R359 Rallying the Troops Pt.3

Welcome to the Friday edition of The Encouraging Word, featuring the Bible base preaching of Dr. Don Wilton and rallying the troops. Today we round up this rallying the troops message series that's been so insightful as we spend some time in the writings of Paul to the church at Ephesus.

Ephesians chapter 4 is again where we'll head today in just a moment with Dr. Don Wilton, and as we do so, know that we're here for you. Many are connecting on our website right now at www.tewonline.org to hear this entire series. As a matter of fact, you can hear and see so much of the resources of Dr. Wilton's teaching right there on our website, www.tewonline.org. Also the place to sign up for the daily encouraging word email from Dr. Don.

That's right there on our website at www.tewonline.org. Now, the conclusion of rallying the troops. Today's message from Dr. Don Wilton. He tells every one of us here this morning that we're very special in God's sight and in His presence, and so into the picture comes God's grace. Verse 7, But to each one of us grace has been given according to Christ Jesus apportionment, according to the apportionment that God has for us in Christ Jesus. And friend, I'm going to say to you that before we can understand the nature and the purpose of the gifts that God gives to His church, we've got to understand what God means by grace.

Now, all of us have a basic understanding of that, but let me share a few thoughts with you this morning. Number one, may I submit to you that the nature of grace is giving. That's the first thing that we've got to understand in the New Testament about grace. The nature of grace itself is giving. You can go right throughout Scripture and you're going to discover, my friends, that the emphasis is far more in the New Testament upon giving than it is upon getting. What does the Bible say? The Bible says it's more blessed to give than it is to receive.

This congregation is filled with people like that who have come to know that this is absolutely true. God's nature is to give. His very character is in the embodiment of a giving God that found its consummation in the fact that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.

That whosoever believes in Him should not die but should have eternal everlasting life. You see friends, the very nature of grace is giving. He is the God of giving.

Why? Because He gives freely to His church. Why do we have gifts in the church? Because God wants to give them to us.

That's why. But there's a second truth that we must note about grace. Number two, God is gracious and gives us grace because of who He is and not because of who we are. God is gracious and He gives us grace because of who He is. The emphasis is completely upon God. Why?

Because we undeserve it. What did Paul say? Paul really grappled with that and he ended up saying, I am what I am by the grace of God. How many of you this morning, upstairs and downstairs, would be prepared this morning unashamedly to say, I am what I am by the grace of God. Raise up your hands. I'm putting you on the spot. Thank you.

Please put your hands down. I am what I am by the grace of God. That's what makes coming into God's house so special, doesn't it? That we're sinners saved by the grace of God.

That's exactly what it is. Paul said, I am what I am by the grace of God. He put it like this elsewhere. He said, there but by the grace of God go I. All of us born and conceived in sin, sinners by nature and sinners by choice, all of us deserving death, separation from God, none of us deserving to have any fellowship with a holy and a righteous God, yet by His grace, not because of who we are but because of who He is, we have been reconciled to the Father through the shed blood of the Lamb. Number one, the nature of grace is giving. Number two, God is gracious and gives us His grace because of who He is. But I want you to note a third thought about the grace that we read about in verse 7. The greatest gift of grace, according to the scripture, is self. The greatest gift of grace is self. Grace is therefore God's self donation to man.

Just think about it for a moment. The greatest gift of grace is the giving of oneself. Grace is therefore God's act of self donation. What does God give of Himself?

Well the Bible is full of it. He gives His salvation. He gives His power. He gives His peace. He gives His inheritance. He gives His kingdom. He gives His throne. He gives His Spirit. He gives His wisdom. He gives His love. He gives His glory and He gives every other spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ Jesus according to Paul's letter to the Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 3.

Paul now is beginning to tie our walk and our stand back into our sit where we are seated in Christ. Paul takes the one and he drives home the point into the seat and the foundation of our very existence in and through the Lord Jesus Christ and he says listen, he says grace is ultimately giving of oneself. The Lord Jesus Christ gave of himself to a sinful world according to the scriptures. He gave of himself to his disciples. He gave of himself to those that he healed from sickness. He gave of himself to those that he raised from the dead. He gave of himself to those who had been released from the power and control of demons.

