“The sum total of God’s activity towards his human creatures is grace. The sum total of the benefits is peace.”
C.J.Mahaney, Sovereign Grace Ministries
Pure Grace
Grace upon Grace flows to us through Christ
John 1:16 says:
“From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” (NIV)
“From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another.” (NLT)
Living in God’s grace means gaining some daily appreciation for the depth of God’s love shown to us in Christ. His mercies are new every morning, in fact, every moment. What confidence we can have in knowing the grace of God.
This song from Sovereign Grace Music has been a great blessing to many in our church. My favourite line is in verse two “Your mercies crown our lives all our days”. There is mercy, grace and forgiveness, for all the rubbish we do, and the good we don’t do. Jesus has won salvation for us, completely. Enjoy!
VERSE 1
You have ordained every breath we take
In pleasure or pain, there is no mistake
Gladness and grief, both are in Your hand
And sufferings brief carry out Your plan
And our fleeting sorrows will yield an endless prize
When some bright tomorrow
We’ll see You with our eyes, and
CHORUS
Grace upon grace flows down, flows down
Grace upon grace flows down, flows down
Through the precious blood of Christ
Father of lights, Giver of all grace
VERSE 2
Father of lights, giver of all grace
Your mercies crown our lives all our days
River of Life, quench our thirsty souls
For no true delight does Your love withhold
And in every season
We are satisfied
For just one reason
Christ was crucified, and
BRIDGE
All good gifts, every good thing
Comes to us freely, so freely
All good gifts, every good thing
Comes to us freely, so freely
Through the precious blood
Through the precious blood
Mark Altrogge © 2008 Integrity’s Praise! Music/Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI)
City of Angels – God’s gracious warriors and guides
The film City of Angels (1998) presents a most intriguing and unusual portrayal of angels, which in some ways lines up neatly with the Bible (though not entirely). They are far-removed from most Hollywood and Christmas card offerings, of cherub-like babes who float about on clouds. And the concept that “every time a bell rings an angel gets its wings” (from It’s a Wonderful Life) is no where to be found (thankfully). These angels are not humans who have graduated to a higher plane. Rather they are God’s unique created beings, strong warriors, men in black (coats), who carefully observe humans and work together for good. Their most important task is to calmly escort recently departed souls to the ‘hereafter’.
Like the angels we discussed last week (Angels long to understand the story of grace) they long to understand why humans think and act the way they do. The main character, Angel Seth (Nicolas Cage) is even willing to make himself human (an irreversible act, an unbiblical concept!) in order to experience the range of human emotions. Now I’m not going to give much away about the plot, or the whole impossible angel-human romance between Cage and Meg Ryan. And while I’m not sure whether angels help all humanity, or just God’s children, I do love many things this film suggests about them. The angels in this film:
* watch over us, standing closeby or keeping a watchful eye on the city from billboards and rooftops.
* move among the living, hearing their conversations.
* hear people’s thoughts – and especially enjoy hanging out in libraries so they can enjoy the literature humans are reading.
* don’t fully understand why humans act and feel the way they do, having never been human.
* calm people’s raging emotions which could cause harm or distress to others, often by a simple hand on the shoulder.
* can choose to allow themselves to be seen by people (though generally they are unseen. I wonder if this why people in real life are able to “entertain angels unaware“? Hebrews 13:2)
* gather together on the beach at dawn and dusk, to listen to heavenly music. (I would love this one to be true, but it is perhaps just creative licence.)
* experience the beauty of creation that humans rarely stop to enjoy or even notice.
Whether these features are completely accurate or not, it is comforting to be reminded that God is concerned for and constantly watching over his creation, protecting and guiding us so that his purposes might be realised. His angels are not wimps, but powerful agents who do his bidding. And they celebrate when God’s purposes are achieved.
From His Word we know that there are five things that make the angels in Heaven rejoice:
The first was when God said, “Let there be light.” (Job 38:7)
The second was on the night of the Lord’s birth. (Luke 2:13-14)
The third is whenever a sinner gives His heart to the Lord. (Luke 15:7,10)
The 4th is when the Church arrives in Heaven. (Rev. 5:11-12)
And the fifth is when the Lord defeats His enemies on Earth and returns to reign. (Rev. 19:6-7)
Comparing it to those other events, you can see how important the salvation of each believer is to our God.
Praise be to God for the provision of His men in black – or white.
