Free Ride?

Read James 4

A long time ago while I was still in high school, a song called Free Ride by the Edgar Winter Group was near the top of the charts.  It had a good tune, but you didn’t give much pause as you sang along with the lyrics.

The mountain is high

The valley is low

And you're confused on which way to go

So I've come here to give you a hand

And lead you into the promised land

So (ooh, ooh, ooh) come on and take a free ride (free ride)

(ooh, ooh, ooh) Come on and sit here by my side (ooh, ooh, ooh) Come on and take a free ride

All over the country

I'm seeing it the same

Nobody's winning at this kind of game

We gotta do better it's time to begin

You know all the answers must come from within

So (ooh, ooh, ooh) come on and take a free ride

Come on and take a free ride.  It’s a catchy tune but it is also the theology of many Christians.  This whole grace business is just a free ride.  The gift is free but the ride that follows the gift should be another thing altogether.

What follows must be purposeful, deliberate, and intentional.  We are living for God and we are doing it on purpose.  The gift of life is all from God.  It is free when we receive Jesus as Lord.

The life that follows is about bringing glory to God with every breath!  We no longer just exist.  We are no longer in league with the enemy.

We have been here before.  Are we a friend of God or a friend of the world?  James says that you can’t have it both ways.

If you love the world, then you hate God—you make yourself into his enemy.  How can you do this?  While we were God’s enemies, he sent Christ to die for us.

Do we just say, That’s cool?  My sins are forgiven, now I can live it up like the rest of the world does?

Once again, we find that James is not the Lone Ranger in his challenges to us.  Paul challenged his readers to comprehend grace.

What shall we say then, shall we go on sinning so that grace may abound even more?

This was a rhetorical question.  It required no answer.  The answer was obviously no.  But considering the sinful nature of humankind, Paul answered his own question nonetheless.

His answer was: No, nadda, by no means!  Don’t you know we gave up all of that!

James is on this same track.  Why do you who claim Jesus as your Lord still have fights and quarrels?  It is because your sinful human nature is still with you.  You struggle internally because you can’t decide if you want to belong to God or to the world.

God placed a spirit within us when humankind was created.  That spirit always longs for God but sometimes settles for less.  That spirit finds satisfaction, companionship, fulfillment in the world.  We become a friend of the world, knowing that the world never truly reciprocates.

The world cannot truly be our friend and our satisfaction level is never quite what it was designed to be, but we settle for what the world has to offer.  We accept the world’s friendship.

We want the grace and forgiveness of God and the Free Ride through life as a friend of the world.  Here is the theological term for that:  That dog don’t hunt.

Once we received Christ as our Lord and Savior, we drew a line in the sand.  The devil, our sinful nature, and friendship with the world were on one side and we as a disciple of Jesus Christ on the other.

So we are up against the devil, our sinful nature, and the patterns of the world.  That’s a tough battle.  It might seem like we are surrounded. 

We are.  We are surrounded by our enemies.  Let me put this in Marinespeak.  We’ve got them just where we want them!  We can attack in any direction.

But how?  Resist the devil and he will flee!

Why would the devil flee?  C’mon, we’re surrounded.

We belong to Jesus and we know it with certainty.  We submit ourselves to God.  We don’t sit on the fence.  We are not double-minded.  We are his and his alone.  We are on the winning side.

That’s it?  That’s the plan of attack.  Every attack needs good logistics, so here you go:  Draw closer to God and he will draw closer to you.

Anything else?  Quit being the wave that is tossed about the sea.  Stop being double-minded.  Purify yourself!  Do the modern-day version of sackcloth and ashes.  Show God that you have repented of evil!

Instead of pointing fingers and throwing penalty flags at how other believers receive God’s grace and respond to it, realize that you are on the same team and your Leader is the Lord.  He alone will judge your response to his gift.

Once again, James is not the Lone Ranger.  Paul put it this way.  Who am I to judge another man’s servant?

We are humble before our Lord and ferocious before our enemies.  God opposes those whose strength is in themselves.

Where does that leave us as we consider this free gift of salvation?

We are a disciple.

We are a warrior.

We are a friend of God

We are growing in God’s grace.  The spirit within us from creation hungers to have the perfect relationship with the Spirit of God that lives within us now.

