I had planned for two weeks to
preach to you tonight about God's judgment in the woes pronounced
against those listed in Bacchic Chapter 2, the five woes that
are given there. But I believe the Lord's given
me another message for you. And I want to talk to you about
God's mercy. How we rejoice in the fact that God's covenant
mercies are sure everlasting mercies. His mercies are new
every morning. Those mercies that are new every
morning are his everlasting mercies as well. We're told his mercy
endureth forever. The mercy of God, of course,
is in Jesus Christ alone, outside Christ, God is a consuming fire. In Christ, mercy is displayed. Displayed in him, only in him,
and fully in him. It's only in Christ that God
proclaims his name, gracious and merciful. Christ is himself
the mercy seat where God promises he will meet with and commune
with sinners. We would be wise to go continually
like that publican described in Luke 18, and cast ourselves
upon the mercy seat, crying, God, be merciful to me, the sinner,
trusting Christ alone for mercy. But how can I describe God's
mercy? Thy mercy, the psalmist says,
is great unto the heavens. His mercy transcends our most
lofty thoughts. For as high as the heaven is
above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear
him. His mercy, the mercy of God for
sinners in Christ is infinite. It is beyond our capability of
measuring. It is utterly indescribable. The Bible tells us that God is
great in mercy, rich in mercy, abundant in mercy, plenteous
in mercy. There is with God a multitude
of mercies for his people. I can't begin to describe his
mercy. I can only tell you what I've
experienced and what I read in this book. This is what I've
experienced. God's mercy. has followed me
all the days of my life in what we would call prevenient, preventing
mercy, preserving me in life, even in the days of rebellion
and ungodliness unto the appointed hour when he would call me by
his grace. God's mercy has been forbearing
mercy. God has been long suffering with
this sinner because of his mercy. He's forbearing in the long-suffering
of our God, Peter tells us, is salvation. His mercy is pardoning
mercy. We are pardoned of sin through
the abundant mercy of our God, and His mercy is that which comforts
us. This is the comfort of our souls. Thy mercies are new every morning. Turn with me to Ephesians chapter
1. We're going to begin in Ephesians 1, 5. The title of my message
is Measuring Mercy. Streams of mercy never ceasing. Call for songs of loudest praise. Measuring mercy. I can't do that. And you can't do that. Thy mercy
is great unto the heavens. Yea, the mercy of God is great
above the heavens. The earth, O Lord, is full of
thy mercy. I read a hymn earlier today by
John Kent. Let me read it to you. I've never
seen this before. I don't believe. See from Zion's
sacred mountain streams of living water flow. God has opened there
a fountain. This supplies the plains below.
They are blessed, who its sovereign virtues know. Though through
10,000 channels flowing, streams of mercy find their way, life
and breath and joy bestowing, making bright our darkest day. Oh, ye chosen. Oh, ye chosen. Mercy rains, yes, rains today. Gladdened by the flowing treasure,
all enriching as it goes, lo, the desert smiles with pleasure,
buds and blossoms as the rose. Every object sings for joy where'er
it flows. Trees of life, the banks adorning
yield their fruit to all around. Those who eat are saved from
mourning. Pleasure comes and hopes abound. Mercy's portion in this life
with glory crowned. Mercy, mercy. Here in the first
chapter of Ephesians, the Spirit of God uses the word according
or according to six times. Six times, he uses the word according
or according to to describe how it is that we have God's mercy
and all the blessings of his mercy. In this one chapter, he
inspired the apostle to tell us that according to these things,
God gives us all spiritual blessings. According to these things, he's
chosen us. According to these things, he
reveals to us the mystery of his will. According to these
things, all things are predestined from everlasting. According to
these things described in this chapter, the Lord God calls us
by the power of his grace. According, according to. The
word means by the measure of. In agreement with. Guided by. By the rule of. So that Paul
is describing here for us the blessings of God's mercy. And
he tells us this is the measure of mercy. This is how God measures
his mercy to you. This is how God measured his
mercy to us from everlasting. This is how God measures his
mercy to us today, tomorrow and all the days of our lives. The
Lord God measures his mercy. Let's look and see the measure
of it. First, here in Ephesians 1 and
verse 5. There's calls for great rejoicing.