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Angels long to understand the story of Grace
Angels long to understand the story of Grace
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, 11 trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things. (1 Peter 1:10-12)
Whenever I’m feeling a little confused by God’s mysterious ways I find it comforting to remember that even angelic beings do not fully understand the mind of God. We imagine that since angels are in God’s presence, they would know why God is doing what He is doing. But they don’t. Peter spoke of this in his letter above. He says angels long to look into ‘these things’, to fully comprehend God’s mysterious plan of redemption, in which they SERVE us! What an amazing thought! They obey God, they follow the plan, without fully understanding why.
We humans are so privileged. Not only have we have been told the story of God’s grace, shown in his Son coming to redeem us and restore us to relationship with God, we also benefit from this grace! We have eternal life. Steven Curtis Chapman’s song, ANGELS WISH, develops these thoughts in a beautiful way. He looks forward to the time when he will sit down with his angel friends and explain to them the “story of grace”. I know things angels only wish they knew!
How privileged am I?
ANGELS WISH:
Was God smiling when He spoke the words and made the world?
And did he cry about the flood?
And what does God’s voice sound like when He sings, or when He’s angry?
These are just a few things that the angels have on me
Well, I can’t fly, at least not yet
I’ve got no halo on my head
And I can’t even start to picture Heaven’s beauty
But I’ve been shown the Savior’s love
The grace of God has raised me up
To show me things the angels long to look into
And I know things the Angels only wish they knew
I have seen the dark and desperate place where sin will take you
I’ve felt loneliness and shame
And I have watched the blinding light of grace
Come breaking through with a sweetness
Only tasted by the forgiven and redeemed
And someday I’ll sit down with my angel friends
Up in Heaven
They’ll tell me about creation
And I’ll tell them a story of grace
What is so amazing about “Amazing Grace”?
It just dawned on me that though I have been blogging for almost a year now on the subject of music and grace, I haven’t even made a single mention of that most famous combination of music and grace: John Newton’s “Amazing Grace“. It has been an anthem of hope and faith for generations.
But why has this hymn had such an impact? What does Newton point out about God’s grace that resonates with us so strongly? Is there something in the music which made it so popular?
At the time Newton penned Amazing Grace, hymnbooks did not contain music; they were simply religious poetry books. The first time Newton’s lines were joined to music was in 1808, in A Companion to the Countess of Huntingdon’s Hymns, set to the tune “Hephzibah” by English composer John Jenkins Husband. More than twenty musical settings of “Amazing Grace” circulated with varying popularity until 1835 when William Walker assigned Newton’s words to a traditional song named “New Britain”.
According to author Steve Turner, the joining of these words and melody was a “marriage made in heaven . . . There was a rise at the point of confession, as though the author was stepping out into the open and making a bold declaration, but a corresponding fall when admitting his blindness.”
Sing through the lyrics at the end (if you need them to test his theory). I think Turner is quite right. It is at this very point we can see why the hymn works so well in communal praise. As we sing this appropriately-shaped melody together, we step out into the open and make a public and communal confession of our wretchedness, our need for God’s forgiving grace. We declare we have moved from ‘lost’ to ‘found’, from hopeless to being filled with hope! As we declare this together, the Spirit works.
It probably has a lot to do with the truth which James expresses here:
“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” (James 5:16)
This hymn is a prayer! We pray together as we sing. We confess (our wretched need for God’s grace) to one another, and look with eyes of faith to the glorious future for us who are ‘found’. The power of this prayer-song transcends time, culture and place. I would predict that there are many more centuries of life in Newton’s hymn.
(Nb. If you are so young that you only know of Amazing Grace as being part of Chris Tomlin’s “My Chains are gone” then you should note how skilfully Tomlin has mimicked the rise and fall of the “New Britain” melody in his additional chorus. In this way he moves our focus to the flood of mercy experienced by all who are in Christ. Such amazing grace!)
Here are the 6 verses of the hymn:
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
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
The Lord has promised good to me
His Word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures
Through many dangers toils and snares
I have already come
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far
And grace will lead me home
Yea when this flesh and heart shall fail
And mortal life shall cease
I shall possess within the veil
A life of joy and peace
When we’ve been there ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we first begun
And Tomlin’s clever chorus:
My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God my Saviour has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing Grace!
If you want to think a bit more about this grace, watch the film trailer . . . or the whole film AMAZING GRACE (2006).