The gift is free.  The ride is full of challenges—struggles that might be received as adventures, which if we will recall from the very beginning, we should regard with joy for we are being made complete in Christ Jesus.

Amen!

Speaking the truth in love--it's mostly about growing in grace

Read Ephesians 4:1-16

I often talk about speaking the truth in love and how essential it is in just about everything that we do. Sometimes people think that this speaking the truth business is just about dealing with people who do not want to hear the truth.

That’s part of it, but truly these words of the Apostle Paul speak to our growth.  Speaking the truth in love is essential to growing in grace and Christian maturity. 

Let’s not discount the power of speaking the truth in love.  Yes, it is important to reach out to those blinded by Satan.  The truth, especially the truth spoken in love, is very powerful here; however, it is most powerful in sustaining our growth in grace.

Truth, love, growth, and maturity are essential elements in being shaped in the image and likeness of Christ Jesus.  Let us learn to speak the truth in love as part of who we are and who we are becoming.

Speak the truth in love!

Love covers a multitude of sins

Read 1 Peter 4:7-11

Where do you go from the greatest of these is Love?  What else do you need from the scriptures once you receive the counsel to love your enemies?  Have we not fulfilled the law when we live governed by love?

So, what is this love covers a multitude of sins business?

I know that I contend with an age where so many people read their Bible in the in the NFT—the New Facebook Translation. I know that this is an age of eisegesis—putting what you want to believe into the holy scriptures.  I know this is an age where so many do not want to hear the truth.

The truth is just not that popular anymore.

But some things that are clearly in the Bible just don’t seem to jive, at least at first glance.  James and Peter both use the words from the Proverbs, love covers a multitude of sins.

But John records the encounter between John the Baptist and Jesus as he approached the part of the Jordan where all the baptizing seemed to be taking place with these words:  Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

John in his letters again confirms to us that the blood of Jesus cleanses us from our sin—from all unrighteousness.  I don’t know of any Christians who are offended by this verse.  Even the biggest Type-A personality at some point realizes I can’t fix myself by myself.  Thank you, Jesus, for what you did for me on the cross.

You cleansed me.  You took away my sin.  You made me right with God.  Hallelujah!  Amen!  Praise the Lord!

Even David knew that it took divine intervention to cleanse him.  Create in me a clean heart.  I cannot cleanse what I have made filthy by myself.

This is not a controversial topic among Christians.  The Lamb of God took away our sins.  Because of the completed work on the cross, sin and death have no say in where we spend eternity.  We belong to God.  We are brothers and sisters in Christ.  God’s Spirit lives within us.

So, what in the world is this business about covering a multitude of sins.  Is it just figurative language to say the same thing as taking away the sin of the world?  Is it a metaphor that says multitude but means all?  Is it no big deal?

Let’s briefly visit the Greek.  The original text uses a word that was used more in the poetry than the prose of the age.  The word is καλύπτω – kaluptó (kal-oop'-to). 

It means to cover or wash over or conceal.  It is to veil something.  The problem is that too many people read this thinking it veils or conceals something from God.  Many think that such scriptures tells us that our sin is hidden from God.

Consider this odd dichotomy.  The Lamb of God took away our sin and our love hides our sin from God.  Those are hard to reconcile, especially when we know that nothing is hidden from God.

So where does that leave us?  First let’s put this verse in context.  Peter tells his readers:

·       Realizing we don’t know how much time we have left, let’s proceed with clear minds and self-control. Let’s live according to the purpose God gave us.

·       Love each other deeply.

·       Offer hospitality without grumbling.

·       Use our God-given gifts to serve others.

·       Live out God’s grace in the ways the Lord has given you.

·       Be wise in your speech.  People will regard what you say as words from God, unless they are playing for the other team and want to twist them but be wise in your speech nonetheless.

·       Don’t rely on your own strength but on God’s so that God will receive the glory.

All of these things we know and do and sometimes don’t get right the first time or the first 100 times are all to bring glory to God as we follow Jesus.

All of these things fall into a category that we might call love one another.  Those in this body here have heard those words a few hundred times a year.  We have given out wristbands world-wide that say:  GOD LOVES YOU – LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

So as I look at these words that tell me that love covers a multitude of sins, I need to ask, “From whom are they concealed?”

