Living in Grace: Urgency and Transformation Through God's Word
Summary
In today's gathering, we were reminded of the profound grace and mercy of God, as exemplified through the lives of the Bensons and Jorge. Their stories serve as a testament to God's sovereignty and the transformative power of His grace. We are reminded that, left to our own devices, we would be lost, but through His mercy, we are saved and called to live lives that glorify Him. This grace should stir us to a deeper reverence for God's Word, which is like pure water that cleanses and renews us.
Reflecting on a vivid image of people washing clothes in muddy water, I was reminded of how our efforts, though sincere, are incomplete without the pure Word of God. It is crucial that we immerse ourselves in Scripture, allowing it to cleanse and guide us. This is not just about reading the Bible but truly revering it as the living Word of God, which holds the power to transform lives and bring peace even in the most tumultuous situations.
I shared my recent experience in Ethiopia, where I witnessed the power of God's Word in reconciling warring tribes. Despite the violence and displacement, pastors from opposing tribes came together, washed each other's feet, and committed to peace. This powerful act of unity and humility was a testament to the transformative power of the Gospel. It challenges us to stay awake and engaged in the spiritual battle, resisting the temptation to fall into complacency.
We are called to live with urgency, recognizing that life is fleeting and the return of Christ is imminent. This means living simply, giving generously, and investing in eternal things. We must not be caught holding onto worldly possessions when Christ returns but instead be found faithful, actively participating in His mission.
In closing, I urge us all to remain vigilant and committed to the fight, wherever we are. Whether in Ethiopia or Colorado Springs, the battle is real, and we need the Holy Spirit to guide us in living lives that reflect the urgency and importance of the Gospel.
Key Takeaways:
- God's grace is transformative and calls us to live lives that glorify Him. We are reminded of our natural state as objects of wrath, but through His mercy, we are saved and called to a higher purpose. This grace should lead us to a deeper reverence for God and His Word. [01:36]
- The Word of God is like pure water that cleanses and renews us. Our efforts, though sincere, are incomplete without the transformative power of Scripture. We must immerse ourselves in the Word, allowing it to guide and cleanse us. [05:08]
- The power of the Gospel can bring reconciliation and peace even in the most tumultuous situations. In Ethiopia, pastors from warring tribes came together, washed each other's feet, and committed to peace, demonstrating the transformative power of God's Word. [18:57]
- We are called to live with urgency, recognizing the fleeting nature of life and the imminent return of Christ. This means living simply, giving generously, and investing in eternal things, ensuring we are found faithful when Christ returns. [25:12]
- The spiritual battle is real, and we need the Holy Spirit to guide us in living lives that reflect the urgency and importance of the Gospel. Whether in Ethiopia or Colorado Springs, we must remain vigilant and committed to the fight. [30:33]
Youtube Chapters:
[00:00] - Welcome
[00:12] - Opening Prayer
[01:16] - God's Grace and Mercy
[03:32] - The Image of Cleansing
[05:08] - Reverence for the Word
[07:38] - Reading of Matthew 24
[12:46] - The Urgency of Christ's Return
[16:13] - Experience in Ethiopia
[18:57] - Reconciliation Through the Gospel
[21:25] - Living with Urgency
[24:10] - The Value of Scripture
[25:12] - Investing in Eternal Things
[27:17] - The Reality of Spiritual Warfare
[30:07] - Closing Prayer
[31:34] - Final Exhortation
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide
Bible Reading:
- Matthew 24:1-51
Observation Questions:
1. What image did the pastor use to illustrate the importance of the pure Word of God, and how does it relate to our spiritual cleansing? [03:32]
2. How did the pastor describe the impact of God's Word during his experience in Ethiopia? [18:17]
3. What does the pastor say about the urgency of living in light of Christ's imminent return? [20:50]
4. How does the pastor describe the spiritual battle we face, and what examples does he give to illustrate this? [27:17]
Interpretation Questions:
1. In what ways does the pastor suggest that God's grace should transform our lives and lead us to glorify Him? [01:36]
2. How does the pastor's experience in Ethiopia illustrate the power of the Gospel to bring reconciliation and peace? [18:57]
3. What does the pastor mean by living with urgency, and how does this relate to the teachings of Matthew 24? [25:12]
4. How does the pastor's story about the man who left the church illustrate the reality of spiritual warfare? [26:43]
