Have you ever wondered -- or considered -- what the grace of God can do for you? -- Have you given that much thought?
No word in the Christian vocabulary is more beautiful -- or more radiant than the word grace!
Grace is a marvelous thing! -- We sing about it!
Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin & our guilt,
Yonder on
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilt!
Grace (marvelous) grace, God’s (infinite) grace,
Grace that will pardon & cleanse within!
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin!
For sure -- God’s marvelous grace can & does forgive us of all our sins -- if we but ask! -- O thank God for forgiving grace!
But God’s grace is not limited only to forgiveness!
God’s grace is something that abides with us day after day.
We also sing about Amazing Grace --
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
But the song does not stop there -- it goes on to add --
Thro’ many dangers, toils, & snares
I have already come.
‘Tis grace hath bro’t me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
Some times I have listened to someone’s hardships -- & heartaches --difficulties -- sorrows -- afflictions -- anguish -- grief;
And I have prayed -- asking God to give them an extra portion of His grace; -- that grace would be supplied -- given -- dished out -- abundantly to them -- according to their needs!
Have you ever felt like you needed more of God’s grace?
Wished you could have a second helping -- or more!
God invites us to partake of His wonderful grace!
In fact -- He wants to dispense His grace to your heart felt need!
The Bible tells us we should come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. -- “There we will receive his mercy & we will find grace to help us when we need it” (Heb.
One of the very best Bible narratives that demonstrates the extent of God’s marvelous & amazing grace is found in Acts, chapter 16.
Paul & Silas -- went to the town of
A high class business woman -- named
A demon-possessed slave girl -- who was a fortune-teller -- was also marvelously saved -- & delivered!
However -- this unusual conversion stirred the anger of those who were making a profit off this girl’s capability of fortune-telling.
Let’s pick up the story there -- (Read) Acts 16:19-34
Most often -- we focus on the conversion of this Philippian jailer with his question: “What must I do to be saved?”
Paul’s answer to that all important question is so very classic: --
“Believe on the Lord JC & you shall be saved!”
But today -- I want us to look at a deeper lesson in this passage -- & see how the grace of God helped Paul & Silas in a time of real trail & affliction! -- What an ordeal these guys faced!
Talk about injustice -- mistreatment -- unfairness -- grievance.
You have to really feel sorry for these two guys!
Yet -- Paul & Silas show us what God’s grace can do for those who truly trust & serve the Lord!
Grace that gives us victory in the
Is it
Are you in a troubled relationship? -- A troubled marriage?
Are you facing problems at work? -- At home?
Have you received bad news -- about your health? -- about family?
Is your world crumbling in around you?
It is always
A God who can provide joy & victory by His grace -- in the midst of suffering is certainly a God worth knowing!
This is the real proof of Christianity -- the fact that it works under the hardest & harshest of circumstances!
What God did for Paul & Silas in their
The grace God gave to them -- He can give to each of us today!
Let’s examine that kind of grace!
1. Christ Gives Us Grace to Rejoice When It Would Be Easy To Whine! -- vs. 25
For preaching the way of salvation -- Paul & Silas were put in prison -- having been falsely accused -- unjustly condemned -- & severally beaten
Paul & Silas has done nothing but good -- & had received nothing but evil!
But -- they did not whine -- they did not cry -- they did not complain -- they did not grumble.
They are not having a pity party -- nor licking their wounds!
Instead we read -- at
Now that -- my friends -- takes real grace!
Their bodies ached from being beaten -- that’s enough to make most people do about anything but sing!
Most people I know grumble & complain even w/o their bodies aching.
How were Paul & Silas able to rejoice instead of whining?
Only by the grace of God through JC our Lord!
I wonder what they sang! --
Maybe they sang words like these from the Psalm 23 --
“The Lord is my Shepherd -- I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.”
Or maybe it was words from Psalm 91 --
“He that dwells in the secret place of the most High
shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty!
I will say of the Lord,
He is my refuge & my fortress:
My God: -- in Him will I trust!”
The Psalms are full of great songs we can sign in the mid-night hour of the soul!