He gave of himself to those that he forgave of their sin. Listen carefully folks, what is this grace? Look at verse 7 again, but to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. Now we got to make another little subtle shift in gears here because from verse 8 through verse 10 God explains to us how the giving of grace and the giving of gifts is the right and the authority of God. What right does God have to give us gifts?

Now you and I say well because he's God, you're exactly right, but what right by what authority does the Lord Jesus Christ act upon this? Now from verse 8 through 10 we're going to discover how Christ Jesus won the right to do what he does for us. In verse 11 we're going to begin to discover that based upon his grace that God gives to us all these gifts.

What right has he got to give us these gifts? Well the Apostle Paul before mentioning these specific gifts which are bestowed upon the church, Paul uses Psalm 68 and verse 18 as a comparative passage in order to show us how the Lord Jesus Christ won the right to bestow gifts upon his people. Now we don't have time to go back and look at the whole of Psalm 68 so let me just summarize it for you. You see in Psalm 68, Psalm 68 by the way is a victory hymn. It's a victory hymn that celebrates God's triumph over a Jebusite village.

What happened? He went through a triumphant descendants up Mount Zion, he brought home the spoils of victory and he began to display the recaptured captives. Now here's what happens, you got it right there in Ephesians chapter 4. Here's what happens back in David's time a man or a king or a ruler or whatever a battalion commander would go off and they would fight a war. When a commander won a victory back in David's time they were allowed to do certain things.

