THE RICHES OF GOD’S GRACE

R. Taylor

Ephesians 1: 6–8 (from “the Beloved”)

I would like to speak about the way God has moved to secure men for Himself through redemption. It is a wonderful thing that God should move like that. If something that you have treasured and is very precious becomes lost, or gets taken outwith your reach, then a price has to be paid, or a debt has to be met for you to have that object back again. That is how God feels about men, upon whom He had set His heart, I would like to tell you that He has set His heart upon you, but as under the bondage of sin, and far from God, the only way that could be met is that there had to be a Redeemer. There would be no redemption without a redeemer. A redeemer must be a very remarkable person; he must have the resources to meet the debt, and the object must be so precious to him that he is prepared to pay the price. That is all set out in the Beloved—the Lord Jesus Christ. He has every resource that is needed to meet the debt, and He has the desire in His heart to have you for Himself.

Whatever may be holding you, the first thing is that your sins have put you under the penalty of death—that is very obvious. There is not a man in the world that does not lie under the penalty of death. Now that is the consequence of sin. Scripture tells us very clearly that “the wages of sin is death”, Romans 6: 23. Many compare themselves with others and they may think they are quite good, but God says, “the wages of sin is death” and that applies to all men, “for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”, Romans 3: 23. Yet, in His love, God wants to have man for Himself, and so there is need for a Redeemer, but who can it be? Is there anyone you can think of who could meet your sins? Is there anything that you can provide? Men have tried many things to meet the debt, but there is only one Redeemer who can meet it, that is the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the full knowledge of how great that debt was, and how far away our sins have placed us from God, He measured the distance, yet He was willing to come to be our Redeemer, as it says, “we have redemption through his blood”. God was the One that had to be met about our sins; not only our conscience, that has to be met too, but the first thing was that God’s righteousness and holiness has been met. How can it be? It shows you the greatness, the majesty, the grandeur of the Redeemer that He could satisfy God about the debt that lay upon us, “in whom we have redemption through his blood”. There was the price that He paid to God, the One against whom we have sinned. Blessed be His name that He shed His blood. The hymn-writer said,

‘Shed for rebels, shed for sinners,

Shed for me’. (Hymn 167)

That in the ways of God He was led by men to the cross only magnifies the guilt that lay upon men. They said, “Away with this man”, Luke 23: 18. It only brought out the glory of who He was; it did not turn Him aside. Maybe you would not take your part in that world that said “Away with this man”, yet have been careless about the appeals of His grace towards you, time and time again. Here is an appeal again tonight with a presentation of the price He has paid. Men will be held guilty eternally for refusing the Redeemer, and the price He has paid to secure and ransom them from all the bondage of sin they were under. That guilt lies upon all who have not bowed to God, and to the claims that He has exercised in redemption. They will be held to account of how they have rejected Jesus and the price that has been paid.

I can tell you this; God has accepted the sacrifice offered in the blood of Jesus. John says, “he is the propitiation for our sins; but not for ours alone, but also for the whole world”, 1 John 2: 2. What a Redeemer! It was God’s valuation of the blood, it was not man’s, they would think nothing of it, but it shows how God values the price that was paid in the blood of Jesus. Peter says, “precious blood, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, the blood of Christ, foreknown indeed before the foundation of the world”, 1 Peter 1: 19, 20. Wondrous fact that God even before the incoming of sin, He had a way of redemption in view, as one woman said in earlier times, “God ... devises means that the banished one be not expelled from him”, 2 Samuel 14: 14. He has provided that way in the blood of Jesus. So He is proclaimed today as a Saviour God, who, in the riches of His grace, would appeal to you to come under the shelter of the blood of Jesus.

Just think for a moment, my friend, if that lost object that your heart was set upon was a friend, you would do all you could to secure that person, but if they then turned their back and refused to come at your invitation after the price had been paid; just think of how you would feel. That is how God feels at you turning your back against Him and the offers of His mercy. He has paid the price, He has proclaimed again to you tonight the glad tidings, to come just as you are, and you still turn your back on the offer of His mercy. Think of how God feels! Yet in the riches of His grace, He continues the appeal of His love towards you, so often refused, or even ignored, but in the riches of His grace He appeals again tonight to come. To come from where you are, held under bondage, not only of your sins, but there may be other things which are pressing on you that hold you from coming; He appeals again tonight to come.

In the history of David it is very affecting that one of the first things he said when he came to the throne was, “Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may shew him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” (2 Samuel 9: 1); that is like the riches of God’s grace. To us, who have no claim ever to God’s grace, apart from the blood of Jesus, God is saying, ‘Are there any left in this room who will respond to

the appeal of My love? Are there any left that may be shown the kindness of God’. The riches of His grace that can satisfy your conscience about every need are inexhaustible. The very day that we are living in demonstrates that. God has not yet acted in judgment, but in the riches of His grace He is appealing still to us tonight to come and see what He has provided.

It says, “in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of offences”, every one of them, every sin cleared. It is very personal to everyone; your sins and your responsibility, they are your liability and God is offering redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of offences. Everything, not only the sins, but the offences, the times that you have turned away from God are all met, they are all forgiven through faith in His blood. What delight God has in Jesus. Then it says, “according to the riches of his grace; which he has caused to abound towards us”. He knows your needs, He knows the doubts, and He knows the things that may be hindering you. The riches of His grace brings out the resources to meet your every question, whatever it may be that may be hindering you.