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A reminder of who we are by Grace
Greetings! Have decided to repost an excellent challenge from The Blazing Center blog. It’s one of those things you read and think “yes, exactly, I’ve been wondering what to do in that situation!” I hope you find it as encouraging as I did (especially if you are a small group leader): We are not slaves to sin!
It’s Time To Stop Being Authentic Christians by Stephen Altrogge on September 13, 2012
How many small group/home group/community group/cell group/care group meetings (did I forget any names?) have started out like this:
PERSON 1: I’m really struggling with [insert impatience, anger, lust, discontentment, and any other sin].
PERSON 2: Thanks for being so open and honest about your struggles. We can all identify with that struggle.
PERSON 1: Yeah, it’s just so hard to overcome. I feel like I’m struggling with this all the time.
PERSON 2: I can relate to that feeling. I feel the same way. In fact just yesterday I [yelled at my kids, looked at porn, wasted money, etc.] We’re all broken people. Thankfully there’s grace. Let’s pray and ask God to help us.
Now, is there anything wrong with this interchange? Not exactly. It’s good to confess our sins to one another and pray for one another. Plus, if there’s one thing the world hates, it’s hypocrites. So, in an effort to obey scripture and be “authentic”, we confess our struggles. And we drink fair trade coffee, listen to Bon Iver, and wear faded jeans. But I think in general, we as Christians need to be less authentic.
What I mean is, we need to identify more with who we are in Christ than our current struggles. We are not primarily defined by our anger, lust, impatience, or discontentment. We are defined by the fact that we are united to Jesus Christ, and that Christ himself lives in us!
So should we talk about our struggles and sins? Yes, of course. But we shouldn’t stop there. We need to remind each other that, because we are united to Christ, we will not be ruled by our sin. As Romans 6:14 says, “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”
We are united to the almighty Christ. That fact should completely transform the way we talk about our sins. We need to remind each other that our struggles with sin are NOT our authentic identity. Our authentic identity is as new creations in Christ. So our discussions should go a little more like this:
PERSON 1: Man, I’m just really struggling with anger this week!
PERSON 2: Thanks for being open and honest about your struggles. I can relate to that struggle too.
PERSON 1: Yeah, it feels like I can’t get past this! I’m always going to be angry.
PERSON 2: I know that it feels that way, but I want encourage you that this sin WILL NOT rule you. You are under grace. You don’t have to obey this feeling of anger that is rising within you. That feeling of anger is not your identity. You are in Christ and he is in you, and he will give you the power to overcome that sin. You don’t have to give in to it! Isn’t that good news? Now let’s pray and ask God to help you obey.
We are not slaves to sin. Our true, authentic, real identity is as Christians, united to Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit. Yes we confess and repent of our sins. But we don’t stay there. By faith we embrace our identity and fight against the sin that wages war against us.
The great unveiling (2Corinthians 3:16)
“But whenever someone turns to the Lord the veil is taken away.” (2 Corinthians 3:16)
For this next verse in the Three Sixteen series I am going to say very little. God/Paul can speak for himself here. He does it so well.
I’ll start from a little way back, at verse 7, to give you a run-up to the standout verse, 16.
“The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. 8 Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life? 9 If the old way, which brings condemnation, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new way, which makes us right with God! . . . . . 13 We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away. 14 But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. 15 Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand.
16 But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.”
What magnificent grace! What privilege has been shown to us in Christ! We have received the grace of the knowledge of God, through the Spirit of Christ. We have had the veil lifted, unlike so many who still are stumbling in the dark. Even the Jews, who were the first recipients of God’s favour, they stumble over Christ. Both back then and now. The veil is not lifted.
Praise be to God! He has turned us around, back to himself, and removed the veil which kept him hidden from us! Now we can reflect His glory to others!
2 Corinthians 4:6 – “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
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Creation sings the Father’s Song
Our church family is going through a rapid period of growth at the moment. This is not due to our evangelistic efforts, but by God’s gracious gifts. Four babies were born in the last few months (Alexis, Benjamin, Jackson, Jennifer). What a great opportunity this presents to be reminded of our Creator – the miracle of God’s design in creating new little people. We see it too in the relationship of love and care which grows between parents and their children.
Think of the way a baby’s cry wakens parents in the night, to alert them to their desperate need for food or attention. Think of the way that cry prompts a physical response in mum, to “let down” milk which will sustain her precious little one. She doesn’t have to even consciously think about the process. (Perhaps there are a few unconscious dads staggering about making up bottles as well!) Think of the way human relationships develop between a husband and wife so that they can share the intimate and difficult moments of childbirth, and care for a newborn through the small hours of the night. Think of the inner strength God has given mums to endure days and weeks of broken sleep and other emotional demands. Think of the tender strength of a dad to help everyone hold it all together (and change nappies)!