Application Questions:
1. Reflect on the image of washing clothes in muddy water. How can you ensure that you are immersing yourself in the pure Word of God rather than relying on incomplete efforts? [03:32]
2. The pastor shared a powerful story of reconciliation in Ethiopia. Is there a relationship in your life that needs reconciliation? How can you apply the Gospel to bring peace to that situation? [18:57]
3. Considering the urgency of Christ's return, what changes can you make in your daily life to live more simply and invest in eternal things? [25:12]
4. The pastor emphasized the importance of staying awake in the spiritual battle. What practical steps can you take to remain vigilant and engaged in your faith journey? [27:17]
5. How can you use your resources and time to actively participate in God's mission, rather than holding onto worldly possessions? [25:12]
6. Reflect on the pastor's story about the man who experienced spiritual oppression. How can you guard against spiritual complacency and ensure you are grounded in the truth of God's Word? [26:43]
7. The pastor mentioned the importance of the Holy Spirit in guiding us. How can you cultivate a deeper reliance on the Holy Spirit in your daily decisions and actions? [30:33]
Devotional
Day 1: Transformative Grace and Higher Purpose
God's grace is not just a passive gift but a transformative force that calls individuals to live lives that glorify Him. This grace is a reminder of our natural state as objects of wrath, yet through His mercy, we are saved and called to a higher purpose. It is a call to a deeper reverence for God and His Word, recognizing that without His intervention, we would be lost. This grace should inspire a life of gratitude and worship, acknowledging the profound change it brings to our lives. [01:36]
Ephesians 2:4-5 (ESV): "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved."
Reflection: Consider an area of your life where you have experienced God's transformative grace. How can you actively glorify Him in that area today?
Day 2: The Cleansing Power of Scripture
The Word of God is likened to pure water that cleanses and renews. Our sincere efforts are incomplete without the transformative power of Scripture. Immersing ourselves in the Word allows it to guide and cleanse us, not just through reading but by truly revering it as the living Word of God. This reverence for Scripture is essential for spiritual growth and transformation, as it holds the power to bring peace and clarity even in the most challenging situations. [05:08]
Psalm 119:9-11 (ESV): "How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you."
Reflection: Identify a specific passage of Scripture that you can meditate on today. How can this passage guide and cleanse your thoughts and actions?
Day 3: Reconciliation Through the Gospel
The Gospel has the power to bring reconciliation and peace even in the most tumultuous situations. In Ethiopia, pastors from warring tribes came together, washed each other's feet, and committed to peace, demonstrating the transformative power of God's Word. This act of unity and humility challenges us to stay engaged in the spiritual battle, resisting complacency and striving for peace and reconciliation in our own lives and communities. [18:57]
2 Corinthians 5:18-19 (ESV): "All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation."
Reflection: Think of a relationship in your life that needs reconciliation. What steps can you take today to initiate peace and healing in that relationship?
Day 4: Living with Urgency
We are called to live with urgency, recognizing the fleeting nature of life and the imminent return of Christ. This means living simply, giving generously, and investing in eternal things, ensuring we are found faithful when Christ returns. It is a call to prioritize what truly matters, letting go of worldly possessions and distractions, and focusing on the mission and purpose God has set before us. [25:12]
1 Peter 4:7-8 (ESV): "The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins."
Reflection: What is one worldly possession or distraction you can let go of today to focus more on eternal things? How can you invest in God's mission with urgency?
Day 5: The Reality of Spiritual Warfare
The spiritual battle is real, and we need the Holy Spirit to guide us in living lives that reflect the urgency and importance of the Gospel. Whether in Ethiopia or Colorado Springs, we must remain vigilant and committed to the fight. This involves being aware of the spiritual forces at work and relying on the Holy Spirit for strength and guidance in our daily lives, ensuring that we are actively participating in God's mission. [30:33]
Ephesians 6:12-13 (ESV): "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm."
Reflection: Reflect on a current challenge or struggle in your life. How can you rely on the Holy Spirit to guide and strengthen you in this spiritual battle today?
