Growing in Grace: Min. Nicholas Christian M.Div

 

Growing in Grace

2 Peter 3:18

Triumph Baptist Church

1648 W. Hunting Park Ave.

The Sacred Desk

May 1, 2021

Min. Nicholas Christian M.Div

 

“Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to Him, both now and forever! Amen.” 2 Peter 3:18, (NLT)

In our text today, Peter admonishes us to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. When he begins this letter, he greets God’s people by saying, “May God give you more and more grace …” (2 Peter 1:2) So, clearly, not only can we obtain greater quantities of grace, but we are both encouraged and instructed to do so.

If you’ve grown up in church, as I have, or have been in and around the church a while, you probably associate God’s grace with salvation; as you should. The Bible is abundantly clear that it is by grace that we are saved, through our faith. It is not because of any work that we have done or can do. (Ephesians 2:8-9) But, while it is absolutely the grace of God that has saved our souls, it must have additional functions, or we would not need to grow in grace, and we wouldn’t need more and more of God’s grace.

Perhaps it is the teacher in me, but when I read a verse like our text, I immediately ask, “How?” If someone gives me clear instructions to do something, like “grow in grace,” then I also need them to tell me how to do it. Here, Peter actually tells us to grow in both the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior. But, the knowledge part I understand. Acquiring knowledge is the natural consequence of the study. If I read and study my Bible, I will grow in the knowledge of Christ. But, how does one grow in grace? How can I obtain more and more grace? I’m glad you asked, but before I delve into the “how,” let’s first take a look at what grace does so that we have a better understanding of why we want to grow in it. We already stated that it saves our souls. Acts 15:11, “We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus.” (NLT)

So, let’s take a look at some of the other things grace does.

• It gives us strength. Hebrews 13:9b, “Your strength comes from God’s grace,” (NLT)

• It enables us to effectively operate in our spiritual gifts. Romans 12:6a, “In His grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well.” (NLT)

• It allows us to effectively do ministry for the Lord. 1 Corinthians 3:10a, “Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder.” (NLT)

• It enables us to live a holy life. 2 Peter 1:3-4, “By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him, the one who called us to Himself by means of His marvelous glory and excellence. ⁴ And because of His glory and excellence, He has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share His divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.” (NLT)

Those are just a few of the things that grace does but you might also be wondering how it manifests in our lives? When grace is in action, other than saving me, what does it look like? That’s also a very good question.

• It is by God’s grace that we obtain forgiveness for our sins. This is not the overriding “sin” problem that causes us to need a Savior in the first place, although grace dealt with that too. I’m talking about the day in, day out, moment to moment sins that we commit. When we confess our sins, God, by His grace, forgives us and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. He remembers how weak we are and He is gracious to us. Psalm 103:12, “He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.” (NLT)

• It is because of God’s grace that He both hears and answers us when we cry out to Him for help. Isaiah 30:19b, “How gracious He will be when you cry for help! As soon as He hears, He will answer you.” (NIV)

• It is because of God’s grace that we received undeserved kindness. This is hard to explain because grace can literally be defined as undeserved kindness, or unmerited favor. In school I was taught that you don’t define a word with a word, so I thought one of my favorite verses would help you wrap your mind around the magnitude of what I mean by undeserved kindness. Isaiah 57:18a, “I have seen what they do, but I will heal them anyway! I will lead them. I will comfort those who mourn,” (NLT)

• You may not have thought of this one, but God’s grace supernaturally sustains us. Sometimes, we are so busy praying for something new, different, bigger and better, that we overlook how God, by His grace, has been supernaturally sustaining us through our wilderness seasons. Nehemiah 9:21, “For forty years you sustained them in the wilderness, and they lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out, and their feet did not swell!” (NLT) 

• It is God’s grace that gives us uncommon favor with people who are in a position to bless us, and that secures our success in the things that God has called us to do.  Ezra 7:6, “This Ezra was a scribe who was well versed in the Law of Moses, which the Lord, the God of Israel, had given to the people of Israel. He came up to Jerusalem from Babylon, and the king gave him everything he asked for, because the gracious hand of the Lord his God was on him.” (NLT)

I know what you’re thinking. You are thinking, this is great, but you still haven’t told me how I grow in this wonderful grace that God has, and is willing to lavishly shower upon me. How do I grow in grace?

One of the ways that we grow in grace is by understanding our desperate need for it, and we begin to truly understand our great need as we study God’s Word. The truth of the matter is we’re not as good as we think we are. It is by looking into the mirror of God’s Word that we continually see ourselves for who we are, and consequently know how desperately we need more and more of God’s wonderful grace. Our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked. (Jeremiah 17:9-10, Mark 2:17, Mark 7:20-23) It is only through reading and studying God’s Word that we keep an accurate view of how short of God’s standard we all so woefully fall. James 1:22-25, “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. ²³ For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. ²⁴ You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. ²⁵ But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.” (NLT)

Humility is also one of the keys to growing in grace. The Bible teaches us plainly that God opposes the proud, but He gives grace to those who are humble. So, if you want more and more grace, then you must humble yourself before God. Romans 12:3, “Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” (NLT)

Finally, we must remember where the power/ability is coming from. This really goes along with humility. We must remember that God is working in us, giving us both the desire and the ability to do what pleases Him. (Phil. 2:13) If we can remember that it is in God that we live, move, and have our being, then will learn not to rely on ourselves. (Acts 17:28) Instead, we will approach the throne of grace daily, to find mercy and obtain the grace that will help us in our time of need. 2 Corinthians 4:7, “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” (NLT)

Grace is always on duty. The Bible says it like this, “where sin abounds, grace does that much more abound.” I want to leave you with both a challenge and a word of encouragement. I want you to lean in, and humble yourself before God. I want you to stay in the mirror of God’s Word so you can see yourself and your need for God’s grace more clearly. I want you to pray for more and more grace, remembering that He promised that He would be gracious to us if we asked for help. I don’t care where you are or what you’ve done, there is more than enough of God’s wonderful grace for you!

As you go to God in prayer in the days, weeks, and months to come, I want you to remember exactly where you are going – you are going boldly going to the Throne of GRACE. You are headed there so that you can find mercy and obtain grace to help you in your time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

God bless you, and may grace and peace be multiplied to you today!