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I woke up the other morning and my heart was filled with thoughts of how full of grace God is. Grace is unmerited favour and undeserved love. It is the gift of God given to us. We are saved by grace. We know God through grace. Everything begins with grace and is sustained by grace. Grace filled my day. All day long I thought about the grace of God towards me. His grace takes my breath away and leaves me so thankful and in awe.
My favourite song “See His Love” (by Jesus Culture and Kim Walker) begins with these lines…
“See His love nailed onto a cross
Perfect and blameless life given as sacrifice
See Him there all in the name of love
Broken yet glorious, all for the sake of us.
This is Jesus in His glory
King of Heaven dying for me
It is finished, He has done it.”
As the children of God this love is lavished upon us. So great and everlasting is the love of God towards us that he poured it out upon the cross as the greatest sacrifice of all to win us to himself. Our freedom and our eternity and our forgiveness and our relationship and our future has been paid for by grace. Undeserved love. God chooses to lavish his love upon us. “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1)
Let us live as loved people. Let us live as the children of God. Let the love of God that we know and experience as reality overflow and transform our lives.
And lets not live this love and grace in silence. Love like this is not meant to be kept secret but is by its very greatness for sharing. We sing “Great is his love poured out for all” (This Is Our God, Hillsong) on Sunday mornings – note the “for all.” God has called us to be his messengers of good news, that there is true love available to each one of us, that redemption has being won and that forgiveness is real.
you should so watch this and listen to it. its really powerful. for me. for you. jesus blood was poured out for all. that we can be free. great is his love. everlasting is his love. true is his love.
i so love this song. i love the musicality of it. i love the heartbeat of it. i love the passion and intensity in the voice.
i love who it is about. Jesus. and his great love for me. and you.
its more than just a song.
but it is a sign written in teh sky.
it is more than just a song. it is a message of hope and love and grace and eternity.
have u seen God’s love everlasting for you?
See His love nailed onto a cross
Perfect and blameless life given as sacrifice
See Him there all in the name of love
Broken yet glorious, all for the sake of us
Chorus:
This is Jesus in His glory
King of Heaven dying for me
It is finished, He has done it
Death is beaten, Heaven beckons me
Verse 2:
Greater love no one could ever show
Mercy so undeserved, freedom I should not know
All my sin, all of my hidden shame
Died with Him on the cross, eternity won for us
Bridge:
Such love, such love
Such love is this for me (repeat)
©2005 Thankyou Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)
All rights reserved. International copyright secured.
i believe that you will come like the rain Oh God! i believe there is coming a day of redemptiona dn power and demonstration and grace.
that those who are blind will see
that those who have no hope will have hope again
that those who are lost will be found.
the other morning i woke up thinking about how holy God was – his holiness was in my heart all day.
today i woke up thinking about grace. the grace of God how it is so amazing. how it is all by grace.
we are saved by grace.
his grace calls me his child.
his grace makes me loveable to God.
it is nothing i can do, but all from him.
unmerited favour.
undeserved love.
his grace is my life. without it i am nothing. with it i am completed.
thankyou Jesus for grace.
Proverbs 3:11 “my child don’t turn away or become bitter when the Lord corrects you. The Lord corrects everyone he loves, just as parents correct their children.”
Why do I correct my kids: so they…
Grow up safe
Grow up as contributors
Grow up into fulfillment and happiness
Grow up secure
Grow up and “fit in”
Grow up and make friends
Grow up and make a positive impression
Grow up with opportunities
Grow up to succeed
Correcting trains us into the right direction. It isn’t about punishment or things like that it is about training human beings. Correcting kids is about them managing their emotions and desires and wants and how they express themselves.
Likewise God corrects us because he loves us. He loves us even more than I love my kids.
When God corrects us don’t turn away or reject him and his lessons and correction. Learn. Embrace. Experience. Be humble. Pray. Draw near to him. Seek him. Don’t become bitter – but better, as the saying goes. Grow as a human. Grow as a child of God. Be more faithful. Be more like Jesus. Draw near to God. Be soft and not hard. Yield, don’t resist. Be willing, not willful. Have hope. Be teachable.
“The Good News tells how God accepts everyone who has faith.”
Romans 1:17
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2028;&version=46;
Matthew 28
1. V1. As soon as they could the women went to prepare Jesus’ body and care for him. Despite his death they still had love and worship to give.
2. V2. Yay God!
3. V3. As bright as lightening! Cool imagery!
4. V4. The angel caused the guards to shake with fear and then faint/lose consciousness. The women saw the angels too but were differently affected.
