Is The Grace Of God Fully Operational In Your Life?

The Grace of God (God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense) was not just given to get you into Heaven. The Grace of God is given to the believer to get Heaven into us. I believe – along with the Apostles – that it is possible to be saved by Grace, and yet not enjoy the fullness of Grace. The Bible calls this “Receiving The Grace of god in Vain”. The Apostle Paul spoke of this when he wrote::

1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

The Grace of God will take you to Heaven. But the Grace of God should take God’s Heaven to your heart. If you are under Grace, you should joyously labor for God’s Kingdom. Jesus said “the Kingdom of God IS WITHIN YOU” (Luke 17:21). It is Grace that saves us. It is Grace that keeps on saving us. It is Grace that makes us children of God, as opposed to children of Adam. The Apostle reiterated in:

2 Corinthians 6:1, telling the Church: “We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain”.

Grace changes you.

• When Enoch found Grace, he walked with God till he walked into Heaven.
• When Noah found Grace, God had him build a boat.
• When Abraham found Grace, God had him leave home and go to Canaan.
• When Joseph found Grace, he left prison and became co-regent with Pharaoh.
• When Moses found Grace, he stopped being a fugitive and led Israel from Egypt.
• When Joshua found Grace, he led Israel to take the Promised Land.
• When Shamgar found Grace, he defeated 600 Philistines.
• When David found Grace, he left the pasture, defeated Goliath, and became king of Israel.
• When Daniel found Grace he kept on praying, until he led a den of lions into a prayer meeting.
• When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego found Grace, they found Jesus in a fiery furnace.

The Grace of God transcends the Old as well as the New Covenants. The only way people have ever been saved by God is through His GRACE. The Apostle wrote:

Galatians 2:21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

The Grace of God can indeed be received in vain. What robs the believer of the power of God’s Grace? When the believer begins to share his or her affections with the world. When we blend our faith with the gods of this world, we rob ourselves of the joy of the power of Grace.

Solomon Was Saved By Grace: He WALKED With God

Please turn with me in your Bibles to 2 Samuel chapter 12. We’re going to look at the wisest man who has ever lived, a man called Solomon.

Solomon was the second child of David and Bathsheba, the first child dying as a judgment from God on that couple’s adulterous behavior (2 Samuel 12:13-16, 24). In Walter Vogels “David’s Greatness in His Sin and Repentance”, he notes: “The child {of adultery}cannot belong to David. He cannot enrich himself through his sin, and in a sense, justice is done to Uriah
{Bathsheba’s murdered husband}.”

After their first child died, God allowed David & Bathsheba to have a second child. This is GRACE.

2 Samuel 12:24 … and {David} called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.

Word Study: The name “Solomon” is Hebrew: שְׁלֹמֹה‎‎, pronounced [Šəlōmō], meaning “peaceful”. There are two reasons for this name.

• The birth of another child proves that David & Bathsheba’s sins are forgiven by God’s Grace. They are “at peace” with God.
• Solomon as king of Israel would lead the nation in a time of unprecedented “peace”. Israel would be united and blessed by God, and the Temple would be built.

According to the Talmud (the Jewish Rabbi commentary), Solomon was considered a Jewish Prophet, as well as a King. He wrote – as inspired by God – Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. He also was a contributor to the book of Psalms.

Solomon was loved of God, and he loved God.

Little Known Fact: He was not only named Solomon, but was also named Jedidiah(2 Samuel 12:25), meaning “Beloved of Jehovah” (יְדִידְיָה Yᵉdîydᵉyâh, [pronounced yed-ee-deh-yaw’]). When King David knew that his death was imminent, he called for Solomon, and crowning him King said:

1 Kings 2:3 … keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself…

Solomon heard what his father David said, but did not DO what his father said.

1 Kings 3:1 And Solomon made affinity (חָתַן châthan, [pronounced khaw-than’], “joined families by marital covenant”) with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem round about.

As King over a united Israel, and as peace was throughout all the land, Solomon went about reconstructing and rebuilding that which had been destroyed by war during the time of David. Solomon’s biggest projects were to “build his own house”, the palace that he lived in. He also built “the house of the Lord”. Up to this time Israel worshiped God in a tent called the “Tabernacle”. Solomon built the Temple for God. Solomon also extended and fortified “the wall of Jerusalem”, a necessary defense against marauders and other enemies. Solomon was doing some great things for God. None of what he did in construction was intended to be sinful. But we read:

1 Kings 3:1 Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David

Solomon married “Pharaoh’s daughter”, making an alliance with Egypt in order to help protect Israel from war. There was a problem with this. You see, Pharaoh’s daughter was a believer in false gods and goddesses. God told His people …

“thou shalt not take a wife … of the daughters of the Canaanites (Genesis 24:3) … Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods … (Deuteronomy 7:3-4)”.

