Participants: Shelley Quinn (Host)
Series Code: GPL
Program Code: GPL000004
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00:01 Hello, I am Shelley Quinn.
00:02 Today on "The Grace Pipeline," 00:04 we will examine the reality of relationship 00:07 between God and His born again children. 00:10 And we're gonna spend some time together contemplating 00:13 what the Bible says about the immeasurable love of God. 00:18 Please join us now. 00:40 Welcome to "The Grace Pipeline." 00:42 On our last program, 00:44 we discussed the process of being born again 00:47 by the transforming power of God's gifts of grace. 00:52 And today we will reflect on the reality of relationship 00:57 that exist between our loving Heavenly Father 01:00 and His born again children. 01:02 And we're going to get a glimpse of the wonders 01:06 of His redeeming and unutterable love. 01:09 You know, the Bible says that God is love, 01:12 but I don't think that we really understand it. 01:15 This series follows a Bible study 01:19 that I was privilege to write 01:20 also titled 'The Grace Pipeline." 01:23 And if you are following along in the series companion book, 01:27 today we're beginning on chapter 3. 01:30 In Romans 5:8, scripture tells us that 01:33 "God demonstrates His own love for us 01:36 in that while we were still sinners, 01:38 Christ died for us." Now let me ask you this. 01:42 Can you think of the more dramatic way 01:44 for God to prove His love for humanity? 01:47 Now, just for a minute, 01:49 try to wrap your mind around the privilege of the promise 01:53 that John tells us in John 1:12, 01:58 where he says that "As many as received Him, 02:02 whoever has received Christ, 02:04 to them He gave the right to become children of God 02:09 to those believe in His name." 02:12 So we see that God loved us 02:15 while we were still habitual sinners, 02:17 before we accepted Christ as our Savior and became His children. 02:21 And all who believe by faith in Christ merits, 02:25 to save them, accepting Him as Lord and Savior. 02:29 To them that are given the right to become children of God. 02:34 Of course, that means whoever rejects Him 02:37 is not a child of God. 02:39 People often will say that, 02:41 all of humanity are God's children. 02:44 That's only true in regard to the fact 02:48 that we are a product of His creation. 02:52 Sin severed humanity's relationship 02:54 to God as our Father, 02:56 when Adam and Eve disobeyed and suffered spiritual death. 02:59 Their spiritual nature was passed on to us. 03:03 Let's think about the Genesis account of creation 03:05 and the fall of mankind for just a moment. 03:08 First we must consider 03:10 what the Bible teaches us though about immortality. 03:14 And we find this scripture that Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 6:16 03:19 where he speaks of God as "the blessed and only Potentate, 03:24 the King of kings, and Lord of lords, 03:26 who alone has immortality," 03:29 Paul says, "dwelling in unapproachable light, 03:33 whom no man has seen or can see, 03:36 to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen." 03:40 So it's clear from scripture that God alone is immortal. 03:44 The Bible tells us in the Genesis 3:22-24 account, 03:49 that through an act of divine mercy, 03:51 God denied Adam and Eve 03:53 the right to the tree of life after they sinned. Why? 03:57 He didn't want them to become immortal sinners 04:01 if they were to eat and live forever. 04:03 So when do Christians actually receive immortality? 04:08 Is it at the moment of our rebirth? 04:11 Let me read what the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 15:51-54. 04:18 And listen carefully. 04:19 Paul writes and he says, "Behold, I tell you a mystery. 04:23 We shall not all sleep, 04:25 but we shall all be changed, in a moment, 04:29 in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet." 04:32 So when is this happening? 04:34 It's happening at the last trump. 04:36 He says "For the trumpet will sound, 04:38 and the dead will be raised incorruptible, 04:42 and we shall be changed. 04:45 For this corruptible" speaking of our natural bodies 04:49 "must put on incorruption, 04:51 this mortal must put on immortality." 04:55 So when we see, 04:57 "When this corruption has put on incorruption, 05:00 and this mortal has put on immortality, 05:03 then shall be brought to pass, when at the last trump, 05:08 then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, 05:12 "Death is swallowed up in victory."' 05:16 And you know Paul also clearly teaches 05:18 in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. 