We can’t hide anything from God.  So if the holy scriptures are to truly be in agreement—and they are—then these sins are concealed from a person.  Who is that person?

I am going to ask you to think on and meditate on that the person in question is us.  Remember the challenges that love presents to us.  Love your enemies.  Love is patient.  Here’s one that might seem even more difficult.

Love keeps no record of wrongs.  That one might be even tougher than loving your enemies or practicing patience.  Those who have wronged us are often recorded in our hard drives.  Some wrongs are written into the BIOS or the firmware of our hearts and minds.

We forgive but we don’t forget.  I’m keeping the lesson.  It sounds so sensible not to forget what happened when we were wronged.  But our model is that God forgives and forgets.  He remembers our sins no more.

I can love my enemies.  It takes work, but I can do it.

I can be patient.  I don’t have time to be patient, but I can be patient if I put my mind to it, especially when I know it is what love requires of me.  I just want to be patient and get it over with.

But I don’t know if I can forget everyone who has wronged me.  I don’t know if I can erase the hard drive.  I can be patient because I do something to be patient.  I can love my enemies because I resolve in my mind and bring my heart into that accord, and because I have set my heart and mind on it, I can do it.  I can love my enemy.

But how do I deal with a record of wrongs that is permanently etched in my mind with anchors set in my heart?

Yes, I know that with God all things are possible.  I know that through Christ Jesus who gives me strength, I can do all things, but this record of wrongs stuff is just too hard to manage, at least some of the time.

It seems like I have forgotten every wrong against me, then for no particular reason, that file is fully restored and comes front and center into my thinking.

Maybe, I am just not to the point where I can truly erase that hard drive of wrongs.  But love covers a multitude of sins.  What if the sins covered—concealed—are that record of wrongs that I won’t let go of or just can’t seem to get rid of?

What if while I am growing in faith and living out my salvation, concealing the sins against me from my heart and mind, let’s me grow in God’s grace.

One day, I truly want to forget.  But as I move towards that day, love may just keep those wrongs out of my heart and mind, so I can live out this life governed by love.

When I live a life of love, love reciprocates with this wonderful thing.  It covers over those sins made against me as if I was able to discard that record of wrongs.

OK, I might buy that, but I want to make sure this isn’t some screwball interpretation.  So, let’s consider the proverb.  It preceded what Peter and James had to say by 800 to 1000 years.

Hatred stirs up strife,

But love covers all sins.

That was the New King James which is the same as the original King James save the verbs stirrith and covereth.  Here the same verse in the Amplified Version.

Hatred stirs up strife,

But love covers and overwhelms all transgressions [forgiving and overlooking another’s faults].

The Message offers this translation.

Hatred starts fights,

but love pulls a quilt over the bickering.

Nothing is hidden from God so the covering or concealing or overlooking is what happens to us when love governs.

The proverb tells us that left to our human nature, we fight back when we are wronged.  Hate governs the unrepentant heart.  We fight back.  We get even.  Remember Lex Talionis—an eye for an eye.  That was an improvement over what preceded it, which was essentially the unwritten human law of escalation.

But love overlooks.  Love does not consider the wrong done against us as something to take center stage in our lives.

The Lamb of God took away our sin but we still must contend with judging—not the kind that keeps us from making bad decisions, but kind that is condemning of others—as we live out our salvation.

We have been wronged by many.  We have forgiven many, but not keeping a record of wrongs, that some tough stuff.  Until that day when we see clearly and are clearly seen, we might just need some help concealing the sins that others have committed against us from our own hearts and minds.

One day, we will get to where we can forgive and forget.  It may or may not happen in these bodies.  It’s a tall order for sure.

But love—which Paul reminded us never fails—will help us negotiate and navigate this toughest of tasks, even if it must conceal the wrongs against us from us, until our Christian maturity is ready to put them away for good.

Jesus lived a fully human life for about 3 decades.  He was wronged many times.  On his way to the cross, the record of wrongs against him was incomprehensible; yet, he spoke from the cross asking forgiveness for those who were murdering him.  “Father, forgive them.  They know not what they do.”

Our Father in heaven not only forgives us but forgets our sins as well.  That’s our goal as well—forgive and forget.