God knows us. Listen my Beloved: We are all broken.

Saved or lost, born again or child Adam, Blood bought or flesh empowered, Christian or non-Christian, we are all broken. But those who belong to Jesus are supposed to obey Jesus, and to love Jesus, and to follow Jesus. If we who are children of God intermarry with children of false gods, they will drag us down to their level. The Apostle Paul told the Church age believer:

2 Corinthians 6:14-16 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? 16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

I have heard some say, “Solomon didn’t really sin, because he didn’t marry a Canaanite”. But Solomon, a very wise man and a prophet of God, knew that – though he did not marry a Canaanite – he knowingly violated the intent of the Scripture. Did Solomon love the Lord? The Bible says:

1 Kings 3:3 Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.

Solomon went to the “High Places” where people often sacrificed to false gods and goddesses. Solomon went to Gibeon and sacrificed to the God of Truth. God met Solomon at Gibeon, and said to him “Ask what I shall give thee” (vs 5). The God of this Creation, the God of all that you see, comes to you and asks, “What can I give you?” There is “nothing impossible with God” (Luke 1:37). What would you ask? What you would ask, reveals the condition of your heart. If you asked for a new car, or to win the lottery, or to live forever, this would reveal your heart as selfish and conceited.

Solomon’s words showed that he loved the Lord.

1 Kings 3:7-9 O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in {I don’t know how to WALK}. 8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. 9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?

Solomon loves God. Solomon loves his stewardship, Israel. He doesn’t want to disappoint God, nor to harm his people. So Solomon asks God for wisdom. God replied:

1 Kings 3:11-14 … Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment; 12 Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. 13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honor: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days. 14 And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days

Solomon is to WALK with God – not with false gods!

God in Grace, heaps blessing upon Solomon. God makes Solomon the wisest person who has ever lived. From this moment on, Solomon would know how to rule Israel and yet avoid breaching God’s Word. Solomon would soon be put to the test, as he ruled from the throne of David. The Bible says:

1 Kings 3:28 all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.

Solomon’s house grew, as God gave him wisdom to rule. The Bible says:

1 Kings 4:29-31 … God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore. 30 And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. 31 For he was wiser than all men…

The essence of Grace is to WALK daily with God.

When you walk with God, following Him as you go about your day, God will bless you. This is what happened with King Solomon. The Bible says, “the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace” (1 Kings 5:12). God told Solomon:

1 Kings 6:12 Concerning this house {the Temple} which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee…

Solomon lived by Grace. He walked with God. The Lord said, “walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments”. You cannot walk with God and the gods. “You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). Solomon told Israel:

1 Kings 8:57-58, 61 The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us {Solomon is saying God, WALK with us}: 58 That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers… 61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.

God heard Solomon’s prayer, and promised to “establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever” (1 Kings 9:5). God also warned Solomon,

1 Kings 9:6-7 … if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: 7 Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them

God will not walk with other gods. He does not mind walking with us, frail as we are. But our affections must not be divided. We dare not become inclusive with other gods, or with the world.

Our God Will Not With Us And The gods

1 Kings 11:1-11 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites: 2 Of the nations concerning which the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father. 7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 8 And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. 9 And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, 10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the Lord commanded. 11 Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.

Solomon did not lose his salvation by blending his faith with the gods of this world – but he did lose his blessing. His son Rehoboam would succeed Solomon as king, and Israel would go through a terrible civil war because of the son.

You cannot walk with God and the gods.

Are YOU Walking With Strange gods?

The God of the Bible is the God Who calls us to salvation. The God of the Bible is the God Who sent Jesus Christ, His only Son, to be our Savior and Lord. Are you walking with the God of the Bible, or are you walking with the gods of this world? Our God will not walk with strange gods. He would not do it with Solomon (who wrote three books of scripture [Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs], and contributed to the Psalms), and will not do it with you.

There are many strange gods trying to crawl into the Christian Church today. I don’t have time to talk about all of them, but I do want to mention four:

1. There is the god of wokeness, and Critical Race Theory.

I recently finished reading “Christianity and Wokeness” by Owen Strachan (research professor of theology, Grace Bible Theological Seminary). The Bible prohibits “man stealing” (1 Timothy 1:10), which is race based chattel slavery. The Bible commands that we “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:39). We are to treat others the way we want to be treated. The Bible tells us that “God is no respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34). As our Heavenly Father loves all people regardless of color, we must do the same if we expect to walk with God. However, so called “wokeness” and “Critical Race Theory” is more worldly and of the gods of this world than it is of Scripture. Strachan in his book quoted from the “woke” book Divided by Faith (Christian Smith): “All white evangelicals are complicit in the racial inequalities that exist, mainly because ‘they support the American system and enjoy it’s fruits’ … In combating racial inequality, whites, as ‘the main creators and benefactors of the racialized society, must repent of their personal, historical, and social sins.’ ” (pg 36)

