABLE - how not by making ourselves clean - but by the cleansing power of the Blood of Jesus Christ in forgiveness and being made justified. Presenting our bodies a living sacrifice - is the only part we have in the experience of sanctification - what is exhibited in Acts chapter 2 and a few chapters later for the Gentiles. It is wrought by the baptism with the Holy Spirit, and comprehends in one experience the cleansing of the heart from sin and the abiding, indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, empowering the believer for life and service.

Entire sanctification is provided by the blood of Jesus, is wrought instantaneously by faith, preceded by entire consecration; and to this work and state of grace the Holy Spirit bears witness.

Oh it is wonderful to be sanctified holy - to know Christ rules and reigns within - that you are filled with the Holy Spirit - - - - But wait… THERE'S MORE!!!

You have fruit unto holiness - This is talking about what God was telling Moses and the children of Israel - It's wonderful on the Mountain Top. To enjoy that precious time - but then you have to get up and move. You've been on the mountain long enough - there is more of the promised land to explore. There is growth in grace. Things to learn and do. More to learn about Jesus.

It's wonderful to grow in grace. To mature into the person God want's you to be. But wait… You guessed it - there's more The end everlasting life - Now you know I have told you that eternal life has begun here when we are born again. But there is also everlasting life with God in heaven. What that is going to be has not yet entered into our hearts and minds. Sometimes I like to read these books like "Heaven is for Real" or some such, but I also know that if they are true stories they can't tell us what it is really like. John tries in the book of Revelation and he still can't get it across to us.

But I know that Heaven is going to be wonderful - because Jesus is there Heaven is going to be beautiful - Because Jesus has been preparing it for us Heaving is going to be more than what we can think or imagine.

My wife read me a little thing out of a magazine that Sue gave us recently about a family that was having ice cream. The dad asked the young daughter what she wanted. The daughter said she wanted vanilla ice cream with, "Way too much chocolate syrup on it." From Taste of Home or Quick Cooking magazine.

This morning have you grabbed your hundred dollars and ran, leaving the greater blessing behind? God has "WAY TOO MUCH BLESSING" to put on your life. The Psalmist exclaimed "HE DAILY LOADETH ME WITH BENEFIETS.

OSWALD CHAMBERS wrote - It is best to hunger for the fulness of God, than to be satisfied with a bread crumb which has fallen from His table.

This morning I'm going to open the altar for a moment and let you know that if you have missed some of your blessing - here is a great place to come back and get it. Maybe I've just given you something to think about perhaps the Lord needs to work on you about this truth. So take this with you and meditate on it. Wherever you are in your walk with the Lord - there is better farther on. There is more, more "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 1 Cor 2:9