05:22 That it is when the last trumpet shall sound and Christ returns, 05:27 that those who sleep in their graves will rise 05:31 and together with the saints 05:33 who remain alive at His second coming, 05:35 they will put on immortality 05:37 and be caught up together in the air to meet Jesus Christ. 05:41 Now, let's consider the presence of God. 05:43 Psalm 104:2 it says, 05:46 "That God covers himself with light as with a garment." 05:51 The Jewish writer described 05:53 this brilliant presence of the Lord 05:55 as His Shekinah Glory. 05:57 Now, when God created Adam and Eve in His image, 06:01 He clothed them with His radiance. 06:04 They were representatives of all humanity, 06:07 with whom God sought a relationship of trust, 06:11 but sin shattered this trust, 06:13 when the first couple disobeyed God, 06:15 and they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 06:18 And He removed the Shekinah covering 06:22 and when this was withdrawn, 06:24 the two recognized their guilt and their nakedness, 06:27 and they hid from their Heavenly Father in fear and shame. 06:31 To restore the relationship 06:35 between the creator and His created, 06:38 God instituted the sacrificial system. 06:41 Divine justice demanded death for their sin. 06:45 But divine mercy provided an innocent substitute 06:50 that was slain and that pointed to the Calvary praying 06:53 and the promised Lamb of God 06:56 who would take away the sins of the world. 06:58 So to cover their shame of sin, 07:01 the merciful Heavenly Father again clothed His children, 07:05 this time with tunics of the skin 07:08 from the sacrificed animal. 07:10 And Adam and Eve obviously coached their children 07:13 in the significance of the sacrifice 07:15 of innocent substitute as God's grace 07:19 giving plan of reconciliation for remission of sin. 07:23 We know from the Genesis 4 account 07:26 that the sacrifices offered by Cain and Abel, 07:31 it is evident that both men were familiar 07:33 with the sacrificial system, 07:35 but the hardy and self will Cain 07:39 rebelled against following defined regulations. 07:43 In fact, in defiance he offered God 07:46 a sacrifice of his own works. 07:49 Hebrews 11:4 says, "By faith Abel offered to God 07:55 a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, 07:58 through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, 08:01 God testifying of his gifts." 08:04 Now that Cain knew better 08:06 and to offer the fruits of his own labor is obvious, 08:10 because he did not accused the Lord of unfair preference 08:14 in accepting Abel's sacrifice and rejecting his, 08:18 but in an outrage of jealousy, Cain murdered his noble brother. 08:23 If he had only repented and confessed his sin, 08:28 if he had felt sorrow for his sin, 08:30 the Lord would have forgiven him. 08:32 Nevertheless Cain did not and God expelled him 08:36 from the land of his birth 08:37 to lead a life of exile on the earth. 08:41 Through Adam, the representative of humanity, 08:45 sin gained entrance into the world and death 08:48 both spiritual and physical was a result of it. 08:52 Romans 5:12 confirms that, 08:54 "Through Adam sin entered the world, 08:58 and death through sin." 09:00 Now most of us are familiar with this idea, 09:03 but surprisingly many people don't realize 09:07 that the children of Adam and Eve 09:09 were born in their likeness, rather than the image of God. 09:13 Genesis 5:3 clearly states that 09:19 "Adam begat a son in his own likeness, 09:22 after his own image, 09:24 and that the fallen state of human nature 09:28 was passed on to all of humanity." 09:32 Now it is only by the sacred blood 09:35 and our sacred bond with Christ 09:38 that we become God's recreated spiritual children. 09:42 It's the result of accepting His sacrificial death 09:45 and being born again. 09:47 Most Christians find it relatively easy 09:50 to say we are God's children, 09:52 however it requires a serious stretch 09:56 of our finite minds to understand 09:59 and accept the overwhelming multitude of blessings 10:04 that flow to us through this privileged relationship. 10:08 Divine love has no equal, I can't explain it. 10:14 But today, we will share 10:16 some of what our Heavenly Father does for His children. 10:20 We'll briefly consider a number of the many scriptures 10:23 from both the Old and New Testament 10:26 that revealed the manner in which 10:29 God relates to anyone who is His. 10:33 It's important to recognize 10:36 that God shows no partiality among people. 10:39 You know, both the Old Testament 10:42 and the New Testament makes this fact very clear 10:45 and actually specifically it is stated in Acts 10:34, 10:51 Romans 2:11, Ephesians 6:9, 10:58 that "God is not a respecter of people." 