Truly Knowing God’s Grace (Pt.9)
12/04/12 22:45 Filed in: Colossians | Grace | bible study | free bible study | online bible study free
Colossians 1:14 “in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Redemption is such a great word. Redemption is the act of redeeming or the state of being redeemed. Redeem is a verb and action word meaning to buy back, to pay off, to recover or set free from captivity by paying a ransom. Redeem means to free from sin and its consequences!
Wow! How does God redeem us? By forgiving our sin. How do we get this forgiveness and redemption? We ask or confess our sin to the one that loves us. We cannot escape the consequences of our sin, which is death, without asking. The book of Romans states that the wages of sin is death. The only way to receive life is through the blood of Jesus Christ and we do that by asking.
According to Ephesians 1:17 this redemption is the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us. This grace is unmerited favour. Something we do not deserve. We deserve the consequences of our actions…death! But God in His great love has poured out His mercy, His grace, and His love. It’s something that as a human with a carnal mind we cannot comprehend. In our humanness we see someone receiving a consequence for something they did and we think they deserve it. But God has a greater grace for us. He lavished His grace on us. That word lavish is like a downpour. It’s excessive, abundant and bountiful. Some may even say it’s wasteful. You cannot stand in a downpour and not get soaked.
I have been caught in a downpour without an umbrella or a raincoat. The rain has soaked me through. And so it is with God, He doesn’t just rescue us but He also soaks us with His bountiful grace.
Redemption is such a great word. Redemption is the act of redeeming or the state of being redeemed. Redeem is a verb and action word meaning to buy back, to pay off, to recover or set free from captivity by paying a ransom. Redeem means to free from sin and its consequences!
Wow! How does God redeem us? By forgiving our sin. How do we get this forgiveness and redemption? We ask or confess our sin to the one that loves us. We cannot escape the consequences of our sin, which is death, without asking. The book of Romans states that the wages of sin is death. The only way to receive life is through the blood of Jesus Christ and we do that by asking.
According to Ephesians 1:17 this redemption is the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us. This grace is unmerited favour. Something we do not deserve. We deserve the consequences of our actions…death! But God in His great love has poured out His mercy, His grace, and His love. It’s something that as a human with a carnal mind we cannot comprehend. In our humanness we see someone receiving a consequence for something they did and we think they deserve it. But God has a greater grace for us. He lavished His grace on us. That word lavish is like a downpour. It’s excessive, abundant and bountiful. Some may even say it’s wasteful. You cannot stand in a downpour and not get soaked.
I have been caught in a downpour without an umbrella or a raincoat. The rain has soaked me through. And so it is with God, He doesn’t just rescue us but He also soaks us with His bountiful grace.
The Big E!
Luke 8:40 “Now when Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed him, for they were all expecting him.”
The word, expect, is an action word, a verb. When you expect, you are in anticipation that something is going to transpire. The dictionary defines it as to look for as likely to occur. When a woman is pregnant we say she is ‘expecting’. Another definition is to wait the birth of.
Expectation is synonymous with faith. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” When we walk in faith, we walking with an expectation that the very thing we are trusting God for will occur.
You see the crowds would not have gathered if they didn’t believe that Jesus was coming. But they did! They had an expectation, a belief or faith that He would soon be there. Because of that hope they gathered.
We need to have an expectation or faith that God is going to come when we ask. Hebrews 11:6 says, “that without faith its impossible to please God because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those that earnestly seek Him”. When we have faith, even though we don’t see what we are hoping for we can begin to move toward that very desire. Why? Because we are looking for something that is likely to occur just like these crowds described in the bible.
Just like a pregnant woman prepares for a baby and then is waiting, as we wait for God to come and move in our midst, lets be expecting him to do great and marvellous deeds in our midst.
The word, expect, is an action word, a verb. When you expect, you are in anticipation that something is going to transpire. The dictionary defines it as to look for as likely to occur. When a woman is pregnant we say she is ‘expecting’. Another definition is to wait the birth of.
Expectation is synonymous with faith. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” When we walk in faith, we walking with an expectation that the very thing we are trusting God for will occur.
You see the crowds would not have gathered if they didn’t believe that Jesus was coming. But they did! They had an expectation, a belief or faith that He would soon be there. Because of that hope they gathered.
We need to have an expectation or faith that God is going to come when we ask. Hebrews 11:6 says, “that without faith its impossible to please God because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those that earnestly seek Him”. When we have faith, even though we don’t see what we are hoping for we can begin to move toward that very desire. Why? Because we are looking for something that is likely to occur just like these crowds described in the bible.
