THE TEACHING OF THE GRACE OF GOD
D. E. Burr
I suppose we are all here tonight as persons who have got the gain of the appearing of the “grace of God which carries with it salvation”. We would be persons who know what it is to be saved, have our sins forgiven, and who have some appreciation of the grace of God which our brother has just referred to in his prayer. But this passage, which is often used rightly in the preaching of the glad tidings, I think, has a continuing bearing upon us; bearing upon saved persons because it teaches us certain things. I expect we have all be turning over in our minds in the last month or two what God would teach us. It is another question, of course, as to what we learn. We can all go back in our thoughts to school-days, times we have sat under teachers; at the end of the time you are examined as to what you have learnt. I think it is quite clear that God is currently seeking to teach something, and the challenge to our hearts would be as to what we might have learnt. It is to be noted that it is the grace of God that teaches; it is not dogmatic, not forceful, not arbitrary but it is what is attractive, what would appeal to us, appeal to our spiritual sensibilities. The grace of God is operating in teaching us, so that even if there are circumstances of pressure, times of testing and trial, we would seek to trace in those circumstances the expression of the grace of God.
Now this passage expresses certain things that the grace of God teaches. First of all there is what is denied, “having denied impiety and worldly lusts”. So there is that which pertains to us by nature which we are called upon to deny; that is we cease to allow room for these things, impiety and worldly lusts, they are not to mark us. But there is what is positive, and that is what I just had a simple impression to draw attention to, that “we should live soberly, and justly, and piously”. The note tells us that the word “soberly” is ‘with self-restraint and consideration, or sound mind; as ‘discreet’, Titus 1: 8’. It is not legality, it is not the absence of feeling, it is not the absence of liberty, but I think that God might have something to say to us just as to being sober. I think events that have weighed upon us would carry that message, that God is looking for sobriety. Maybe we would have to say that in certain aspects there has been a lack, but we would be engaged with the positive side of what God might teach us at the present time that we should live soberly.
I do not propose to say much more about that but just to call attention to the fact that it is here in God’s word, and it is, I think, a continuing thing that we are being taught currently, to live soberly. That is to weigh things, to give due consideration to what is right; be marked by this consideration and discretion, a sound mind, these things are to speak to us of themselves. We are not called upon to enumerate things exactly, but to raise exercise that whatever God has in mind might mark us—to live soberly, and justly. I suppose we can all look back on things that have happened that are unjust, things that have happened in our lives, in our relationships, even in assembly history and administration, things that may not have been just. But the grace of God is teaching us that that is a character, a quality of how we should live, we should live justly and piously. I expect we have all had various definitions given to us as to piety, and they relate to God coming into our circumstances according as we allow Him. God would teach us that that is to be a characteristic feature of our manner of life, that we should be marked by what is pious. Events happen that test us as to how far we may live piously. At home we have recently had our house broken into, burglars going all over the place. Then is that kind of thing going to divert you from living piously? Well, it is one of the ways God would speak that we are to live piously.
Then to be “awaiting”, our hymn has reminded us of what is before us, “the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ”. What could be more blessed than that, to live here in the light of that glorious appearing? We await, as we have been already reminded today, the Lord’s coming to quicken the dead and change the living; how soon that may be! We gather day by day, we live day by day in the anticipation of the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.
We speak about these things, and we want to keep them living, vital in our affections and in our practice. So it says, “who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us”, not here redeem us exactly from the claims of the enemy, although that would be part of it, but “redeem us from all lawlessness”. That is not only lawlessness in the world, I suppose, but lawlessness in my own heart, lawlessness possibly in my own practice. The Lord has been given; we speak about the cost to Him. How great it has been! We read several reasons for which the Lord has given Himself, and one is that He has given Himself “that he might redeem us from all lawlessness, and purify to himself a peculiar people, zealous for good works”. That is that we are not exactly only individuals, we are to pursue things as individuals, we live soberly, justly and piously as individuals, but then God has in view securing “to himself a peculiar people”, a company; that is you and me and the brethren, all of us set together, “a peculiar people, zealous for good works”.
Well, I say no more. Scripture speaks for itself. I just seek to draw our attention to the fact that according to this scripture the grace of God is teaching us, and may we be increasingly amenable to the teaching of God, for the Lord’s sake.
Word in meeting for ministry, Grangemouth
15 November 1994