Grace And Peace To You / (Why Mentioned So Often In The New Testament?)

"Grace and peace to you ..."

Eighteen (18) times... we hear this exact greeting... or a variation of it... in the pages ...of the New Testament

It is used as the opening sentence ... from our service ... of Morning Prayer:

These words should be familiar: Hear God's Word to the Believers in Phillipi: BIBLE "Grace to you and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ" END (Philippians 1:2)

So, ...we often read and hear ... this greeting of ... "Grace and Peace".

Yet ...what does it really mean?

Why is this ...the favored greeting .... of the apostles?

Let us take a look ... at the Apostle John's form of this greeting ...as it was given today ......from the Book of Revelation:

BIBLE "Grace to you ...and peace from him ...who is and who was ... and who is to come, .... and from the seven spirits ...who are before his throne, .... ?and from Jesus Christ, ...the faithful witness, ...the firstborn of the dead, ...and the ruler of the kings of the earth... To him who loves us... and freed us from our sins ......by his blood, " END (Revelation 1:4-5)

John is writing not to the lost.

He is writing to the Christians ...who are facing severe persecution ...for their faith... in Christ Jesus.

John is writing to followers of the Christ ... facing imprisonment ... Death..., temptation..., and severe trials.

He is writing to Christians ...who are being pressured .... to compromise ...their faith.

And Beloved... we too are feeling many of these same birth pangs ... in our society today.

How do these Christians ...overcome?

How do these Christians... persevere?

(Slow) How do these Christians ... finish the race laid before them ... and finish well?

Beloved they do it...through "Grace and Peace", through the Grace and Peace ... that is showered ...upon every believer.

The Apostle John later in this book ...shares what trials ... these Christians Churches ... were facing.

The Christians in Smyrna ... are facing imprisonment. (Revelation 2:10).

The Christians in Pergamen (Per-ga-mum) ... are facing death. (Revelation 2:13)

The Christians in Thyatira (Thy-a-tir-a) ... are being tempted with evil. (Revelation 2:20)

The Christians in Laodicea have ... allowed their faith to turn ... lukewarm. (Revelation 3:15)

They can persevere ... They can overcome ... they can remain faithful ... through the spiritual infilling ...of God's abundant ...."grace and peace."

And this grace and peace .... which is available to all believers ... comes from ... the triune God. (Pause)

So let us take a closer look ... at the connection between each person ... of the trinity ... and this glorious gift of ...grace and peace.

John begins by telling us ...that grace and peace (1 Finger) comes from the father: ... Hear John's words to us this day:

BIBLE "Grace and peace to you from him who is, .... and who was, .... and who is to come ..." END (Revelation 1:4)

To understanding the book of Revelation, ... we need to interpret it ... in the light of ... the Old Testament.

In his greeting .... John is calling us to hear echoes ...of God's greeting to Moses ... out of the burning bush.

God said to Moses, "So now, ... go ...I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people ... the Israelite's ...out of Egypt" (Exodus 3:10).

Moses protested. "Who am I?" ...... "Who shall I say sent me?" ...... (God reverses the question Who am I and responds) ...... "I AM WHO I AM" (Exodus 3:14).

Now, listen again ...to John's greeting this day: "Grace and peace to you from him who is, ... and who was, ... and ... who is to come".

Grace and peace come from the ... God Who is.

Grace and Peace from the great ...... "I AM,"

I AM ... Who is ... the source of ... all life.

Grace and peace ... comes from God the Father who is always present, ... Who is ...eternally present.

And We need to stand on this promise ... when we are under attack.

We need to stand on this promise ... when we face opposition.

We need to stand on this promise ...when we are the target of hostility.

When we are pressured ... to compromise ... the faith.

The "I AM" ...Who brought Israel out of Egypt... is with us.

And He is showering us ...with his ...... grace and peace. (Pause)

Did you notice the two unique features ...that John shares about ...God the Father?

First and foremost, ...what John is saying ... seems to be ... out of order.

John states ..."him who "is"...... the Present, ...and who was ... the Past ... and who is to come... The Future"

Present, Past, Future!

We would expect him to say, "him who "was"... (Past) ...and who is... (Present) ...and who is to come. (Future) "