What is more precious than life? Phil Ryken in his sermon on Wednesday night at General Assembly said from Acts 20:24 that to testify to the grace of God is more precious than life. Is speaking about the grace of God in Christ to others more precious than life to you?
Dr. Ryken gave three reasons why proclaiming the grace of God in Christ is more precious than life. First, he said proclaiming the gospel is precious because God is. The gospel of grace is the of God gospel that brings us into a relationship with himself, the living God. The gospel tells us that it is his own blood that has bought us and brought us. His investment in our lives for his glory and our good is of infinite value. Second, he said it is proclaiming the gospel of grace is more precious than life because it is the gospel of grace. Grace is precious. God does for us what we cannot do for ourselves. We are dead he makes us alive. We are unholy and he justifies, sanctifies and glorifies us in his grace. His grace is precious because when we pray, “Have mercy on me a sinner.”, he says to us the same words he said to his own Son, “You are my beloved son with you I am well pleased.”. Third, proclaiming the gospel of grace is more precious than life because Jesus has called us to proclaim it. Paul received the calling to proclaim it from Jesus himself and so the church has received the same very precious privilege of being the ambassadors of our King. It is a mystery that he has entrusted to his church this precious God entranced gospel of grace, but it is precious call because it comes from the one in whom is hid our life forevermore.
Is proclaiming the gospel of grace in your words and deeds more precious than life? May God send forth his Spirit into our lives and churches that we will glory in the grace of God in Jesus Christ so that we may be able to speak of that which is most precious to us.
No comments:
Post a Comment