A song I’ve been listening to lately contains a line which so aptly describes God’s command over creation: “He commands the newborn baby’s cry”. Without that God-given inbuilt response, a child would not demand food or be able to ask that any other need be seen to. Without all those ‘small hours’ moments, parents would not get to know the unique personality of their child so quickly and well, and form a lasting bond.
All these systems have been established by our loving God, to grow us physically and in relationship to each other – and in relationship to Him. They truly show His glory to the world, even to those people who choose to believe His truly amazing design is random and without purpose or meaning. May God help us to continue to be amazed at the wonder of His creation. Though marred by sin and human defiance, creation still points to God’s amazing mind that we cannot fully comprehend.
Make sure you keep your eyes open to the miracles of the God who is seen everywhere, but most especially in us! (Genesis 1:26, Romans 1:20)
Creation sings the Father’s Song (by Kristyn and Keith Getty & Stuart Townend)
Creation sings the Father’s song, He calls the sun to wake the dawn
And run the course of day Till evening comes in crimson rays.
His fingerprints in flakes of snow, His breath upon this spinning globe,
He charts the eagle’s flight; Commands the newborn baby’s cry.
Hallelujah!
Let all creation stand and sing,
“Hallelujah!”
Fill the earth with songs of worship
Tell the wonders of creation’s King.
2.Creation gazed upon His face; The ageless One in time’s embrace
Unveiled the Father’s plan Of reconciling God and man.
A second Adam walked the earth Whose blameless life would break the curse,
Whose death would set us free To live with Him eternally.
3. Creation longs for His return, When Christ shall reign upon the earth;
The bitter wars that rage Are birth pains of a coming age.
When He renews the land and sky, All heaven will sing and earth reply
With one resplendent theme: The glory of our God and King
The gracious choice to carry others’ burdens
The other day I was involved in a discussion about how we can knowingly or unknowingly tempt others to sin. What is our responsibility in that situation? Interesting discussion!
One person shared a verse from James 1:14 – “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” In their view this verse excuses us from much responsibility. Now James does have a fair point here of course. People do have a choice, to give in to the temptation/entertain the thought, or not! But does this exempt me from responsibility?
If I know someone who has difficulty with being, frankly, a glutton, should I offer them a large serve of chips and a whole block of chocolate? If someone has a problem with anger, should I provoke them by luring them into a heated debate? If someone, by virtue of being male, is tempted by images of scantily dressed females should I make the effort to wear more modest, less figure hugging clothes? If someone is an avid gossiper should I mention some tasty little bit of information to them, out of turn?
In seeking godly wisdom for this dilemma, Paul reminded me in his letter to the Galatians (6:1-2) that: ” . . . if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (NIV)
Also in Philippians we read: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (James 2:3-4)
This is how the law of Christ is fulfilled! This is the law of love, lived out when we consider that each of us carry burdens, and the heaviest burden is sin. Paul commands us to carry each other’s burdens. “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.” (1 John 3:16). (See the post in the Three Sixteens.)
We carry each others burdens best when we remember that we are part of the Body of Christ. We are part of a larger unit of people who need each other, and should support each other, just as the different organs and limbs in our physical bodies do. We are a living system and we are to seek the good of others in that system. I don’t think God intends us to struggle alone with our sin, without help. Let’s look around and consider what burdens others are carrying, and help them by being mindful of their weakness. We can even pray for them! And if it means we have to change something about ourselves, our actions, then so be it. Just because we aren’t responsible for other people’s sinful actions doesn’t mean we shouldn’t consider them ‘better’ enough to help carry their burden. Let’s spur each other on to love and good deeds (not more sin).
Ps.
I now feel compelled to, most daringly, turn this whole thing around and back on to me.
Does this all mean that I, a sinner saved by grace, should be honest enough and vulnerable enough with others to let them know my struggles with sin? Am I willing to do that? If I don’t, aren’t I preventing others from fulfilling the law of Christ. What do you think?
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Love this “flashmob” event. It says so much about the way music touches people and brings such joy. The experience brings smiles, goosebumps and tears all wrapped up in the one package. Music is indeed a gracious gift from God!
(The little girl up the lamp post is my favourite.)
sevennotesofgrace 