Why, was it important to spend a little time on this piece of scripture?  We understand our counsel.  Love our enemies.  Be patient.  Fulfill the law by living a life governed by love.  Why do we need this nugget on love covering a multitude of sins?

Because keeping no record of wrongs might cause us to throw in the towel.  We might just say, “What’s the point?  Nobody can do this.  God wants too much from me.”

Keeping no record of wrongs probably does fall into the bridge too far category, at least for now.  But we want to please God by living a life of love.

How can we renew our mind, when the record of wrongs against us won’t give way?

How can we love our neighbor, when some of those neighbors have hurt us badly and we can’t forget that?

How can we be patient, when our human mind is thinking about getting even?

They say that pitchers and quarterbacks have short memories.  They don’t.  That interception is a memory that won’t go away.  The pitch that is now an upper deck souvenir is a moment forever frozen in the mind of the man on the mound.

They can’t truly forget them right away, but they learn to cover over those memories so they can throw the next pitch or start the next series ready to score.

We as disciples of Jesus Christ need to grow in grace.  We learn to tithe and give generously.  We learn to serve others.  We learn to seek the counsel of the Holy Spirit.  We pray and listen for God.  We trust God more and more each day.  We even learn to do this when our own understanding tells us something else.

We are growing in God’s grace.  We have learned to forgive but keeping no record of wrongs is just too tough for us now.  We try.  We think that we have set aside this record of sins against us, then in a moment that file is fully restored.

But we desire so much to be people of light and of love.  We want to please our Lord and Savior and Master.  We do.

So, when we set out each day to live a life of love, love does a wonderful thing for us.  It covers over the record of wrongs made against us.  It helps us grow in all of those other areas while we wait for perfection to come.

And one day, that day will come when we can forgive and forget.  The day will come when we realize that the eternity of living that is set before us is so much greater than any way in which we had been wronged in the life that is behind us.

Until that day—whether it comes in theses bodies or with the Lord—we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and do our best to live lives of love, letting love do the work of covering a multitude of sins, not hiding them from God but from ourselves so that they do not stagnate our growth.

Thanks be to God that love does for us what our own hearts and minds cannot.

Amen.

Engaging Ephesians

Engaging Ephesians with homiletic enthusiasm:  AKA growing in grace.

The church located at Ephesus was not one plagued with problems or being led away from one true gospel.  Surely they had their battles, but most of all they were a group of believers who were ready to grow in God’s grace.

Are you worshiping and serving in such a body of believers?  If so, perhaps these messages will help you too grow in his grace.

Chapter 1 – That Predestined word again

Chapter 2 – One in Christ

Chapter 3 – Wisdom of God made know

Chapter 4 – Don’t let the sun go down…

Chapter 5 – Wisdom, Love, & Respect

Chapter 6 – Under His Armor

Don't let the sun go down...

Read Ephesians 4

We could spend a few weeks on this chapter talking about Gifts from God, many enumerated herein.  We could talk about those who follow Jesus, the church, being the body of Christ and being called to unity.

We are one in the Spirit and we are one in the Lord.  We are one in Christ Jesus.

We sing those words frequently and they bring us much assurance and encouragement.  It is wonderful to know that we have been equipped with special gifts to help us produce good fruit.  It is encouraging to know that we will not all have the same gifts but we will all have a contributing place in the body of Christ.

We should all be encouraged to know that the body of Christ is our family.  We don’t need to covet each other’s gifts and talents and unique abilities.  We need to discover and discern how God has equipped us to contribute and when and where we need to lean on others in the body of Christ.

Diversity of gifts and unity in the body are a divine model.  We seldom it right.  Sometimes we get close.  Sometimes we get a taste of what it is to live in a family of faith.

For the moment, let’s save the larger discussion on Gifts of the Spirit and Unity in the Body for another time; and let’s dive into growing in grace.

Growing in grace only begins with salvation.  You receive the free gift and begin this course called discipleship.  Once we have begun this course, we are to be different from the world.

Paul would say take off the old self—that’s the person conformed to the image of the world; and put on the new self—that’s the person being made in the image of God.

To understand Paul, and even some other parts of the Bible, we need to understand a paradigm or model that we might call all ready done/in the process.

Are you made in the image of God?  Are you being made in the image of Christ Jesus?  Are we there or not?  The answer is “yes!”

Has God made us in the image of himself—which surely includes Jesus—or are we on our way to being made in that image?