As believers in Christ we MUST REPENT of our personal sins, and of any racism that we ourselves have engaged or are engaging in. Romans 14:12 notes “each of us will give an account of ourselves to God”. Each person is accountable for their own sin. However, it exceeds Scripture to say we need to repent of “historical sins”. The Bible says:

Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

Each person is accountable to God for THEIR OWN SIN, not for the sins of others. I cannot “repent” of anything an ancestor did. Such “repentance” is no more than show. My duty before God is to love God and love my neighbor. Period. One of the founders of “Woke” doctrine, Ibram X. Kendi notes in the book How To Be An Antiracist: “there is no neutrality in the racism struggle … One either allows racial inequities to persevere, as a racist, or confronts racial inequities, as an antiracist. There is not in between safe space of ‘not racist.’ The claim of ‘not racist’ neutrality is a mask for racism.” This is confusion and nonsense, and my God is NOT the God of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33), but of peace.

Each person is accountable for how they live their own life before God. And no, you are not automatically racist just because you are white. You are racist when you behave racist. Period. Jesus loved every person, and treated each person with the respect He wanted for Himself. This is what we do.

2. There is the god of sexual sin.

Whether is be homosexual sin, heterosexual sin, transgenderism, or an alphabet soup of letters, the god of this world is pushing for the destruction of the family. Transgender “women” are fighting to be included in women’s competitions, women’s locker rooms, and women’s bathrooms. What did Jesus say about gender and marriage? He said:

Matthew 19:4-6 … Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

God designed men and women in a specific way, and called men and women to marry one another. For thousands of years this has been the standard of marriage.

In America, we have extraordinary freedoms. If you wish to pursue sexual sin, there is no law stopping you from walking that path. However, God will not walk with you.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (ESV) Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

1 Timothy 1:9-10 … the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, 10 the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine,

In Romans 1:18-32 the Apostle indicts those who reject the Gospel of salvation in order to chase after a variety of sins. The Apostle makes it clear that sexual sin and violation of God’s design puts you where God will not walk with you. Again, as Americans there are things that the Bible condemns that are “lawful” in our present society. But as Christians, God’s will and God’s glory take precedent over what we feel or want.

3. The god of abortion.

All life is precious, even the life of the developing child. God made us in His image (Genesis 1:27), and that alone makes every person precious. The Psalmist said to God, “Your hands made me and formed me…” (Psalm 119:73). It is God Who gives life, and Who forms every human being (Psalm 139:13-16; Job 10:11-12). God “formed you from the womb” (Isaiah 44:24). And God has a purpose for every child. God told Jeremiah “Before I formed you in your mother’s body I chose you. Before you were born I set you apart to serve Me.” (1:5). When John the Baptist was still in his mother’s womb, he “leapt for joy” when brought near to the expectant virgin Mary (Luke 1:41, 44). The Prophet Isaiah said, “the Lord called me from the womb” (Isaiah 49:1, 5). The Apostle Paul said “God set me apart from the time I was born” (Galatians 1:15). Though Roe vs Wade may make allowance for abortion of a child, the Bible considers all life to be precious.

4. The god of social media.

People walk about staring at their phones. Parents and children go out to eat, and never talk to one another – but watch and respond to social media incessantly. Don’t get me wrong – I use social media to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with as many as possible. I use a blog, and post to Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube. To use social media is one thing. To have it consume you is quite another. People have become quite belligerent, difficult, and yes, mean on social media. This is because actual face to face interaction with another human develops a set of skills that you do not have to have on social media. If you disagree with someone on social media, you can just “flame” them. There are no consequences for your actions except, perhaps by being blocked.

Our Lord Jesus tells us in John 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

You cannot do this on social media. Love is something you cannot text, something you cannot do through a machine. Loving as Jesus calls us to love requires an in-person touch. People need that personal touch. I have read horror stories where students have abused others through social media. I myself have experienced so much nonsense on my own website that I took away the “comments” section intentionally. People can be brutal through social media. This is not the way of Christ. The stepbrother of Jesus said:

James 3:14-18 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. 15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

Have you “married” your life to strange wives? Have you blended your faith with the gods of this world? James goes on to tell us “do you not know that friendship of the world is to make yourselves the enemy of God? Whoever befriends the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4). We cannot blend our faith with the false gods of this world. Let us come to the God of the Scripture through His Son Jesus Christ (John 14:6). Let us believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins, and rose again to lead us in the paths of righteousness. Let us live our lives sold out for Jesus!

The days are short, dear friends. I believe that the end of this present world could come any day now. Let us all love God with all our hearts, and walk with Him daily as He has called us. May God the Holy Spirit and this His Word touch your hearts this day. Amen and Amen.