Paul & Silas had a song in their heart -- even in their
Why? -- Because the grace of God was real in their hearts!
And by the grace of God -- you & I can still sing unto the Lord -- even in the mist of our
Songs like -- God Is Still On The Throne; -- What A Friend We Have in Jesus; -- Amazing Grace; -- Victory in Jesus; -- Blesses Assurance Jesus is Mine!
Let me ask you -- Have you been singing -- or whining lately?
What have been complaining about? -- What’s been your gripe?
When we walk with the Lord -- by the grace of God -- we too can have a song even in the midst of our trouble!
The grace of God turns night into day -- & sorrow into song!
Faith in God’s goodness & grace -- puts strength in the soul -- & a song in the heart! -- God’s grace breaks the bands of trouble!
The truest expression of our faith is not a sigh -- but a song!
From the safety of our homes -- & the comfortable pews at Sunday worship -- it is easy to sing!
But Christ can give us a song even in the tribulations of life!
At the funeral of a well-known atheist -- the press reported: -- “There was no music.”
Those who are w/o faith in God -- have no song in life’s darkest hours.
How different were a young wife & mother -- whose husband suddenly passed away -- leaving her with five young children!
After the service she & the children found their place in the funeral car -- & then -- w/o announcement or prompting -- with a radiant face -- she began to sing -- as the children joined in: --
“But until then my heart will go on singing,
Until then with joy I’ll carry on,
Until the day my eyes behold the city.
Until the day God calls me home.”
Oh -- how attractive it is -- that song in the night!
How real -- how majestic -- how beautiful -- how inspiring -- is the song God gives His children in the night -- by His marvelous grace!
Often -- our best songs are born in the night of pain & disappointment!
2. Christ Gives Grace to Stand When It Would Be Easy to Run -- vs. 26-28.
Suddenly there was a great earthquake; -- the prison was shaken to its foundation; -- all the doors flew open -- & the chains of every prisoner fell off! -- God shook them out!
The jailer had the key to the jail -- but God had a key to the very foundation upon which the jail stood!
Paul & Silas could have run for their lives -- they could have escaped -- but instead -- grace enabled them to stay put!
They believed that God had some good purpose in allowing their imprisonment in the first place!
You too -- can stand firm when you truly believe that God is in control!
Problems are not solved by running from them!
Some people run literally -- from marriage -- from relationships -- from job to job -- or from church to church!
Some people try to escape through drugs -- or alcohol -- or sex.
Remember -- my friends -- wherever you go -- there YOU are!
It does not pay to run!
God’s grace can enable us to face up to the worst that life dishes out!
Paul -- at a later time -- in prison in
Are there times you would like to run?
Run from your problems; -- run from your responsibilities?
Somebody said something; -- somebody did something you didn’t like; -- you got your feelings hurt; -- you want to run; -- you want to escape!
Our problems are not solved by running from them!
God’s grace can enable you to stand strong & firm!
God’s grace can give you the courage to stand -- when it would be easier to just run away!
After all -- my friends -- If God be for us -- who can be against us?
Difficulty is the very atmosphere of miracle!
The more difficult & troubling the trial -- the greater the miracle of God’s grace!
The life & death of missionary Jim Elliot is a testimony of a man committed to the will of God!
Elliot was a commanding presence while a student at
He was a gifted writer -- speaker -- & teacher -- & he even stared on the wrestling mat where he became a champion.
Many of his friends were convinced Elliot’s spiritual giftedness should be concentrated on building up the church in
But after much prayer -- Elliot sensed God's call to a foreign field -- specifically
He said: "Why should some hear twice -- when others have not heard the gospel once?"
So in the winter of 1952 -- Elliot set sail on a freighter for the jungles of
Determined to reach a tribe where the gospel had never been preached -- Elliot & four companions landed on a beach of the
Here the fierce Auca tribe had previously killed several Shell Oil company employees.
But Elliot & the other missionaries were determined to reach them -- for as Elliot said: -- “Our orders are: -- the Gospel to every creature.”
However -- on
In spite of that tragic event -- his wife Elizabeth -- bravely returned to share Christ with those who killed her husband!