5. V5. The angel tells the women – who were standing and conscious – don’t be afraid – which most angels in the bible say to humans they reveal themselves to.
6. V5. Jesus was nailed to the cross. This was a common execution style for criminals. People would have seen other crucifixions before. it was a way to punish and humiliate criminals.
7. V6. Jesus isn’t in the tomb! He isn’t there! He is alive! Risen!
8. V7. The angel invited the women into the tomb to see the evidence of Jesus’ resurrection.
9. V7. Now you’ve seen the proof – go and tell! The women FIRST got to tell of the miracle of Jesus’ resurrection! WOMEN! FIRST witnesses! Now days that doesn’t sound so immense and momentous or significant. But in Jesus’ day that was amazing. Women didn’t even get to testify in court. Their word was not counted as worthy enough. Yet God chose women as the first witnesses and declarers of the greatest miracle!
10. V8. “The women were frightened and yet very happy.” Good way of describing all the emotions they probably felt! Put yourselves in their shoes. Their teacher and friend was dead. But now he is alive! Oh the questions! And the wonder! And the hugs! And the “oh my God!” in the most reverent ways!
11. V9 SUDDENLY Jesus met them.
12. The soldiers woke up. They had fainted or lost consciousness when the angel appeared and rolled the huge tombstone away. They bravely then went and told their commander what had happened and how the body was missing. In turn they had to go and face the chief priests. The penalty for the guards to fall asleep on duty was execution. They would have been executed for failing in their duty. Instead of being executed though these guards are paid to fabricate a story and lie to everyone about Jesus’ disappearance. Part of the cover up story was that the soldiers were sleeping when the disciples snuck up and stole Jesus’ body. Does this sound logical? Yes, but not if you consider the context of roman discipline and soldiery. As I said the penalty was death for falling asleep on the job.
13. V16. All the remaining disciples went to the mountain in Galille to meet with Jesus. The remaining 11. Judas had hung himself. Peter had denied Jesus 3 times but he was still there. All the other disciples except John didn’t go and watch Jesus die. And they still came. Jesus called and they came. There was hope again. Perhaps the cross was not the end?
14. V17. They saw and worshipped but some of them doubted? Some of them on the mountain with resurrected Jesus doubted? What? Why? What were they doubting?
15. V18. Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth. ALL. ALL means ALL. Everything. ALL. He has all authority. There is no authority higher than his. He is the one who commands. All other authorities and powers are subject to his authority. Get this in all the way. Live with this perspective. Live under and in and through the authority of Jesus. Know his authority is in heaven and on earth. Submit to it and be secure in it.
16. V19-20 “Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and teach them to do everything you were told.”
- Make disciples
o Wholehearted
o Commited
o Agree to teaching
o Learning
o Serving
- Don’t restrict the gospel. People of ALL nations. People of all nations were to be made disciples.
- Don’t restrict what you teach – they were told to teach everything that Jesus had taught them. Don’t hold anything back. Don’t create spiritual hierarchies.
17. “I will be with you always, even until the end of the world.” V20
this is a song by Brother Yun that appears in the book The Heavenly Man. it shows the “fate” or the sacrifice of the first disciples, how they lived and served and died for the Lord. it is really the Acts 29 chapter….
From the time the early church appeared on the day of Pentecost,
followers of the Lord all willingly sacrificed themselves.
Tens of thousands have sacrificed their lives that the Gospel might prosper.
As such they have obtained the crown of life.
Those apostles who loved the Lord to the end,
Willingly followed the Lord down the path of suffering.
was exiled to the lonely isle of Patmos.
Stephen was crushed to death with stones by the crowd.
Matthew was cut to death in Persia by the people.
died as his two legs were pulled apart by horses.
Doctor Luke was cruelly hanged.
Peter, Philip and Simon were crucified on a cross.
Bartholomew was skinned alive by the heathen,
Thomas died in India as five horses pulled apart his body,
The apostle James was beheaded by King Herod,
Little James was cut up by a sharp saw.
James the brother of the Lord was stoned to death,
Judas was bound to a pillar and died by arrows,
Matthias had his head cut off in Jerusalem.
Paul was a martyr under Emperor Nero.
l am willing to take up the cross and go forward,
To follow the apostles down the road of sacrifice.
That tens of thousands of precious souls can be saved,
l am willing to leave all and be a martyr for the Lord.
Chorus:
To be a martyr for the Lord, to be a martyr for the Lord,
l am willing to die gloriously for the Lord.
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