Grace to Walk Like Jesus

Acts 4:33 "And great grace was upon them all."

You may not be a "minister".
You may not be a pastor or a preacher.
You may not have a "major" role in your church (although if you're saved, you should have some role).
But my friend, God has given you grace to serve Him in whatever you're doing!

Hebrews 12:28 "Let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably."
In every area of your life (whether in "ministry" or in "secular" roles), God's grace is designed to elevate you to another level of service.

Called By Grace

It doesn't matter who you are - you were called by God. God's calling isn't about "ministry" (at least not in the sense that people often use that word - as if it only applied to preachers). This calling is about separation. We've been called to be saints.

Romans 1:7 "To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints..."

Saint means "separated one." It refers to us being different from the world. If you're going to truly serve God, then you will be distinct from the rest of the world. This difference is what God called us to: We are to be just as different from them as Jesus was.

And how did this calling come about?

By God's grace! Over and over again, we read that God calls us by His grace:

Galatians 1:6 "I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ..."

Galatians 1:15 "God, Who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace..."

2 Timothy 1:9 "[God] has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace.."

Whatever you are (Church leader, doctor, soldier, parent, employee, friend etc...): If you're a believer, then God called you by grace to be different from everyone around you!

Only ONE Calling

We often talk about "my calling", or "your calling", or the "callings of God." But did you know that these are not biblical terms? There aren't multiple callings of God in the Bible - there's only one!

Take Romans 11:29 for example: It's often quoted this way, "the gifts and the callings of God are irrevocable." But this is a misquote - it's not what the verse actually says.

You see, that word "calling" is singular in this verse: "the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable."

God only has one calling, and it's found in Ephesians 1:18, "the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of HIS calling..." The only calling in the Bible is Jesus' calling. And you now have a part in His calling! 

I may make you nervous when I say this, but God called you to operate just like Jesus operated. Jesus' earthly ministry was designed to continue in and through you!

Feeling inadequate yet?

Elevated To Be Like Jesus

What would it look like if Jesus had your position at work?

What would it look like if He were a parent to your kids?

What if He were taking care of the kids in the nursery instead of you?

What if He had the same sick friend as you did?

How would Jesus live your life?

Friend...that is what His grace was given to your for!

Shortly after Paul tells us that we need to know what the hope of HIS calling is, he goes on to say this (Ephesians 1:18) "....[that you may know] what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe..."

Because we've been called to mirror His earthly ministry in our lives (with all the power, wisdom, holiness, love, and miracles that He operated in), we've also been given His power to do that. And what do you think that operational power to fulfill His ministry is called? Grace.

Ephesians 4:7 shows exactly what God's end-goal was when He gave us His grace. "But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift." In other words, God gave you His grace so that you could "measure up" to Christ!

Whatever gift you operate in - whatever part of Christ's calling you were trusted with - you were given the grace to function in that like Jesus would function.

     This means you can love people like Jesus would love them.

     This means you can teach and preach with the same wisdom and power that Jesus did.

     This means you can serve others and work at your job with the same integrity that He had here on
     earth.

Where YOU fall short of HIM, God's grace was given to make up the difference!

With this kind of darkness-shattering, sin-washing, wisdom-giving, strength-supplying power in our lives...we cannot lose!

Ephesians 1:5-6 "...having predestined us to adoptions as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved."