Time of Grace With Pastor Mike Novotny

We see things from the perspective of self, as sin-broken creatures. Jesus points out here that these seemingly bad things are only important for one reason: they make us stop and look up for a second and ask why? Jesus then says something that to us seems irrelevant to the topic but is the most important thing to God: “Repent!” This is a reminder that a right relationship with God is most important. The only truly bad thing that happens to people is not being in a right relationship with God. Thank God for Jesus, who through the cross makes all who believe right with God!

Marriage is a blessing from God, where two become one. Divorce is not part of the equation for relationships where God is most important.  Keep the Bible as the center of your marriage as instructed by Jesus.

Are you a tolerant person? Jesus was tolerant of everyone!  People kept objecting against him and the things he did, even his own disciples.  It didn't matter to Jesus because he was following God the Father and leading by example of what it truly means to accept people.  Look to Christ because he really is the only way.  The only way to a promised life of eternity in heaven.

Our God is a God of free and faithful grace. He promises us that we are free at last through Jesus. He demonstrated his faithfulness to the Israelites when he delivered them from Egypt, and we can be assured that he will keep his word to us as well. We celebrate our freedom in Christ and look for others with whom we can share that message of freedom.

We are all part of God’s sales team as we spread his Word to others. But we don’t go out unequipped. We have a powerful ally in the Holy Spirit who works faith in people’s hearts. It’s not up to us to convert people; we pass on the information and the Holy Spirit takes it from there. And not only does he do the converting, but he gives each of us special gifts to use as we witness our faith.

As part of God’s action team to get his Word out to others, we want to use all the technologies available to us. As Job wanted his words written down so others could read and learn about God, we use print and the Internet and all that’s available to us to let everyone know that they have a Redeemer who lives!

In Ephesians chapter 2, St. Paul gives us a crystal-clear manual for how to share our faith and in what order. First, present our dilemma—sin. Second, explain what God did about it—grace. Third, God works in our hearts to believe—faith. Fourth, when God is in our hearts, it comes through in our lives—works.

God, the true source of all love, also modeled love for us by sending his Son, Jesus. Because of God’s love, we are changed and his love flows through us to others. As we seek to communicate the good news of the gospel, we need to love those around us as we have been loved. God works through that witness and love to work faith in people’s hearts.

Abraham and Sarah waited a long time for God to fulfill his promise of a son. They doubted and laughed at the idea but then laughed with joy when God kept that promise. God wants us to be patient and let him work in our lives. We have no idea what he has in store for us, but we can know for sure that he promises to make it all turn out for our good and to his glory.

As we work through hardships and struggles, we can become weary and want to give up. But God warns us against becoming so weary that we don’t see how far we’ve come, that we get to the point where our faith begins to decline because we aren’t looking to him for help. When we feel like giving up, he encourages us to own up to the sinful part we play in our lives, to repent, and to look to God’s Word to build us up and strengthen us for when times get tough so that we persevere and look ahead to heaven.