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The Riches of H is Grace. A little stree t gammon was found in an alley. A w ealthy Christian gentle man took him into his home; he was washed, dressed w ith clean clothes, given a place a t the LESSON table and a lovely ILLUSTRATIONS room to sleep in. W. H. P ik e The Christian man adopted him, edu cated him, gave him a place in his business, and when he died willed all he possessed to him. God has saved us, cleansed us, made us His children, given us a work to do, and w illed us all He has willed to Jesus. This is grace. G race R etu rn ed fo r Evil. A young Christian girl, in South America, it is said, was seized, in a wood, by a cruel enemy of her fa th e r’s, who cut off both h er hands. Many years passed afte r the poor girl recov ered from her wounds. One day th ere came to h er fa th e r’s door a poor man who asked for alms. The girl knew him as th e man who had cut off her hands, and ordered the serv an t to take him bread and m ilk, then sa t down and watched him. She dropped th e cover ings th a t had hid th e handless w rists from view, and holding them up before him said, “ I have my revenge now .” How like God’s favor retu rn ed for m an’s rebellion. Saving Grace. Mr. Spurgeon once entered a public house in N ottingham to see the land lo rd ’s wife who was dying. He found h er rejoicing in Christ as h er Saviour. He asked her how she found the Lord. “Reading th a t,” she replied. He looked a t th e paper and found it to be a p art of an American newspaper containing an extract from a London p reacher’s sermon. “W here did you find this p ap er?” “ I t was w rapped around a parcel sen t from A u stralia,” she said. Think of God’s grace following the seed sown in London, conveyed to America,
th e mystery of grace, ( 1 Cor. 2 :7 ) ; bu t th e riches of His grace is also shown in H is work for us. Grace inclines us to tu rn to God. Grace says “ come as you are .” Grace sees a man in ru in s and restores h im ; sees a man dead in sin and gives him life. “Grace provided a way to save rebellious m an.” Grace is shown in th e blessed Son of God b ear ing sin, suffering death, and making atonem ent. The rich, red blood of Christ spells the rich, rare grace of God. The power of God is manifested in th e riches of H is grace in us. God sanc tifies us. “ By whom also we have access by faith into th is grace wherein we stand, and rejoice.” God makes all grace abound, and we are commanded to be strong in the grace th a t is in Christ Jesus. Grace is God’s streng th for our weak ness; it is God’s righteousness for our imperfection. In th e ages to come He will show th e exceeding riches of His grace through us to all th e universe. Chosen in grace, saved by grace, kept by grace,— we stand in grace and will th rough etern ity show fo rth th e exceed ing riches of His grace. PRACTICAL POINTS (1 ) Grace is getting everything for nothing. ( 2 ) Grace is the biggest word in the Bible. (3 ) Grace is grounded in the character of God. (4 ) Grace is seen in th e gleam of Jésu s’ face. (5 ) The greatness of God’s grace is evidenced by th e cross of Christ. ( 6 ) The riches of grace is seen in His love lavished upon the unworthy. (7 ) Through th e ages grace will be glorified th rough th e saints. (8 ) “By grace are ye saved through faith .” Grace is th e divine side, and faith th e hum an side.
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