Time of Grace With Pastor Mike Novotny

The world was created by God; all of human history was shaped by his hands. Yet we as sinners can still approach him in prayer and worship because of the holiness that is laid on us by what Jesus did for us. We worship confident in our forgiveness and confident that the God who created us is here, making things change and happen for our good.

Jesus’ once for all sacrifice makes it possible for us to approach God in prayer and worship. We don’t need priests as intermediaries anymore like the OT people did. Jesus made a one-time sacrifice. We are priests—able to share God’s mercy and grace with others. As believers we gladly worship him, bringing our praises and thanks to God. 

Jesus’ parable describes the different reactions that people have to his Word. Initially, we do nothing for our faith. The Holy Spirit plants it; it is pure grace. But once planted, it is the type of “soil” that we are that determines whether or not we have a lasting faith. For us to retain our faith, we must stay in the Word, listening to it and studying it. That is how God strengthens us and keeps us close. We then live lives of faith for God, sharing the gospel with those around us.

In this section of 1 Peter, Peter tells us what God calls us: we are chosen, we are priests, we are a holy nation, and we belong to him. Knowing our status with God, we are all part of one family, connected to each other through Christ with the same mission to share the good news. We are to embrace who we are and keep the Word of God moving—sharing it with others.

Jesus used the miraculous healing of the blind man to bring the man closer to him and to reveal God’s glory to witnesses of the event. God also uses our sicknesses, failings, and diseases to strengthen our faith and point us to the new bodies we will enjoy in heaven because of Jesus. We can use the difficulties we have in life as stepping off points for strong witness to others.

In this section of Scripture, Paul gives a wonderful summary of Jesus’ work: his life, death, and resurrection. God sent his Son for sinners—he cared enough to send his Son for all people. Because God cares, we care—being light to those who are still lost in their sins and striving to share Jesus’ love and forgiveness with them.

God cares for each of his people, including older people. Our society tends to shun them, forget about them, and think of them as unimportant. But God thinks differently. We are to show the elderly respect for what they’ve done in their lives so our lives could be better. We are encouraged to listen to the elderly and learn from their mistakes. They have valuable information for us. And finally, God encourages older people to be proud of their gray hair because it is a sign of hard work in sharing their inheritance of faith with the next generation. 

The Israelites would soon enter Canaan, and Moses was not allowed to go with them. Before God took him to heaven, God told Moses to instruct the people, to remind them of what God had done for them. He retaught this group of young people the original covenant that God had made with their parents when they came out of Egypt. Moses encouraged the people to remember these things and pass them on to their children—transmitting the faith. In the same way God encourages us to share the gospel message with our children.

God encourages us to be careful who we put first in our lives. God should always be first because he is in control. If we put him first he promises to bless us.

Through imagery, God told Daniel the future of Israel. God reassured Daniel not to be afraid, to know he was loved, and to know that God is in control of what is happening in the world. God tells us the same things: He loves us and is protecting us. Jesus will give us the ultimate deliverance from this world by taking us to heaven. God urges us to be strong, and as we wait for deliverance.