So David found a young man Mephibosheth, who felt how far off he was. He said, “such a dead dog as I am” (2 Samuel 9: 8), but David “sent, and fetched him”, 2 Samuel 9: 5. He was a cripple, held in that bondage, his very name could have been enough to turn David away.

Your history has been more than enough to have turned God away, but His grace is abounding towards you tonight where you are. David sent, and fetched him! That is how the gospel goes out—to fetch you. We have sung in our hymn that God is sending out the message (Hymn 219). He is sending it to you tonight to where you are, that you may come.

Mephibosheth responded to that appeal of David’s. He felt he was unworthy of it, and maybe you feel that too. David soon reassured him that all his history, and the liabilities that attached to him had all been met. He came, and what did he find? He found a place at David’s table. O the riches of grace, what a reception he received! David says, “And Mephibosheth thy master’s son shall eat bread at my table continually”, 2 Samuel 9: 10. There are the riches of God’s grace. Our conscience may well condemn us, but, my friend, the riches of His grace can meet every doubt that Satan may intrude into your mind, because of God’s valuation of the blood of the Redeemer. Well, what happened?

What happened was that David became enshrined in Mephibosheth’s affections, a beautiful type of what I am speaking of. The poor outcast of the house of Saul, in coming to appreciate David as his redeemer, became a loyal follower of David. When many others turned away from David, what did he do? He remained loyal to David. This is the effect of coming to appreciate the Redeemer; you realise that you owe everything to Christ. Redemption is only part of His glory. The Person whose blood was shed came into manhood, but as to His Person, He was the One who had been offended against. It is only God Himself that can deal with your sins. The psalmist says, “there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared”, Psalm 130: 4. Only God can forgive, and that is who the Redeemer is. Isaiah says, “He will come himself, and save you”, Isaiah 35: 4. No angel could do it, no other could pay the price, or meet the debt, or had the resources that were required, but God Himself in the person of Jesus. Taking a condition as Man, He could pay the price by shedding His blood.

He has done it all for God, and now the riches of His grace abound towards us. Well, I say friend, that makes you more responsible at this moment than you were half an hour ago.

What is your response to be? If Mephibosheth had turned away, where would he have been?

We would never have heard of him, and that my friend is what happens to those who refuse God’s offer of mercy. They will be shut out eternally as having despised the grace and ignored the price paid by the Redeemer. They will be shut out eternally from the home that God has prepared for them that love Him. The movements of the Redeemer are to attach you to Himself, to draw you to that glorious Person who loved you so much, when others would ignore you. Mephibosheth was ignored, I suppose, by the rest of them, he was far away, but David met the distance. That is why the appeal comes to you in this room tonight, to reach those who are afar off, having no claim, no title, and held in the bondage of sin. God has come in as a Redeemer that He may be enshrined in your affections, and that you may be drawn to Him, “according to the riches of his grace”; they will never run out.

There will be many other exercises in your life, but the offences have all been met “according to the riches of his grace”. It does not mean that you will be perfect, it does mean that your sins will be forgiven, that debt will be removed; it is removed only through faith in the blood of Christ that has been shed. As I have said, it has met God.

In the type in Exodus 12, God says, “and when I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Exodus 12: 13), but they had to be in the house where that blood was shed. Had there been persons there who claimed to be Israelites, who claimed to be God’s people, and did not shelter under the blood, they would have been lost with the Egyptians that night. Have you put yourself under the shelter of the blood that the Redeemer has provided? See how God looked after them in the wilderness. In their histories many things came out, but if you read through the book of Exodus you will find on page after page the riches of God’s grace abounding towards them. They murmured, God gave them manna—they thirsted, God gave them a well. In the riches of His grace He provides for the whole journey through, until He has them there in His own home in Canaan enjoying the fulness of His love. Well, my friend, may you be assured that the riches of God’s grace will provide for the journey. Some may hesitate to come; in their own weakness they may say, ‘We are all right tonight in this meeting room’, but how will it be tomorrow in the workplace or in school? But wherever you are there will be “the riches of his grace” to meet every exercise that may arise.

He is not only a God who has met the debt, but His love “is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given to us” (Romans 5: 5), all part of the riches of His grace. He has provided for the needs of the way, however long or short the journey may be. He has provided all that is needed to maintain us in the joy of our redemption as His own possession.

Persons that God redeems can never be lost again. They may come under clouds; they may prove sorrows as they will, but they will never be lost because they have been secured at such a price, and brought into the presence of God Himself as forgiven. Other things may arise, but the riches of God’s grace comes on the journey homeward until He has us in His own home. In the meantime there is to be in us some note of praise to Him who sought us out, not only for our relief, but sought us out to have us as His own possession. My friend, He would appeal tonight in His grace and in His love to have you freed from what is hindering you from enjoying Him, but too, from God enjoying you. May it come home to your soul that God wants you, and He has done everything to have you. He only waits tonight on you saying, as the hymn-writer puts it,

‘O Lamb of God, I come!’ (Hymn 446).

Preaching at Dundee
7 September 2008