11:01 He shows no partiality. 11:03 So the manner in which He demonstrated His love 11:07 for any other person in history is in manner in which 11:11 He will demonstrate His love for you and for me. 11:15 So let's take a little time to consider our perfect Father, 11:20 our Heavenly Father, whose very nature is love. 11:25 More than anything you need to recognize, 11:28 how the Lord loves you. 11:30 You can only love Him in the measure 11:35 that He wants you to when you first recognize 11:38 how much He loves you. 11:40 And it may require a paradigm shift, 11:43 but if you ever accept these truths by faith, 11:47 it will be life changing. 11:50 Our presentation will be saturated with scripture, 11:53 but it is not only possible today 11:56 to look at every reference 11:59 that the Bible uses or even every reference that I will use, 12:03 because nearly every thought presented 12:06 from this point on will come directly from scripture 12:10 and what we can share in this short time 12:13 is just a glimpse of His love. 12:16 But I hope it will be sufficient to open your mind 12:21 and your heart to understanding 12:23 and accepting all that God has for you. 12:28 Let's read first in Zachariah 3:1-5. 12:34 I'm gonna read that to you. 12:36 This is a wonderful story, and it says in the Bible. 12:41 "Then he showed me Joshua the high priest 12:44 before the angel of the Lord, 12:45 and Satan standing at his right side to oppose him. 12:49 And the Lord said to Satan, 'The Lord rebuke you.'" 12:52 Interesting, The Lord said, "the Lord rebuke you Satan. 12:56 The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! 12:59 Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?" 13:03 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments 13:07 and was standing before the angel. 13:10 Then he answered and spoke to those 13:12 who stood before him saying, and this is the angel speaking. 13:16 "Take away the filthy garments from him." 13:20 And to him, to Joshua, the angel said, 13:23 "See, I have removed your iniquity from you, 13:28 and I will clothe you with rich robes." 13:32 And I said, "Let them put a clean turban on his head." 13:37 So they put a clean turban on his head, 13:40 and they put the clothes on him. 13:42 And the Angel of the Lord stood by. 13:45 In vision Zachariah sees how the Lord restores Joshua 13:50 and what He has done for Joshua, He will do for us. 13:54 We see in these verses that God removes our disgrace. 13:59 He restores our dignity, taking away our filthy garments 14:04 that are stained with sin and clothing us 14:07 with His robe of righteousness in salvation. 14:10 And silencing most importantly Satan, our accuser, 14:15 because of His grace we have reason to rejoice. 14:19 When we accept this by faith, 14:22 our joy will be that of Isaiah 61:10, 14:27 that's where Isaiah says, 14:29 "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, 14:32 My soul shall be joyful in my God, 14:35 for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation. 14:40 He has covered me 14:42 with the robe of righteousness." Halleluiah. 14:49 But that's not all, God confers upon us the privileges 14:53 and powers of His kingdom. 14:55 Making us His heirs, 14:57 He gives us a share in the inheritance of Christ, 15:02 this imperishable inheritance, 15:04 reserved for us in heaven will not vanish before we obtain it. 15:09 It is a sure thing for those who are in Christ. 15:12 Listen to two supporting scriptures 15:15 of these marvelous truths. 15:17 First I will read Romans 8:16-17 and it says, 15:23 "The spirit himself bears witness with our spirit 15:27 that we are children of God and if children then heirs. 15:33 Heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, 15:37 if indeed we suffer with Him 15:40 that we may also be glorified together." 15:44 Are you a Christian? 15:45 If so you are a joint heir with Christ 15:49 and you're inheritance is reserved for you in heaven. 15:53 As 1 Peter 1:3, 4 say to us, listen. 15:59 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ 16:04 who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us 16:07 again to our living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ 16:11 from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled 16:17 that does not fade away reserved in heaven for you." 16:23 You know, God also declared in 2 Corinthians 6:18. 16:28 He says, "I will be a Father to you 16:31 and you shall be my sons and daughters" says the Lord. 16:35 When we open our hearts to salvation, 16:38 the God who once seemed so distant 16:41 and unreachable becomes touchable. 