Embracing God's Inexhaustible Grace and Abundance

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I am so thankful that alex simply threw open the door for me to talk about the inexhaustibility of god yes couple reasons why i'm so excited to talk about this one is that my introduction to reformed theology 50 years ago was not mainly through secondary theological sources but through texts of the bible that elevated the self-sufficiency the inexhaustibility of god as high as it possibly could be elevated in other words what struck me is that the very godness of god was that he is absolutely free absolutely self-sufficient he has no needs from outside himself but is completely and eternally sufficient in himself and not just sufficient but a vesuvius of joy in the fellowship of the trinity so that he has absolutely no need of me whatsoever but he's so full that he is prone to overflow with a river of pleasures towards those who will have him as their supreme treasure that picture of god years ago from the bible was ravishing to me [00:35:46]

Grace is the overflow of god's self-sufficiency so you can't have grace if you don't have an utterly infinitely gloriously self-satisfied all-sufficient overflowing god who does not need you at all close quote that's the picture of god that he was sustained by that's the meaning of grace that held him and kept him from making shipwreck of his faith grace is the overflow of the self-sufficiency of a god who doesn't need him that's what grace is it's the overflow from an inexhaustible fountain which means that the only way we can relate to god so that he's pleased and so that it glorifies him is not by hauling buckets of human labor up the mountain and pouring our supply into the pure inexhaustible mountain spring of god but rather by falling on our face exhausted and putting our faith and our face in the water and coming up and saying ah that's so good thank you god for the overflow that you are for me [00:163:36]

For example acts 17 25 god is not served by human hands as though he needed anything since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything and that's not just true of god the father it's true of christ as he comes into the world mark 10 45 the son of man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many we don't serve him he serves us or we die romans 11 34 who has known the mind of the lord or who has been his counselor nobody you can't give god counsel or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid nobody you can't loan god anything to put him in your debt why next phrase for from him and through him and to him are all things to him be glory forever amen [00:279:92]

Offer to god a sacrifice of thanksgiving and perform your vows to the most high call on me in the day of trouble and i will deliver you and you will glorify me that's amazing so how do we glorify a god who has absolutely no needs and has all resources in himself answer by not being his benefactors but his supplicants by calling on him for help then we get deliverance he gets the glory or as the psalm says i will deliver you and you will glorify me you get the deliverance i get the glory this is what stunned me years ago the bigger god gets the more self-sufficient he becomes the less he needs me then the more resourceful he can be for me and the more riches of glory he has to pour out freely on me and the more glorious he looks when we find our joy in him what a god [00:376:80]

Listen to the way isaiah 40 28 makes the connection the lord is the everlasting god the creator of the ends of the earth he does not faint or grow weary his understanding is unsearchable what's the consequence of all that self-sufficiency he gives power to the faint and to him who has no might he increases strength they shall mount up with wings like eagles they shall run and not be weary they shall walk and not faint so the inexhaustible hand of god is good news for the exhausted i remember in those early days when i was first being amazed by this kind of self-sufficient inexhaustible overflowing god that two of my passages were second chronicles 16 9 the eyes of the lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is blameless toward him in other words he's on the lookout he is actually on the lookout for anyone who is humble enough and weak enough to let him be strong for them [00:465:36]

In isaiah 64 4 from of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear no eye has seen a god besides you who works for those who wait for him can you believe that in other words god's uniqueness nobody's seen a god like this god's uniqueness is that in his overflowing fullness he delights to work for us rather than have us work for him the giver gets the glory so not surprisingly this kind of absolutely self-sufficient inexhaustible overflowing god is where the gospel comes from the gospel of our salvation for those who have absolutely no way to save themselves he says oh everyone who thirsts come to the waters he who has no money come by and eat come buy wine and milk without money and without price isaiah 55 1 [00:540:24]

It's like the machine shop that i jogged by for years until it closed recently it had a permanent help wanted sign nailed to the wall on the side of the building so every time i go by almost big permanent help wanted sign but some days there was a big red diagonal line through the sign with a big no in the middle of it no help wanted and i used to leap for joy while i was jogging saying that's my god yeah that's my gospel no help wanted no help needed no help demanded i exist to be inexhaustible and to help those who will trust me that's my glory thus the glory of the gospel so amen alex everything else runs out like you said but god never runs out he will be giving and giving and giving to all eternity as we receive and receive and receive like little children with joy [00:612:64]

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