It was part and parcel of the day and age in which they live. They would literally go back to their home city or their home state most of the time it was their home city that was surrounded by some kind of wall or fortress and they would go back down Main Street of their city and the commander-in-chief would usually lead his army up Main Street. If you please go and talk to the New York Yankees about it they had a ticket tape parade. That's basically what it was, ticket tape parades go all the way back to David's time. All right I don't know how many ticket tapes they had but they had one and they just had an incredible time of celebration but there was something very significant about it because right behind the conqueror, the one who had won the victory, the first line of people behind him were recaptured captives. They were men and women, boys and girls sometimes, people that once belonged or were under the authority of the one who had now conquered them, they were captured by the enemy and this man had now gone and recaptured them back. He had set them free from their bondage. They were recaptured because they belonged to the conqueror to begin with. Secondly they were captives because they now were subordinate and in servitude to the new conqueror who was their boss to begin with. They were recaptured captives and so they would march them down Main Street in the ticket tape parade and running concurrently with that procession, the conqueror or the commanding general had the right by virtue of his victory to give gifts to those that he had rescued and then when they received those gifts they were beholden to display themselves before the people as trophies of the grace of the conqueror. They were walking living examples of the greatness of the man who had relieved them, retrieved them, had set them free. Now listen to what the Bible says, what Paul is trying to show us here in 8, 9 and 10 is that in crucifixion and resurrection the Lord Jesus Christ conquered Satan and he led captive a host of captured people, all men, women, boys and girls who had ever been held captive because of their birth into this world when Jesus Christ came down upon this earth and he died upon the cross and he set the captive free and what happens when he sets the captive free? The Bible says my friends that Jesus Christ by virtue of his obedience to God the Father has won the right not only to set the captive free but to bestow upon the recaptured captives his trophies, his gifts so they become displays or they become public trophies of the work of the grace of God. Please forgive the interruption we'll be back with more of Dr. Don Wilton's message in just a moment but I want to remind you that this three-part series which has been so well received called rallying the troops you're hearing the final episode today is available on our website as a matter of fact all the resources are available you can hear or watch the teachings of Dr. Don Wilton right there at www.tewonline.org it's also a great place to share with friends you're sharing the word about what God is doing through the encouraging word has been the way many people have come to Christ the word of mouth that we share is a lot more powerful than we think your word of testimony about the teaching of Dr. Don Wilton and the power of God's Word that's the key is a really powerful tool so I pray you'll consider to share this word and share the website with your friends we're also on all the social media whether it's Facebook or Twitter Instagram consider those links on our website as well to share with your friends that's www.tewonline.org we would love to connect with you and connect each other to the power of God's encouraging word now back to today's teaching with Dr. Don Wilton that's exactly what happened I tried to rewrite verse 8 not to try and rewrite it but I wrote it in in English in a way in which that we might be able to understand it in our own terminology this is what I said as a result of his victory over death and his ascension the Lord Jesus Christ has won the right to do two things number one he has won the right to lead the captives in their freedom March here's what happens because Jesus died upon the cross and because of his grace when you give your life to him my friend you have received the Conqueror into your life he has defeated death he has defeated bondage and Jesus Christ has won the right to parade you even in front of Satan and his foes and to say to Satan and his foes look at my trophy of grace look at my trophy of grace but there's a second thing that God Jesus Christ has won the right to do he's won the right to give us gifts just like a triumphant conqueror Jesus Christ distributes the trophies he has won by virtue of his right in the battlefield by virtue of the fact that he went to the cross now how is this distribution carried out folks this is difficult stuff to understand but we've got to understand it we've got to understand it how is this made possible how is it possible for the trophies of God's grace to be endowed with gifts where do these gifts come from they come from the person and work of the Holy Spirit that's where they come from where did the Holy Spirit and when did the Holy Spirit come the Holy Spirit only came after Jesus Christ had ascended to be seated at the right hand of the Father when Jesus left this earth his ascension based upon his dissension made it possible for the Holy Spirit of God to come and pour out his gifts upon the trophies of his grace and so it is here that the Spirit of God brings back Psalm 68 and verse 18 how do we are what do we mean he ascended we can only understand the meaning of his ascension which means we can accept the fact that the Holy Spirit dispenses his gifts on the basis of the fact that we understand his dissension well where did Christ descend to the Bible says it right there that he descended to the lower earthly regions why to the earth why the lower earth perhaps we could understand it best like this the captain of our salvation beloved friends was first abased then he was exalted we must understand it like this divestiture have to take place before investiture incarnation have to precede glorification why did he have to go to the lower parts and why does Paul talk about earth as the lower parts of the earth the lower regions of the earth because beloved friends it represents the depth of his descent and when we understand the depth of God's descent in Christ Jesus we are going to be able to understand the height of God's ascent in Christ Jesus you see when Jesus Christ came down to this earth and he died for rotten scoundrels like you and me and he descended to be seated among sinners taking upon himself the sin of the world he took himself and became nothing in order that we can become everything he descended down to the lowest in order that he could ascend to the highest and when he ascended to the highest he poured out his grace upon us and the grace of God is the endowed grace of God that has been given to each one of us and it makes our giftedness such a very special outpouring of God upon our lives do we really understand the extent to which God has given us his grace the grace of God why would God do something like that for you and me maybe it helps us to understand why Paul said there