The answer once again is just “yes.”  Yes to both.  We are made in his image and on the way to being made in his image.

We will see more of this all ready done/in the process thinking from Paul as we navigate his letters.  For now, understand that what we will discuss forthwith falls within the framework of discipleship—following Jesus as those who accept him as our Lord and Savior and Master.

We are blessed with salvation, equipped with special gifts, and designed to work as one body with Christ as the head.  Now what?

We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

I love the phrase, speaking the truth in love.  I use it a lot. Frequently, I use it beyond its original context but within the author’s intent, I think.

We should consider the original statement and intent.    First, Paul is writing to members of the body of Christ.  These are disciples.  We are disciples.

He gives them and us a starting point for growth.  It is truth.  We must speak the truth to each other, not to hurt, but to grow in God’s grace.

Truth spoken to other believers should have the potential to produce growth.

Now I have shared with many of you on occasion that in the course of my life I was accused of being tactful twice; however, you should note that I was acquitted on both counts.  Being just blatantly honest comes naturally to me.

But the direction here is to speak the truth in love, and the “in love” part means that there is potential for growth in another believer.

There is another condition if we want effectiveness.  I meet with people all the time who come looking for money.  Trust me, I do speak the truth in love with them and I seldom expect much growth.  Why?

Because most of the time, I am meeting with someone who is not much interested in being a disciple, much less growing in grace.  Their focus is just fixing the immediate problem and not growth.

Many are saved.  The gift of God is for all and many have accepted it, but so many do not want to follow Jesus, live by God’s wisdom, or make any sort of productive changes in their lives.

I speak the truth in love and fully believe that I am called to do that, but Paul’s counsel is to a body of believers that want to truly follow Jesus.  They want to grow in God’s grace.

If you have spent any time studying God’s wisdom, then you will note that the fool or the foolish are not much interested in correction or growth.

This counsel is for members of the body of Christ who desire to grow in God’s grace.  With truth as our foundation, we are much less vulnerable to what Paul described as the schemes of the world, these cunning and deceitful ploys to lead us away from God.

While we do not live under the law for our salvation; that does not mean that there are not some good guidelines for godly living that we should strive to go by.

In general, metaphoric terms we are told to put off our old self and put on the new one. 

Here we go again with this all ready done/in the process thinking.  We know from Paul’s second letter to Corinth that  if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

In this letter, Paul is saying that we need to be a part of making this new creation.  We are to put off the old self and put on the new self.  This is growing in grace and there is a whole lot of participation for us.

We are to get rid of falsehood and put on truth.

We are to get rid of vulgar speech and put on encouragement in our speech.

We are to get rid of corruption and deceit and unclean desires of our hearts and put on God’s righteousness that we know in Christ Jesus.  You might have heard it as put off corruption and put on incorruption.

We are to get rid of coarseness and put on gentleness.

We are to get rid of arrogance and put on humility.

We are to get rid of words that tear down and put on words that encourage.

We are to get rid of selfishness and put on unity.

We are to get rid of futile thinking and put on a renewed mind.

We are to get rid of darkness and put on light.

We are to get rid of unsavory pursuits.  If you have been stealing to make a living, stop it.  Get a honest job.  OK, let’s keep with the parallelism here.  Get rid of being a thief as your livelihood and put on employment.

We are to get rid of bitterness, rage, brawling, slander, and malice in all of its forms and put on kindness and compassion and forgiveness.

Paul even throws in an OBTW in his forgiveness counsel, just as Christ has forgiven you.

Take off the old self and put on the new self.  Stop living in the darkness and live in the light.

Stop living just for ourselves and bear with one another in love.

It’s not like once we have been saved that we have no guidelines at all.  Paul gives the big metaphors and general guidance as well as some specifics.

Paul makes a special note here in the area of anger.  

Remember James counsels us to be slow to anger.  Perhaps anger is not something that has to be completely purged from our system, but we are admonished not to let our anger lead to sin.  A little inductive reasoning might tells us that by itself,  anger itself is not a sin.

Anger is an emotion that we have all surely experienced.  

Paul is saying, master you anger so that it does not become your master for you are being made in the image and likeness of your Master.