Just like a pregnant woman prepares for a baby and then is waiting, as we wait for God to come and move in our midst, lets be expecting him to do great and marvellous deeds in our midst.
Do You…?
John 5: 5 “One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"”
It seems incredible that Jesus would ask an invalid if he wanted to get well. This man was at the Sheep Gate pool along with a large number of disabled people who were all waiting for a miracle of healing. It is odd that he would ask the man if he wants to get well. I would take it for granted by his action of gathering with the others to wait for this phenomenon to happen that he does. He must want to get healed, isn’t it obvious?
When we pursue ministering healing to people, do we make a mistake by not asking them if they want to be well? I know that when the opportunity comes at meetings to receive prayer for healing not everyone who is infirm in my opinion comes forward. If I had their condition, I would go forward but they don’t.
But Jesus knew that not everyone wants to get healed. They may be in the right place for such an opportunity but they may have a lot more to give up than we realise. Firstly, it could be a total revamp of their life style. They may be on benefits of some type and are not really keen on giving them up. If you have never worked for 38 years, what will you do? Who will hire you? Receiving a healing could upset your entire sense of security.
Secondly, there’s their identity. He had been this way for 38 years and knew nothing else. Everyone knew him as an invalid and related to him that way. They probably helped him get to the pool, took him home, helped with his groceries, and slipped him a few pence here and there. Identity is powerful. We can be entrapped by it even though it isn’t that beneficial. Like the blind man that Jesus healed, people weren’t certain it was he or not after he could see. (John 9).
Thirdly, there is their sense of belonging. The group of disabled people that waited at the Sheep Gate pool were a small subculture within the community. They would know each other well, banter and laugh with each other, and develop ways of doing things for and with each other. If he could walk, he would no longer belong to this group. His difference would separate him from them even if he dedicated himself to helping people from that group. He’s no longer one of them.
This is a real issue within the deaf community over the cochlea implants that can restore their ability to hear. Check it out by doing an Internet search. In response to the question, why is the deaf community against cochlear implants, the deaf person wrote: “For one, you have to be deaf to understand "Deafness" is not a disease. We have been telling people that we are just fine, leave us alone! Cochlear implants being drilled in babies heads, they can't say "leave us alone."
Being moved by compassion for someone is good; it is love in action. But love honours people too. Jesus would not force healing on someone who didn’t want to be healed and neither should we. In ministry we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s promptings rather than following a format. When moved by compassion we should ask the Lord what do we do next?
It seems incredible that Jesus would ask an invalid if he wanted to get well. This man was at the Sheep Gate pool along with a large number of disabled people who were all waiting for a miracle of healing. It is odd that he would ask the man if he wants to get well. I would take it for granted by his action of gathering with the others to wait for this phenomenon to happen that he does. He must want to get healed, isn’t it obvious?
When we pursue ministering healing to people, do we make a mistake by not asking them if they want to be well? I know that when the opportunity comes at meetings to receive prayer for healing not everyone who is infirm in my opinion comes forward. If I had their condition, I would go forward but they don’t.
But Jesus knew that not everyone wants to get healed. They may be in the right place for such an opportunity but they may have a lot more to give up than we realise. Firstly, it could be a total revamp of their life style. They may be on benefits of some type and are not really keen on giving them up. If you have never worked for 38 years, what will you do? Who will hire you? Receiving a healing could upset your entire sense of security.
Secondly, there’s their identity. He had been this way for 38 years and knew nothing else. Everyone knew him as an invalid and related to him that way. They probably helped him get to the pool, took him home, helped with his groceries, and slipped him a few pence here and there. Identity is powerful. We can be entrapped by it even though it isn’t that beneficial. Like the blind man that Jesus healed, people weren’t certain it was he or not after he could see. (John 9).
Thirdly, there is their sense of belonging. The group of disabled people that waited at the Sheep Gate pool were a small subculture within the community. They would know each other well, banter and laugh with each other, and develop ways of doing things for and with each other. If he could walk, he would no longer belong to this group. His difference would separate him from them even if he dedicated himself to helping people from that group. He’s no longer one of them.
This is a real issue within the deaf community over the cochlea implants that can restore their ability to hear. Check it out by doing an Internet search. In response to the question, why is the deaf community against cochlear implants, the deaf person wrote: “For one, you have to be deaf to understand "Deafness" is not a disease. We have been telling people that we are just fine, leave us alone! Cochlear implants being drilled in babies heads, they can't say "leave us alone."