but by the grace of God go I what about grace the nature of grace is giving think of Jesus giving not getting God is gracious because of who he is you see you can say three things about that God's grace is self-motivated God's grace is self-generated God's grace is sovereign it's born out and carried out in the heart of God the nature of grace is giving the act of God's graciousness is because of who he is the greatest gift of grace is self that's why grace is God's self donation to mankind but there's a fourth point that we've got to make we understand grace a little bit better we understand where it come from we understand the height and the depth of what Jesus Christ went through in order to win the right to be able to give to us his grace and to distribute his gifts upon his people but number four the grace in which we stand that Paul even talks about in Romans 5 and verse 2 is not only salvation grace but it is enabling grace the grace of God not only saves but the grace of God in ables us just think about it but to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it you know what the Bible tells us don't you the Bible says that God's going to give you enough grace when you need it for that moment I've had people say to me from time to time when facing perplexing situations pastor how am I going to be able to face this the Bible says God will give you grace sufficient for your needs that's what he tells us why is this an enabling grace you see this grace is enabling power my friends and this is the grace that makes the gifts function Paul's game from verse 11 next week we're going to start talking about gifts how do gifts function through God's enabling grace not within ourselves this enabling grace my friend is necessary for the operation of these gifts and I'm going to say to you my friends that God's grace enables us to face the future he enables us to face the future in our despondency sometimes we get rather despondent don't we perhaps there's someone here this morning who's despondent you're down in the dumps God's Word says that his grace will help you in your despondency but he will also help you in your determination to keep on keeping on how do you keep on how do you stay true to the course that God has set before you his enabling grace will help you in your direction some of you are wondering where you're going to go to college next year that's God's enabling grace some of you wondering about your marriage that's God's enabling grace some of you are interviewing for a new job and you don't know whether to accept it or reject it that's God's enabling grace some of you are wondering about your children that's God's enabling grace some of you are saying man I've been hurt and I've got to face surgery and I'm I might never be able to play ball again like I once played it let me tell you something that's God's enabling grace God will do for you what you cannot do for yourself that's the enabling grace of God he will help you in your despondency in your determination in your direction he'll help you in your development as you grow from a baby to adulthood he'll help you in your spiritual and your maturational and and your physical growth he his enabling grace will even help you in your deterioration you know all of us are dying I hope you went to the mall yesterday at West Gate and bought yourself something to get rid of all those wrinkles but I'm going to tell you that we're all dying all of us we're deteriorating even though we don't want to face it God's enabling grace isn't that incredible yeah the Apostle is saying you are somebody yes sir you're somebody you're special and God has given his grace to you and he's going to give you all the grace that you need are you willing to take him at his word what a powerful challenge from the Word of God and from dr. Don Wilton and I believe perhaps from the Lord himself to you today are you willing to take God at his word God has promised that if we confess our sins he is faithful and he is just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness do you find yourself in that need of cleansing a fresh start a new beginning perhaps today is the day that you say yes to Jesus Christ or perhaps today's the day you recommit yourself to Jesus Christ because you know you've drifted the good news is no matter how far we've drifted or even run from God God is using this very broadcast these opportunities to teach and learn God's Word as an opportunity to pursue you because he loves you and it's a great plan for your life before you get away would you open your heart to what dr. Don wants to share next are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ I'm so happy to hear that why don't you pray this prayer with me today dear God I know that you love me very very much and I know that the Lord Jesus Christ came died on a cross so that I might be forgiven of my sin today I repent of my sin I confess my sin to you and I invite you to come into my heart and into my life I faith in Jesus name I pray if you prayed that prayer let me be the first one to welcome you to the family of God this is wonderful I hope that you know how much I'm going to be praying for you and how very important this is for me call us so that we can talk to you and connect you in the right place so you can begin this wonderful journey and in just a moment I'm gonna come back with a final word if you just gave your life to Christ praying along with dr. Wilton or rededicated your life welcome to the family of God welcome home welcome back we're excited about what God is doing through the power of his word his living word the Bible itself and the preaching and teaching of our pastor dr. Don Wilson but the next step is growing in your faith dr. Don has wonderful resources absolutely free he wants you to have if you'll call us and let us know you gave your life to Christ or we dedicate your life to Christ our numbers eight six six eight nine nine word that's eight six six eight nine nine nine six seven three or meet us online as well at TEW online dot org that's TEW online dot org we're taking prayer requests connecting with resources as a matter of fact before we get away dr. Don wants to remind you of one of the most important aspects of the encouraging word just so grateful for this opportunity to be together by way of radio isn't it wonderful how the Word of God speaks to each of our hearts and I just want you to know how much you mean to me and how much I am praying for you you can call and connect with me right now here's the number eight six six eight nine nine nine six seven three you can call you can get the daily devotional where we can connect every day through the Word of God you can share prayer requests with us here's the number again eight six six eight nine nine nine six seven three I look forward to hearing from you our times gone for today but we still continue connecting online at TEW online dot org it's a great place to discover where you can connect to dr. Wilton's teachings both on television on radio online on podcast and even sign up for the daily encouraging word email that I believe will be one of your greatest blessings you do it online at TEW online dot org thank you so very much this program is sponsored by the encouraging word and your generous prayer and financial support