Jesus had some righteous anger.  Remember that he turned over tables and made a whip to run off those who made his Father’s house a den of thieves.  They made it into a commercial zone instead of a house of prayer and worship.

We should note that Jesus was not quick to anger.  He had been in the temple when he was 12 and now some 20 years later, he lets loose his anger. 

Our counsel is not to let anger get the best of us.  We must not let it lead us to sin.  The Message says it this way.

Go ahead and be angry. You do well to be angry—but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.

Other translations say, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.”

Going to bed while you are still angry makes for a bad night’s sleep and is not in keeping with putting on the new self.

You might not be able to resolve the issue that led to the anger but you can put the anger to bed before you turn in.  We must not hold onto anger and weaken our defenses against evil and the Evil One.

Paul says don’t give the Devil a foothold.  Give it a few weeks and we will get to putting on the full armor of God.  We have to get to and through marriage first in this letter, but for now, do not call it a night if you are still wrestling with anger.

You may have unresolved issues but don’t let anger govern in your life.

Remember that you have some help.  The Holy Spirit is walking with you all the time.  The body of Christ is your family and is available to encourage and counsel you.

Within the body of Christ are some with special gifts—evangelists, pastors, teachers, and many more.  Paul’s list here is not an exclusive listing of all gifts.

The body of Christ is equipped to help you grow in grace.  You are to help others as part of that body.

So what is it to grow in grace?  Let’s start with not letting the sun go down on our anger.  It’s a good model.  

Sometimes it saves the day.

But must we apply this model only to anger?

What if we have vulgar language?  Should we not do something to improve that before the day’s end?  We may not eliminate a lifetime’s vocabulary in a single day but we could take a few steps in that direction.

If you are a thief or engaged in other criminal activity, that might just be something to give up before you go to bed tonight.  It might take you more than a day to find an honest job and you can get unemployment if you quit your thieving job, but you should give it up now nonetheless.

If we are mean spirited or malicious or bitter, we need to work on that today.  It doesn’t go on our to do list.  It is not something that you do when you get around to it.  Don’t let the sun go down on your bitterness.

If you have been saved by grace and faith and have decided to follow Jesus, put on the new self before the sun goes down.

We are a new creation and we get to put on the attributes of that newness every day.  First we need to rid ourselves of some old habits and old ways and even old thinking.

There is a saying that seems to have been around for almost 500 years without any certainty on who said it first, but it bears repeating here.

There is no time like the present.

God has made us in his image and preserved us for all eternity; yet, each and every day we are called to grow in grace and become more and more like Jesus.

We still have a lot of work as far as putting on the new self goes.  It is a certainty that we will get there because God as he spoke through his most prolific letter writer says we are already a new creation.

But we still have lots to do and there is no time like the present.  Let’s do all that we can to put on the new self today.  And as far as those things that belong to the old self, let’s cast them off before the sun goes down.

Paul gives us lots of theology in his letters, but in this part of his letter he challenges to work on our lives.  This is part of discipleship.  This is growing in grace.

our salvation is not at risk in our conduct and behavior but our conduct and behavior should stand in stark contrast to most of the world.

Paul says, “Let’s work on that.  Let’s do it today.  There is no time like the present.”

Don’t let the sun go down on your anger or anything else that you know you need to work on that you could do something about today.

I have been talking a lot about connecting the disconnected, connecting with other congregations and denominations, and reaching the lost.  Let’s take a week and focus on ourselves and grow in grace.

Let’s work on ourselves this week whatever that may mean to you.

·      Anger

·      Vocabulary

·      Vindictiveness

·      Our worship

·      Prayer time

·      Patience

·      Humility

·      Encouragement

·      Thinking

·      Emotions

If you don’t know what to work on, you might ask someone within the body of Christ who you trust to speak the truth in love to you. 

Why on earth would I ever do that?  Why would I ask someone else what I need to work on?

Because you want to grow in grace.  We know that challenge and support working together produce growth.  We want to grow.

Why did people read Paul’s letters when he consistently challenged them?

Because they wanted to grow.  They knew salvation and wanted to grow in God’s grace.  I think that we do too.

Let’s take off those old clothes and put on the new, and let’s do it today.  We can at least take some steps in the right direction today.

Let’s not let the sun go down on us today until we have grown a little in God’s grace.

There is no time like the present.

Amen.