Sermon Series
All Have Sinned–But, There's Grace! – Part 2
"Sustaining Grace"
Pastor Jerry
1 Peter 5:6-11 (NIV)
------------------------------------- Message Synopsis -------------------------------------
Are you afraid of dying?
The Bible tells us that God always finishes what He starts.
"God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished..." God will finish it. What does that mean?
It means if you have really given your life to Jesus Christ, you are going to make it to heaven. There's no doubt about it. Because it doesn't depend upon your performance; it depends upon God's sustaining grace.
How can we be sure we're going to Heaven? Because of God's Sustaining Grace!
Last week we looked at God's Saving Grace. But God doesn't want to just save you. He wants to sustain you through life.
Today’s message is about God’s “Sustaining Grace!”
What is Sustaining Grace? Sustaining Grace is the power to keep on going when I feel like giving up.
Do you ever feel that way? There are many pitfalls in the race of life. We're going to talk about them this morning. But regardless of what you go through, no matter what you face this year,
you can count on God's Sustaining Grace being there.
There are three things in life that can cause you to stumble, that can cause you to get off the path, that can cause you to not finish well in life. God's Sustaining Grace says I will help you in each of those three situations.
- I can count on God's Sustaining Grace to help me keep on standing when I'm tempted.
Temptation is the first thing that causes us to stumble. The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8
"Watch out for attacks from the devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. Take a firm stand against him... and so be strong in the faith."
The moment you become a believer a battle starts in your life.
Satan wants you to fall out of grace. You are faced with moral choices. Those moral choices are called temptations.
1 Corinthians 10:13
"The temptations that you have are the same ones that all people have. But you can trust God. He will not let you be tempted more than you can stand. When you are tempted, God will also give you a way to escape. Then you will be able to stand it." This is God's Sustaining Grace. This is a terrific, fantastic promise. God will provide a way of escape.
A second way God gives us His sustaining grace to help us not to stumble & get off the path is…
- God's sustaining Grace helps me keep standing when I'm tired.
Life is often exhausting. It requires a lot of strength, a lot of energy to live life Do you ever get tired of doing what's right? Sure. That’s because it's tough moving against the flow, swimming upstream. But where do you get the power to do the right thing when you don't feel like doing it or when you're dead tired.
2 Corinthians 1
"It is God who gives us the ability to stand firm for Christ. He has …identified us as His own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts." Those two, the
“Holy Spirit" and
"standing firm" go together. The key to the Christian life is not trying, it's trusting. It's letting Christ live through you. And He will give you the power you need.
Philippians 2:13
"For God is at work within you, giving you the will and the power to achieve His purpose." When God gives you the will and the power to do something, you'll be able to do it. God never asks you to do something He doesn't give you the power to do.
There's another way God gives us His sustaining grace:
- God's Sustaining Grace gives me the power to keep standing when I'm troubled.
In other words, when I have problems, when I have difficulties. Jesus said,
"In the world you will have trouble." You're going to have difficulties, you're going to have obstacles. You will have situations that you cannot handle. He says,
"I will give you the power."
There are many kinds of trouble. But the most difficult problems in life to handle are the unfair ones. You are innocent. You didn't cause it. Those are the ones that are hard to handle.
I experienced this recently. I thought how unfair I was treated. I was angry.
SO, I took my hurt and went to the Lord. I asked in prayer what should I do? The Lord revealed to me to apologize to him for my anger and mistrust of him about the job.
It didn’t matter who was at fault…what mattered was that forgiveness and kindness is the nature of God Grace and in loving others His way. OK!
Most of us can handle problems if we can see an end in sight, light at the end of the tunnel. But there are some things in your life that hurt you, harm you, that are unsolvable, that you're going to live with the rest of your life. And nothing's ever going to change that. And they hurt the most.
What do you do in those situations? You need to focus on Christ. Focus on His sustaining power. The Bible says this in Isaiah 41
"Don't worry, because I am with you. Don't be afraid because I am your God. I will make you strong. I will help you. I will support you with My right hand that saves you." … "God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble."
What do you do when you can't fix an unfixable problem? What do you do when you can't control something that hurts deeply in your life?
You bow to the sustaining Grace of God.
How do I get it? How do you get that kind of grace to keep going in spite of temptations, trials, tension, tiredness and troubles?
You do four things:
- Call out for God’s help.
Cry out to God. You need to admit your inadequacy and say,
"God, I can't handle this!" The Bible says
"God gives grace to the humble." So give yourselves completely to God.
"Draw close to God and God will draw close to you." Call out for God's help.
The second way you get sustaining grace to keep going in spite of troubles…
- Fill your mind with God's word.
Let the Bible comfort you, let it strengthen you, let it give you the energy you need to keep going.
Get into the book, every single day of your life. Begin to read it and get it into your mind.
David prays,
"I am completely discouraged. Revive me..." How?
"Revive me by Your word." There is some advice going around today, it’s the standard New Age answer to your problems.
"This advise is that the answers are within you. Look inside yourself." What a lie.
The answer is not looking within you. You need to look to God. He's the only one who can change you. He's the only one who can help you. The answers are found in the word of God.
The Third way you get sustaining grace to keep going in spite of troubles…
- Accept support from God's people.
Do you know how important people at church are in a time of crisis? Often people say,
"We wouldn't have made it without Christian friends." The Bible says by helping each other with your troubles you truly obey the law of Christ. What is that law,
"Love your neighbor as yourself." The second great commandment. You need to accept support from God's people.
The fourth way you get sustaining grace to keep going in spite of troubles…
- Hold on to God's promises.
There are over 7000 of them in the Bible waiting to be claimed. Here's one of them, Isaiah 40
"He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youth grow tired. But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint." Keep your hope in the Lord. Even more than that, keep your eyes focused on the hope of heaven, not just on the here and now.
(I opened this message with a hard question:)
Are you afraid of dying?
What’s your answer? It’s found in God's Sustaining Grace. God’s Grace will take away your fear and give you Peace!
Paul said it this way,
"I begged the Lord three times to take this problem away from me. But He said to me, `My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, then My power is made perfect in you." When you're going through a problem you can't fix, don't give up, look up!
If you are discouraged …if you are struggling with guilt and shame …if you may be dealing with financial concerns ...0r dealing with unemployment or something you cannot control. Look up …and
bring those concerns to God right now.