Quotes
how father you are so good your mercy your grace your sovereignty your power god I thank you so much for bringing glory to your name but what you did through the Bensons and and Jorge's life God thank you for saving him thank you that will be with him in an eternity God I could have ended so differently but as you were grace you just decided to pour out your grace and it's only by your grace and we're in this room God we could be doing so many things were left to ourselves God would be a mess would be under your wrath we were by nature objects of Wrath then you come and you pour out this mercy on us because you're rich in mercy because of your great love with what you loved us God please just help us to understand that from our souls right now Lord just how good you are and how you deserve all the glory all the glory all the glory [00:00:55]
I had this picture a while back I believe it was of the Lord and I was just for some reason I was getting ready to speak or something and I I got this image in my head of you know how in India when or Africa or some of these third-world countries you know where they're washing clothes in like dirt puddles like I've been I can in my hotel room in India one time just watching people in these dirt puddles like in the street washing their clothes and you know you look and you go could that be doing anything right you know you've seen it on TV or whatever you know they're in this muddy river and they're washing their clothes and you're going wait is that really making it any cleaner right but it must be because they're doing it and I and I as that picture was in my hand I was just thinking Lord that's what I believe the Lord was revealing to me is Francis that's that's like your sir you know it's it's it's washing but yeah and it's doing something but what people really need is the pure water of the word there's something the word does when we Revere and it's just read and and we allow it to it's like like imagine going from that dirty puddle which is cleaning I'm not saying it's not doing anything but then just having someone pour just this pure water all over your clothes all over you that's why I've been feeling about the word of god lately and so many of our gatherings now it's just like would someone just start reading it and I just want to be cleansed completely [00:03:32]
imagine right now you know you've had whatever seven eight different speakers so far but imagine we say okay now Jesus is going to come to the stage I hope your attention level would rise like a hundred times what you gave Jorge or John or whatever it's like Jesus is about to speak like like we should just be like okay okay you know let me record this let me get get every bit of this easy and so often in the church it's not like this you know and I remember being confronted about this as a young speaker I would get up there and I would I would read a verse pretty quickly and then get into my story and remember that one of my mentors is like Francis you know I see this happen a lot where you get up you'll read a verse and you'll just skim through it and and then you'll go and get to the thing that you want to say the jokes you want to tell or whatever owls and I have more reverence for the Word of God now just thinking about those words again and so right now man I I just believe we in America were part of this generation that got so tied to voices and personalities and everything else and it's time for us to just love the pure word read like that pure water and go please just read read read [00:05:51]
and you will hear of wars and rumors of wars see that you are not alarmed for this must take place but the end is not yet for nation will rise against nation and the Kingdom against Kingdom and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places all these are but the beginning of the birth pains then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake and then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another and many false prophets will arise and lead many astray and because lawlessness will be increased the love of many will grow cold but the one who endures to the end will be saved and this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come [00:08:47]
I just got back from Ethiopia about a day ago and it's really hard to transition you know like I I went there was kind of like a last minute trip because I heard of a situation there where there was like a million people who were displaced and there's starvation lack of food everything and when I got there found out it was actually 2 million and crazy situation you know I'm just trying to figure out how do we keep these guys alive so they can hear the gospel in God's sovereignty we had prepared we were gonna do a pastors conference in the very village where a million of these displaced people showed up and yet it was violent and and everything else there was just concern about safety so they're saying maybe we should cancel us like well no or maybe we should double down and can we actually release these pastors in to care for these displaced people let's just let's just go there let's just figure something out and once we got there we found out the reason for a lot of this you know the whole reason for all these displaced people which it's crazy and it's you can hardly find it on the news but it's because of warring between these tribes and so the guy that was helping has set up the conference over there decided we you know let's do the conference and let's get pastors from the different warring tribes and bring them together and see what happens [00:15:55]
