LUKE 8:38-43 “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. (39) And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. (40) But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
Clearly Jesus wants his disciples to find REST in Him and the only way He can do this is to create a New Covenant with ‘Better Promises’ Hebrews 8:6 ‘But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.’ A NEW COVENANT WITH BETTER PROMISES NOT COMMANDMENTS
Our sins are forgiven once and for all. Our righteousness comes from Jesus. Our holiness comes from Jesus. The Holy Spirit lives and abides in us leading us. We have eternal life in Jesus.
We are JUSTIFIED, SANCTIFIED AND GLORIFIED all because of JESUS and His Grace.
A scripture that is often misunderstood is PHILIPPIANS 2:12
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
‘Work OUT’ not work ‘FOR’ your salvation – EPHESIANS 2:8-9 ‘For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.’
Now that I am saved it’s up to me to outwork my salvation with reverence and seriousness. Now it’s up to me to study God’s Word and see what it says about how I should be living my life but as a Christian living in the New Covenant I am going to take hold of the New Testament and if I read the Old Testament I will read it by seeing Jesus fulfilled in it.
Grace does not excuse us from GROWING and SERVING THE LORD but it does empower us to know that we can do it from a position of REST knowing that I’m OK with God.
HERE ARE 2 WAYS IN WHICH GRACE CHANGES YOU.
1. GRACE CHANGES YOU BY BEHOLDING JESUS – 2 CORINTHIANS 3:14-18
But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains un-lifted in the reading of the Old Testament because the veil is taken away in Christ. 15 But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless, when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. (Freedom) 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
What I look at is transforming me. The mirror of the Law reflects my sins which leads to condemnation and more sin. The mirror of Grace/JESUS reflects Jesus which causes me to be changed like Him. What are you looking at? Christ is changing me as I look to Jesus, not to myself. You can not know God by looking at the Law but you will know God by looking at Jesus. Don’t study the Bible just to know the Bible, study it to know Jesus.
2. GRACE CHANGES YOU BY DELIGHTING YOURSELF IN THE LORD – PSALM 37:4
Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Delight in the Hebrew is HAPPY RESPONSE Give in the Hebrew is MAKE A CHANGE. In other words, when I have a HAPPY RESPONSE towards Jesus the desires of my heart are going to be CHANGED.
How do you respond to prayer, bible study, worship, serving, church, tithing, etc A HAPPY RESPONSE will cause CHANGE in me. Ultimately CHANGE is a result of JESUS! REVELATION 22:13 ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.’ PHILIPPIANS 1:6 ‘That He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ’