16:45 Hebrews 4:16 tells us 16:50 that God invites us to come boldly 16:54 into His presence through prayer, 16:56 to obtain mercy and grace in our time of need. 17:02 And let's just take a moment 17:03 and recall our definition of grace. 17:05 Grace is the unearned, undeserved gifts, 17:09 bestowed by God of infinite love 17:12 which provide His divine assistance 17:16 and supernatural power unto salvation. 17:18 Now here's God inviting us 17:20 before His throne to obtain grace 17:24 and mercy in our time of need that means 17:29 that He will give us divine power 17:31 and supernatural assistance. 17:34 Jesus is God's greatest gift of grace 17:38 and receiving Him as savior 17:41 gives us the right to become God's children. 17:44 Our Lord Jesus taught us to pray in Matthew 6:9, 17:48 with the precious words "Our Father who art in heaven." 17:53 Do you realize the relationship 17:55 of Father and child changes everything? 17:59 In the natural realm, the life of a child is simple. 18:04 He depends upon his good father for everything 18:07 and he has faith that his father will deliver. 18:11 God means for his spiritual children 18:14 to apply this same principle. 18:17 If only we could grasp the reality of it. 18:21 Our soul would not be downcast 18:23 and our spiritual struggle would end. 18:26 Our Heavenly Father loves us perfectly. 18:29 We're the apple of His eye. 18:31 He is the perfect Father whom-- 18:34 whose love is absolutely unfailing. 18:38 Now hear the word of the Lord from Jeremiah 31:3 18:44 where He says, "Yes, I have loved you 18:47 with an everlasting love, 18:49 therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you." 18:53 There is an abundance of scriptural evidence 18:56 that proves our God of love, 18:59 our Heavenly Father is our provider, 19:02 our protector, and our peace. 19:05 In Psalm 32:8 it says 19:11 that "He instructs us and teaches us 19:15 His divine will, showing us the way 19:17 and guiding us with His eye." 19:21 Now here's another one, Hebrews 12:5-11. 19:27 This explains that our good Father 19:29 as any good father would do. 19:32 God disciplines us in His lovingkindness 19:34 to train us for righteousness. 19:36 In other words His right way of living and being. 19:40 You know, I actually pray for God's discipline 19:44 asking Him to make me sensitive to it 19:48 and I want to always be sensitive to His leading. 19:51 Now, don't gasp at the thought of it. 19:54 Sometimes people say, you must be crazy 19:56 if you are praying for God's discipline 19:58 but I know He is going to discipline me anyway. 20:02 So if He's going to discipline us, 20:05 we might as well learn to yield 20:07 to the gentle but firm tone of His voice at once, 20:12 otherwise like any other parent, 20:14 He has to take stronger measures to gain our attention. 20:17 So when trials and tribulations come our way, 20:22 we need to remember that God is not always-- 20:26 it's not always God that's disciplining us, 20:29 but that He is there to comfort us, 20:32 to walk us through, 20:34 to deliver us from times of trouble. 20:37 Let me share some wonderful words. 20:40 These are some of my favorite 20:41 and this comes from Isaiah 43:2. 20:45 And this is the Lord speaking and He says, 20:48 "When you pass through the waters, 20:50 I will be with you and through the rivers, 20:54 they shall not overflow you. 20:56 When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, 21:00 nor shall the flame scorch you." 21:04 What is God saying there? 21:05 He is saying that He will never leave us or forsake us. 21:11 He is saying that I am there to carry you through. 21:15 The Bible tells us when we are afflicted, He is afflicted. 21:19 And Psalm 56:8 says that, 21:22 "He sees our tears and compassionately 21:26 collects them in His bottle." 21:29 The Bible also says, "That quieting us with His love, 21:33 he rejoices over us with singing." 21:36 Let me ask, do you think of God that way? 21:40 Do you think of the Creator of the universe 21:44 rejoicing over you with singing? 21:47 If not, let me share this verse from Zephaniah 21:51 and this is Zephaniah 3:17. 21:54 I hope this will change your perspective. 21:58 It says, "The Lord your God in your midst, 22:00 the Mighty One, will save. 22:03 He will rejoice over you with gladness, 22:07 He will quiet you with His love, 22:10 He will rejoice over you with singing." 22:16 Can't we see, the Bible tells us 22:19 so many things about God's watch care? 22:22 Our Father God calls us by our name, 22:25 knowing our thoughts before we speak them. 22:27 He is watchful of our comings and our goings 22:30 and aware of the smallest detail of our lives. 