to see God move through his word as we just started to read and and then we had a time of foot washing I mean you've got to understand some of these pastors had fresh stab wounds some of these pastors were just dragging out friends from the village you know near near death I mean this is just a crazy situation I mean there's houses torn down everything we're seeing all these this destruction craziness and now these opposing tribes are there and let's brace ourselves let's see what happens and so to see people who were at war now washing each other's feet in tears over the Word of God man and then they were talking about possibly joining arms and marching into some of these places of violence and I'm in the middle of this thing just going man come on Lord please this is this is incredible [00:18:57]
I want to stay awake I want to be in the middle of the battle and there's something about being here that it's so easy to get caught up in okay so so now I'm try to figure okay what am I to do this afternoon am I go to the zoo my go bowling I mean there's a few different options here and and then it's like oh no but then I am I gonna feel guilty if I do this you know you know can i bowl after what I just saw it you know and then what I just heard right it's just this crazy thing and now I'm trying to get aid to these two million people and we're trying to bring reconciliation to these tribes and we're just going back and forth and I believe a lot of you are here today cuz you're like yes exactly it's like I don't know what to do it's just like I want to do something I've got to get in this fight and we just read from I'm sitting there listening at Matthew 24 listening to Jesus and going yeah yeah I want to be awake I wanna I don't want to be like the days of Noah where you know where those people are just he's not naming like horrible sins eating drinking getting married giving in marriage it's just everyday life and and yet he's trying to save us from that [00:20:00]
I think there's something in all of us because God's seed abides in us like it says in first John 3 were we're dying to climb out of this normalcy and be a part of the fight be a part of the war and when Christ returns we don't want to just be casually giving a little bit and when I came back from Malaysia I didn't know that was gonna impact me that much you know I just went over there to speak you know because I'm the token Asian American preacher you know and let's go and and let's go over there and and and share the vision and everything else and so I just kind of went you know because I believe in this so much and I love the word and I cannot imagine like I said and I feel like what do you do without this what do you do without this we just go around and saying hey Steve what do you think what do you think God is like oh I think he's big if you know hey Mart what do you think like and we just go off everyone's means well here's what's coming out of my mind what a joke that would be horrifying and so I believe in this because it's like whenever any of you says to me I'm going that doesn't really sound like what Jesus just said and I'm always going back to this and so this is something I care about very much so I was there but I didn't know how much God was gonna stir my heart [00:21:25]
I never really thought about what if I didn't have this book and so this is first time I really thought about what if we didn't have the Bible and I'm just going you know what would I do what would I give to get one of these I mean I really don't think I'm exaggerating I think I would give everything because I'm thinking man I don't know yeah I got another breath I'm still alive another day I don't know if I'll be here to mind also to speak early in the morning that's not a guarantee and so man I better know the truth like I would I think I would sell the house I think I would sell everything and say just give us that no kids I don't know if we're gonna get to eat but we've got to know what happens after this life because it's just too short anything can happen today we must have this like I would give anything to have this I think and so then you know telling why if the Bible saying like I'm just to love my neighbor as myself like I don't want it to come to the end and realize oh man I had equity in my home that equity could have could have translated a whole the scriptures like in in a foreign language it would've been a whole people group man I don't want to have these things you know it's like that that game back then remember when we were young some of you you know that game hot potato you know where you know you just passed like a ball pretending it was like a hot potato I don't know it's dumb I mean no one plays anymore because there's no app for but it's it's just you know it's just it was this thing where you know you you didn't want to be caught holding this thing whenever the time ran out okay get it away get it get it get away from me like I feel that way with my resources it's like because at the end when Christ returns I want him to see that it's like oh man this is what I was about and this is where I want to end it is not going oh man look how much I had left over [00:24:10]
I just ask that you use your word and that your Holy Spirit now would just lead us to do what we need to do but just help us to see that the battle is real God show us Holy Spirit teaches how to be in the war amidst our jobs our responsibilities our family's help us to stay in the war lord help us to stay awake help us to truly be a part God I pray for my brothers and sisters in this room Lord please save them protect them from the whole from from the evil one protect them father from the comforts of this world that they don't just fall in love with it Lord protect them from just a casual commitment to you and casual giving God we want to give our lives to you we don't want to waste whatever is left wake us up Lord by your spirit we don't have to be in Africa we don't have to be in Peru we need your Holy Spirit to wake us up right here in Colorado Springs by your spirit wake us up reveal truth to us so we can really live like the end is about to happen in Jesus name we pray amen [00:30:33]
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