The Word of His Grace
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING: - It is said, and it is a true statement that what is needed most today is not the voice of man, but the voice of God. That is never truer than right now for we are a generation that is bombarded with a bunch of nonsense, lies, and indescribable confusion that comes from every direction. People talk about ways to solve ethical, moral, and spiritual issues by passing laws and regulations using a corrupt human philosophy, traditions, and legislation. We are inundated with propaganda and false promises that seem to have an underlining of religious authority but in all reality is poison in a juicy red apple that will cause people to sleep and eventually die having lost their freedom and eventually the souls having been destroyed by wolves in the pulpit and in the political arena.
People are ignorantly blinded by the words of men and women who are literally wolves in sheep’s clothing that offer sugar coated promises and believe that our spiritual duty is politically based because there is a Bible which now contains the Constitution of the United States and that the words of man are equal to if not surpassing the Word of God and some preacher and denomination says some twisted version of scripture that will support the blatant lie and because people are destroyed for the lack of knowledge fall for it.
In a time of confusion, uncertainty, diminishing hope, political unrest, spiritual anemia, and the clamor of propagated promises from every side spiritual, political, social, economical and every other possibility we need the authoritative voice that stands and says “Thus saith the Lord”.
The Bible says in Isaiah 55:7 “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon”.
THE WORD OF HIS GRACE.
PRAYER: -
SCRIPTURE: - Acts 20:32 “And now brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified”.
In a time when we are dealing with death, distractions, disappointments, despair, disillusions, despondency, disheartenment, dejection, depression, divergence, discord, disunity, and disbelief there needs to be that stability, that soundness, that surety, that steadfastness, that solid foundation that says “Thus saith the Lord”.
The phrase “Thus saith the Lord” appears 413 times in the Bible and according to Strong’s Hebrew Greek Lexicon #413 is the Greek word “Anekleiptos” and means inexhaustible and faileth not. What Thus saith the Lord is inexhaustible, faileth not, and is from everlasting to everlasting.
As I began to study on this passage and looking at what is going in the world and in our individual lives, I began to think about the only sure hope we have is the Word of God. The Word of God is more than a compilation of stories from time pass, it is more than history told, it is the actual Love letter from God to His creation, it is God talking to us in the past, in the present, and in the future. At the center and substratum of the Bible is the doctrine of GRACE. Grace does not depend on anything we do or have done or that is within us but is the undeserved, unmerited favor, and sovereign character of God bestowed upon us.
There is no greater theme in the Bible than the unmerited, inexhaustible, exceedingly abundantly Grace of God. Grace is getting what we don’t deserve. The Grace of God is the willingness of God to forgive us and bless us even though we have fallen short of the glory of God but through Grace are able to stand and exalt in the hope of the glory of God as Colossians 1:27 “which is Christ in you the hope of glory”.
The Words of His Grace are relevant for the now, time is ever changing, but now is always relevant and is always now. Example: - 10 seconds in the future will soon be the past, tomorrow will soon be yesterday, but now is always now and is always relevant that is why “Now faith is the substance of things hope for and the evidence of things not seen” Hebrews 11:1 it is relevant NOW. The word of God is always effective in the now, it is never failing, inexhaustible, relevant what was said 2000 years ago is relevant now and will be relevant 2000 years from now if the Lord tarries.
Many scriptures in the Bible illustrate the magnificent wonder of the Word of God John 1:1 it is the Word of Life, Matthew 13:19 the Word of the Kingdom, Romans 9:9 the Word of Promise, Colossians 1:5 the Word of Truth, 2 Corinthians 5:9 the Word of Reconciliation but here it is the word of his grace.
The word of His Grace will see you through any circumstance and situation we may be faced with, it will release within you the potential to fulfill your purpose and walk in your destiny, it will sustain you in times of trouble and encourage you when you feel discouraged, when the days, weeks, months, and years are uncertain and we dread what tomorrow may hold the Word of God will do what no program, no person, no other power can do for it is the Word of His Grace and He said “My Grace is Sufficient” 2 Corinthians 12:9.
