Time of Grace With Pastor Mike Novotny

No matter what country we live in, God can use our circumstances to carry out his will. He promises to bless us and hear our prayers. He invites us to pray for our country, to thank God for it, and to use us in whatever ways he can to spread his Word.

Jesus promises that he will come again to take us to heaven. We are to believe it; through faith it is ours. As we go through life looking forward to what awaits us in heaven—emotional and physical healing, full access to God and his love, an eternity of loving service—we share that confidence in heaven with those around us. We are already marked with the name of Jesus; heaven is ours even now!

Parents are crucially important players in transmitting the gospel of Jesus to their children. If we teach God’s wisdom to our children, they will know of their forgiveness, they will learn self-control, they will know of the freedom from fear and anxiety, and they will look forward to a life in heaven.

One of the important parts of being a parent is teaching children to obey. A child who doesn’t learn to obey or exhibit self-restraint doesn’t cultivate the servant attitude that is needed in life to get along with others, to hold down a job, or ultimately to respect and obey God. This section of Colossians gives us a mental framework for what a Christian home is supposed to look like. In that home love is apparent—children feel secure and valued, they learn respect and gratitude, and they attribute their blessings to their loving God.

Being a parent is hard, and there are times when we fall short or our sinful actions are apparent to our kids because we’ve wronged them or failed them in some way. But even when we mess up, God forgives us. As we are repentant and do our best to fix what we’ve done, we have the assurance of that forgiveness and the knowledge that God has a plan to use us to pass on our faith to the next generation. Our mistakes become examples that our own children can learn from.

Jesus' transfiguration revealed his glory, but the disciples kept quiet about it at first because many people wouldn't have believed them. Now that Jesus' redemptive work is finished, we share the news about him as far and wide as we can so that others can hear about the only way to heaven.

God has shown amazing love and mercy to us. And as recipients of that grace, he tells us to show the same to others, even to our enemies.

In the final message in this series, Pastor Jeske teaches you about the Holy Spirit’s role in grace. It is he who gives you the faith you need, and he transforms your attitudes to follow God’s will, not your own.

Grace is purely God’s gift! Jesus humbled himself so that we could grab on to the riches he brings us: forgiveness of our sins and life eternal. He redeemed us and made us his children. We celebrate that amazing gift that’s ours through faith, and we let that love flow through us to others.

God pours out his providing grace on all of us--giving us all that we need and sustaining us daily. As his children, we have the honor of being messengers of that good news!