22:33 He can even number the very hairs on our head. 22:37 You know, Deuteronomy 33:27 is one of my favorite verses 22:42 and it reveals the same thing that Hebrew 13:5 reveals. 22:47 That God is constantly embracing us 22:51 in His everlasting arms of love, promising to never leave us. 22:56 He will not forget us. 22:58 We are indelibly inscribed on the palms 23:02 of His hands the Bible says. 23:04 No wonder the Apostle John wrote in 1 John 3:1. 23:09 "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, 23:15 that we should be called children of God!" 23:20 You know, it is difficult for us to comprehend, 23:25 but we are children of the King of Kings 23:28 and the blessings of His love are immeasurable. God is love. 23:34 The very essence of His nature is love. 23:38 By the grace of our relationship with Christ, 23:41 the gift of God's love is magnified and manifested to us. 23:47 Ephesians 1:3 explains that God has already blessed us 23:52 with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 23:55 He who was willing to sacrifice his own son to save us, 24:00 is also willing to freely grant us 24:03 authorings in Christ through His grace. 24:07 Paul emphatically states this fact in Romans 8:32 24:14 and here he says, "He who did not spare His own Son, 24:19 but delivered Him up for us all, 24:22 how shall He not with him also freely give us all things?" 24:28 It's amazing to consider isn't it? 24:31 Perhaps you can believe these beautiful synonyms 24:34 because scripture records them, 24:36 but the question is, are you walking in appreciation 24:40 of this all inspiring perfect love? 24:43 I must admit, when I was first writing the chapter 24:46 on the reality of relationship 24:48 for the book "The Grace Pipeline." 24:50 I had to ask myself the same question. 24:53 Do I believe these things by mere mental assent 24:58 or am I--I actually acquainted with the width, 25:02 the length, the depth, and the height of this love 25:05 that surpasses human understanding. 25:08 I'm actually thunderstruck at the thought of it. 25:14 Children often little understand the parents love. 25:18 They simply take it for granted, 25:20 yet the ignorants of immaturity does not cause 25:23 them to miss their experience of it. 25:26 Appreciation for the sacrifices and blessings 25:29 that are the product of parental love is magnified 25:33 only as a child begins to mature and increases in the ability 25:38 to reciprocate love through respect and honor of the parent. 25:42 As it is in the natural realm so it is in the spiritual realm. 25:46 The more we grow in grace, 25:48 the more we understand God's love 25:50 and appreciate His amazing love for us. 25:53 Galatians 4:6 tells us that because we're His children, 25:58 God has sent forth His Son, 26:00 sent forth His spirit of His Son into our hearts crying out Abba, 26:06 Father, now, you know, the word Abba is an Aramaic word 26:10 and it's an intimate name for Father. 26:13 It's an expression like papa or daddy. 26:16 How difficult it is for the human heart 26:20 to conceive the intimacy of relationship 26:23 God longs to share with us. 26:25 The mystery of God's love is far too marvelous for me to unravel. 26:31 Perhaps the most amazing idea of all is that 26:35 when we are in Christ, we become one spirit with God. 26:40 Paul tells us this in 1 Corinthians 6:17 saying that, 26:44 "He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him." 26:49 I vividly recall the day that I was praying the scripture 26:53 as an affirmation of my faith, 26:55 thanking the Lord for making me one with Him. 26:59 You know what, I didn't feel one with Him. 27:02 I couldn't comprehend 27:04 what it meant to be united in this way 27:06 and suddenly I was just seized with morning 27:09 for the mediocrity of my relationship with Him. 27:13 So I cried out to God for better understanding, 27:16 to latch on to oneness, 27:19 the Lord wanted me to share with Him, 27:21 I had to unravel the mysterious oneness 27:24 of what man calls the trinity 27:27 "the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." 27:30 The Lord led me in a fascinating study of His oneness 27:33 and we're going to share a small portion of that 27:36 with you in our next program. 27:39 We must understand God's divine oneness 27:42 to understand the promise that we are one with Him. 27:47 We thank you so much for joining us today. 27:50 I hope you'll take time to study these scriptures 27:53 and more contemplate God's love. 27:55 And until the next time grow in grace 27:57 and in the knowledge of our Lord. |
Revised 2014-12-17