Being moved by compassion for someone is good; it is love in action. But love honours people too. Jesus would not force healing on someone who didn’t want to be healed and neither should we. In ministry we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s promptings rather than following a format. When moved by compassion we should ask the Lord what do we do next?
Truly Knowing God’s Grace (Pt.8)
Colossians 1:13 “For He rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves.”
The word rescue means to set free from danger, imprisonment or evil. When some one or something has dominion over you it means they have control or authority over you.
What Jesus did for you and me is set us free from the control the enemy had over us. We were imprisoned because of our sin and in great danger of going into eternal damnation.
Jesus came with this one purpose in mind and that was to destroy the works of the evil one and set us free from Satan’s authority over us. But he didn’t only rescue us out of the enemy’s grip but He brought us into His kingdom. This kingdom is about love, freedom and a new authority that is in you not over you.
What a clash of Kingdoms! Thank God we are rescued.
The word rescue means to set free from danger, imprisonment or evil. When some one or something has dominion over you it means they have control or authority over you.
What Jesus did for you and me is set us free from the control the enemy had over us. We were imprisoned because of our sin and in great danger of going into eternal damnation.
Jesus came with this one purpose in mind and that was to destroy the works of the evil one and set us free from Satan’s authority over us. But he didn’t only rescue us out of the enemy’s grip but He brought us into His kingdom. This kingdom is about love, freedom and a new authority that is in you not over you.
What a clash of Kingdoms! Thank God we are rescued.
Truly Knowing God’s Grace (Pt.7)
14/03/12 23:20 Filed in: Colossians | bible study online
Colossians 1:10 - 12 “And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.”
When you lead a life that is pleasing and worthy of the Lord there are four outcomes that Colossians 1:10-12 states will be displayed in your life. The final outworking of the Spirit that Colossians speaks of is joyfully giving thanks. To me this is interesting because saying thank you and saying it from a heart of gratitude are very different.
You can see this truth in children and hear it in their tone of voice. Thankfulness comes from a heart of gratitude. Give a gift to a child that doesn’t have much and you will hear gratitude. On the other hand give a gift to one that has everything and you may get a “gee, thanks”
An attitude of gratitude needs to be cultivated in our lives. I Thessalonians 5: 16 and 17 says, “Be joyful always: pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”. This is an interesting statement. It’s not saying, “If you feel like it be joyful”. It says be joyful always! That means we have a choice. I know this is true in my life. There are days when I don’t feel much joy and I have to make a decision. Am I going to let self-pity lure me into “feeling” depressed or am I going to choose life and be joyful?
The way to be joyful is to give thanks. We have SO much to be thankful for. When we do that we are saying, “God, you are bigger than my problems and you are in control. Your love never fails and so I give you thanks.”
Thanksgiving coming from a joyful heart does please the Lord in every way. Do a check up from the neck up and if you have forgotten to give thanks say, “Sorry Lord, please forgive me”. Then give thanks because He is a loving God, gracious and compassionate. He has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints. For that we are very grateful and so we give thanks!
When you lead a life that is pleasing and worthy of the Lord there are four outcomes that Colossians 1:10-12 states will be displayed in your life. The final outworking of the Spirit that Colossians speaks of is joyfully giving thanks. To me this is interesting because saying thank you and saying it from a heart of gratitude are very different.
You can see this truth in children and hear it in their tone of voice. Thankfulness comes from a heart of gratitude. Give a gift to a child that doesn’t have much and you will hear gratitude. On the other hand give a gift to one that has everything and you may get a “gee, thanks”
An attitude of gratitude needs to be cultivated in our lives. I Thessalonians 5: 16 and 17 says, “Be joyful always: pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”. This is an interesting statement. It’s not saying, “If you feel like it be joyful”. It says be joyful always! That means we have a choice. I know this is true in my life. There are days when I don’t feel much joy and I have to make a decision. Am I going to let self-pity lure me into “feeling” depressed or am I going to choose life and be joyful?
The way to be joyful is to give thanks. We have SO much to be thankful for. When we do that we are saying, “God, you are bigger than my problems and you are in control. Your love never fails and so I give you thanks.”
Thanksgiving coming from a joyful heart does please the Lord in every way. Do a check up from the neck up and if you have forgotten to give thanks say, “Sorry Lord, please forgive me”. Then give thanks because He is a loving God, gracious and compassionate. He has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints. For that we are very grateful and so we give thanks!
