Thursday – October 27, 2016
I speak blessing, empowerment, be realized by each of you as you grow in your knowledge of Him, thinking, speaking, and doing as He did and as He does. God is so good. When we said: Yes, I want Jesus as my Lord, we were quickened and instantly were seen at the Throne of Heaven in Christ Jesus at the right hand of Majesty on High.
Ephesians 2:6-8 (KJV)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
God has been wonderful to us and it never stops. God is on a giving spree and it will never end. Read verse seven carefully. He is showing us “the exceeding riches of his grace”, “his kindness toward us”, and it is all “through Christ Jesus.” Now that is a mouthful my friends. Recall that I explained the phrase “in the ages to come” really is best understood as in the eternity to come. The reason it is an eternity is because we are talking about the exceeding riches of his grace, grace is the Holy Spirit, who is God, who is infinite, eternal. There really is no known language that can encompass the exceeding riches of God. Uncovering something new every day and in one-hundred trillion years we have just started to uncover the riches of God which is uncountable, unsearchable.
The Grace (not capitalized in error in our text) of God is the Holy Spirit of God. Many times you will see the Grace of God referred to as the favor of God. The word favor draws our attention away to what is received (the favor given) instead of the One from whom it is received. Before we proceed to the next verse let me point out that having the “Grace of God” operational in one’s life is different than being baptized in or filled with the Holy Spirit. The baptism in the Holy Spirit brings an impartation of supernatural power and a prayer language. Let’s look at Jesus and the “grace of God”. The following verse is speaking of Jesus as a child. Jesus grew physically, and when it says that He “waxed strong in spirit” it is speaking about His knowledge of God is growing for He is immersed in the Scripture. This immersion caused Him to grow and be filled with wisdom, which is the highest use of knowledge and understanding. And Dr. Luke by the unction of the Holy Spirit tells us that “the grace of God was upon him.” Jesus’ right standing brought Him safely to His ministry.
Luke 2:40 (KJV)
40 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.
Now let’s take a look at one of my favorite passages as we explore the Grace of God.
Psalm 5:11-12 (KJV)
11 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.
12 For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.
In verse eleven of the preceding passage we find some keys to the Blessing and the Favor (Grace) of God. First we see that trust or faith in God is essential. This trust or faith is directly tied to God Himself defending us. Sounds good so far. Then we see that ‘love’ is a key component as well. Remember that at its root Bible love has to do with being obedient to the Word of God. Remember as well that love is the power of faith. Also in this same verse there is a lot of talk about joy. Let’s take a look at a commonly quoted verse.
Nehemiah 8:10 (KJV)
10 … for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.
Look at this verse and try not to be boxed in by prior understandings or teachings. It is talking about the joy of the LORD, not that you and I can’t have joy but here it is the joy the LORD has, and it is the joy He has concerning us. When we believe Him and act in love (obeying the Word) it causes Him to be joyful and it unleashes His Grace (favor), His strength in our lives. Seems like faith and love might be worth the time investment. Back to Psalm 5:12. The Psalms are the nineteen book of the Old Testament indicating faith. Five is the number of God’s Grace, the Holy Spirit. And twelve is the number of God’s perfect divine government.
Psalm 5:12 (KJV)
12 For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.
Those in right standing with God (righteousness) are blessed which is to be empowered by the Blessing, the Holy Spirit. In addition this righteous person is encased, hedged in with favor, the Grace of God, the Holy Spirit of God. Sounds like the place to be! I will pick up here tomorrow.
By: Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
