If we want to appropriate the grace of God in our lives, we must realize that we must submit ourselves to the providential plan of God in our lives. Our tendence is not to humble ourselves but to resist the working of His mighty hand. Not only must we see God’s mighty hand behind our circumstances, we must also see it as the hand of a loving Father dealing with His children. It is often difficult for us to see God’s hand of love in the midst of heartaches because we persist in thinking that happiness is the greatest good. However, holiness is a greater good than happiness. God is more concerned about our eternal than our temporal welfare and more concerned about or spiritual than our material welfare. As we submit to his working, we will begin to understand that adversity has its purpose. We need to pray for the grace to humble ourselves under His mighty hand and the grace to believe that He does in fact care for us.… READ MORE

If we want to appropriate the grace of God in our lives, we must understand the importance of God’s word in that process. The Holy Spirit enables us to apply Scripture to our situation according to John 14:26. As the Spirit of God brings scripture to our minds, we are able to apply them to our circumstances and find the strength to face our circumstances. We do this not in a magical way, but by embracing that truth we have hope in the midst of our circumstances. This presupposes a couple of things: One, we must read and fill our hearts with God’s word for the Holy Spirit to bring it to our minds. Remember John 14:26 says, “… whatsoever I have said to you.” The Spirit doesn’t “put things in our minds,” He helps us to recall what we have learned. Second, we need to understand that the Bible is not merely a book ABOUT God, it is a book FROM God! The Bible is God’s self-revelation to us of all He wants us to k ow about Himself and His provision for our salvation and Spiritual growth. If we are to appropriate the grace of God, then, we … READ MORE

Hebrews 4:15-16 says, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us, therefore, come boldly to the Throne of Grace, that we may obtain ” mercy and find grace to help in time of need. The “Throne of Grace” is a figurative expression for God seated on His Throne as the God of all grace. As we approach the throne of grace, we find that Jesus, our Great High Priest, has gone before us and is already interceding for us (cf. Hebrews 7:24-25). Jesus can sympathize with our weaknesses because He was tempted also. We must remember that temptation is not a sin, giving into temptation leads to our sin (cf. James 14-15). We are encouraged to come to the Throne of Grace so that we can obtain mercy and grace (Hebrews 4:16). The grace we receive from God is seen in the aid of the Holy Spirit to overcome temptation. The Spirit brings to our mind some scriptures that are particularly appropriate to our situation. He may do this through a sermon, a Christian book we are reading, the encouraging … READ MORE