In our text Paul is about to depart from the people of Ephesus and he understands that when he leaves that the people will face hard times, disappointments, trials, tribulations and ultimately will never see him again so he does the best he can do for them and says Acts 20:32 “And now brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified”.
He says “I commend you to God” in others words I entrust you into the hands of God. As the leader of the people, he was letting them know that he is committing them with trust and confidence in the hands of God that He will keep them and protect them regardless of what may come upon them. I know in the past few months death as riddled my family and when I could do nothing to help my wife and dry her tears I commended her to God because there is nothing I could do to help her, the words I said had little effect, but I know a God that is able to keep in hard times, that is able to take the tears and put them in a bottle, can dry the weeping eye, turn sadness into joy, will give you beauty for ashes, joy instead of morning. 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you”. When you are at your whit’s end and there is nothing else you can do, no program can help you, no friend can encourage you commend yourself to God cast all your cares upon Him.
He then says, “and to the word of his grace”. When I think of this phrase it encompasses so much and paints a picture so beautiful. The word of his grace and the Grace of God are not the same exactly but are so intertwined that like bone and marrow, blood and plasma, or love and marriage. The grace of God is His unmerited favor and comes from the Greek “Charis” which means favor, blessings, kindness, it is His choice to bless us. The word of His Grace is a picture of His Grace towards us and His Love for us and it is the word of His Grace that will build us, keep us, empower us and bring us into our inheritance.
The word of his grace is contained in the Bible, it is God talking to us and expressing His Love toward us, the word of His Grace is God’s words that are loaded with the answer to every question we may have, the solution to every problem we may face, the escape to every predicament we find ourselves in. The word of his grace explains the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on our behalf, establishes who we are in him how we were once enemies but now are heirs of Him and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we receive God’s Grace, the Holy Ghost indwells in us and empowers us to walk in His will and in His ways leading and guiding us into all truth.
Then it says which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. The word of His Grace builds us up spiritually, mentally, physically, emotionally, and socially causing us to prosper in other areas of our life. WATCH THIS:- When Jesus healed the woman with the issue of blood He said, “Thy faith hath mad you whole” Mark 5:34. The Word of His Grace made her WHOLE which means He touched and Healed her entire person not just the issue of her blood, but the issue of her mind, spirit, soul, emotions, socially, economically, and relationally that happened from the Word of His Grace.
The Word of His Grace builds us by empowering us to be able to stand and having done all to stand, it will cause you to live like a warrior even when you want to cry like a baby, it will, it bestows and establishes boldness to the timid, strength to the weak, it mends the broken hearted, dries the weeping eyes, turns sorrow into joy, the word of his grace creates and establishes our faith in Him, sustains us, provides victory over sin, sets us free.
And give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. This is the ultimate inheritance, it surpasses money or possessions for it is an inheritance of eternal life for all those who are sanctified, set apart, separate from the world. This inheritance is the right and the privilege to be called a child of God being reconciled with Him for eternity. This inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading 1 Peter 1:4 – 7 says, “To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ”.
We are sanctified separated from those of 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulteres, nor effeminate, nor abuses of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God”.
To be sanctified is to be set apart for the special use. To be used for God’s purpose. For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared before hand so that we would walk in them, this is to be set apart to display to the world the wonder, majesty, and holiness of God. Those that are sanctified have this inheritance.
CLOSING:- Understand that no matter how unfair, extreme, overwhelming life my seem to be from time to time, year to year there is no situation to extreme for the Word of His Grace. There is no mountain too high, no valley to low, no darkness too dark for the Word of His Grace to reach you. Ephesians 3:20 says “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think according to the power that worketh in us”.
As Paul said I commend you to God and the word of his grace I want to encourage you to seek His Face and the Word of His Grace by digging deeply holding on fervently, and receive from His Word of Grace all that you need and then come boldly to the throne of grace casting all you care upon him for He careth for you.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