Many Aucas eventually came to accept Christ as Savior because of her brave & courageous spirit!
Christ gave her the grace to stand when it would have been easier to run!
Her books -- Shadow of the Almighty -- & Through Gates of Splendor -- speaks passionately of the power -- majesty & sovereignty of God -- as she tells of the life of her husband -- Jim Elliot.
His martyrdom at age 28 -- & the subsequent books on his life by his former wife Elizabeth -- has been the stimulus for sending literally thousands into the mission fields.
My friends -- God’s grace triumphs over man’s wrath.
God’s grace triumphs over our problems; -- & can enable us to stand firm -- when it would be easier to run.
By God’s all sufficient grace -- we can have victory with a margin!
3. Christ Gives Grace to Love When It Would Be Easy to Hate -- vs 32.
Those who brought charges against Paul & Silas had grabbed them & dragged them before the judges -- making false charges against them.
A mob was quickly formed against them. -- The judges ordered them stripped of their dignity -- & beaten with wooden whips.
Again & again the rods slashed down across their bared backs -- & then Paul & Silas were thrown into prison.
The jailer put them into the inner dungeon -- & clamped their feet into the stocks!
But now -- that jailer -- who represented the whole unfair system -- was on his knees pleading for help!
Oh how easy it would have been for Paul & Silas to hate him; -- to smite him; -- to wish him ill!
At the very least they could have ignored his plea.
But instead -- Paul “spoke unto him the word of the Lord.”
They told him & his entire household the Good News of JC -- & His saving grace! -- Paul & Silas loved & cherished this very enemy!
Christ can do that for us -- by His enabling grace!
He can help us to genuinely love those who mistreat us!
How do you treat those who have mistreated you?
Do you hate them -- resent them -- wish them ill -- try to ignore them -- pray that God will heap coals of fire upon them?
The grace of God can enable you to love someone when it would be much easier to hate!
In fact -- His grace can help us to genuinely love those of other races -- other nations -- & other beliefs.
His grace can enable us to love those who despitefully use you.
This is the marvelous extent of God’s redeeming & sanctifying & all sufficient grace!
At a men’s retreat -- a truck driver was asked to describe some specific way in which Christ had made a difference -- a change -- in his life.
After a pause to reflect, he said: “Well, when I find somebody tailgating my truck -- I no longer drive on the shoulder of the road in order to kick up cinders at him.” -- He had learned to love instead of hate!
How simple -- but how profound is this understanding of what it means to love people -- when it would be easy to hate!
God’s grace in our hearts through JC -- can enable you to love -- rather than to hate! -- Oh, the marvelous grace of God!
Conclusion: --
The secret of such victorious sanctified living is the grace of God in JC!
Christ gives us grace --
To rejoice & sing -- when it would be easy to whine!
To stand -- when it would be easy to run!
To love -- when it would be easy to hate!
Christ did not promise us an exemption from problems!
No where in the Bible is it ever implied that the Christian will have an easy journey through life. -- The promise of Scripture is that in the midst of hardship & pain -- Christ will be there to encourage -- to comfort -- to sustain -- to enable!
The grace of Christ grips us & holds us -- so that the circumstances are no longer important!
The flowers of God’s grace appear in the most unlikely places!
But oh -- how real -- how majestic -- how beautiful -- how inspiring -- is the grace God gives to His own in the
It is always
In God’s grace our troubles & tragedies become bearable!
We can face each day with confidence -- & with faith!
While we do not know what the future holds -- we know Who holds the future -- & we can know His all sufficient grace!
Whatever your problem -- whatever your situation -- whatever your need -- whatever your circumstances -- God has grace for you!
The Bible tells us that He is the God of all grace!
Open up your heart to God’s grace today!
Appropriate God’s grace -- lay hold of God’s grace today.
There is no rationing of God’s grace -- no storage of His grace!
There is plenty of God’s grace available for your need -- for He still promises: -- “My grace is sufficient for you!”
So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. -- “There we will receive his mercy -- & we will find grace to help us when we need it.”