The Lord God measures his mercy to us. The Spirit of God uses
this word according in the book of God to teach us that every
blessing we receive from the hand of God's mercy is measured
to us by his eternal, unalterable purpose of grace in Christ. If that won't sail your boat
in this world, I don't know what will. Look at Ephesians 1, verse
5. Blessed, we're told in verse
3, I'm sorry, verse 4. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ. according as, that
is by this measure, as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation
of the world. So the first thing Paul tells
us here is that every blessing of grace, every spiritual heavenly
blessing is distributed to sinners from everlasting according to
God's purpose of grace in election. What a blessed, blessed word. God from eternity chose us in
Christ, and according as he chose us, so he blessed us and continually
blesses us with all spiritual blessing. This is the thing that
sustained and comforted David, God's servant, in the days of
his life. In the midst of trial and heartache,
in the midst of trouble and sorrow, David said, blessed is the man
whom thou choosest and causes to approach unto thee. As he
lay on his deathbed, he said, although my house be not so with
God, yet the Lord hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered
in all things, ensure this is all my salvation and all my desire,
although he make it not to grow. So that David's soul is sustained
in the midst of darkness, heartache, and trouble with this blessed
knowledge of God's free election, according to which all mercy
is measured out to us. Oh, what blessings are ours because
of God's everlasting love for us in free electing favor. Then in Ephesians 1, 5, we're
told that predestination and adoption are mercies measured
to us according to the good pleasure of his will, having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according
to the good pleasure of his will. Now, this being predestinated
unto adoption, does not mean that our adoption was postponed
until a certain time when we came to experience grace. No,
we were adopted as the sons of God from everlasting. But this
adoption he speaks of is the blessed experience of full sonship
and everlasting glory. Paul describes in Romans chapter
eight as the glorious liberty of the sons of God. We were predestined
to obtain and enjoy all the blessings of sonship in Christ because
God adopted us as his sons and not only adopts us but makes
us his children in the free exercise of his grace. What does this
mean? God predestinated us unto the
adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according
to the good pleasure of his will. It means that no unexpected children
are ever brought into God's family. When children are unexpected,
It doesn't matter whether it's a shameful case or whether it's
just a matter of a couple not expecting for the wife to get
pregnant at the time. When they're unexpected, the
parents are unprepared. But when a couple has been married
for a while and they plan and prepare themselves to bring a
child into the world, when the young couple gets the doctor's
report, as used to be the case anyway, and the A wife heard,
or in our case, I found out first, the rabbit died. You who don't
know will just have to guess what that means. The rabbit's
dead. Then things begin to happen. Doesn't matter how poor or how
rich, the couple starts making plans for a child to come into
the world. And they fix up a nursery, fix
up just a corner of a room for a nursery. They'll get a crib. May have to go to Goodwill and
buy a used one, but they get a crib and paint it, fix it up
and get everything prepared, buy some clothes, get ready for
that child to be born into the world and do what they can to
make preparation for the coming of the child. This is God's predestination. Our heavenly father from everlasting. prepared for each of his sons,
each of his children to be born into his kingdom. Our Heavenly
Father from everlasting prepared for the birth of his children.
This didn't take him by surprise. He wrote our names in the Book
of Life of the Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world.
We were chosen in Christ from eternity, accepted into beloved. When the Gentiles heard this,
they were glad, we ought to be. And we glorify God and as many
as were ordained to eternal life, believe. The Lord Jesus, our
almighty God and savior, brings his own into his kingdom at his
own appointed time of love. Sometimes the birth of God's
children takes us by surprise. I have found it my own experience
as a preacher. Here and in other places, I've
been praying for somebody, preaching to them, kindly expecting God
to save them, asking God to save Joe and God to save Sammy. And you're a little surprised
because Sammy hadn't crossed your mind, but he's on God's
mind from eternity. fixed in his mind from everlasting. And God had ordained everything
from eternity for the birth of Semih at the appointed time of
love. And so it is for each of his
elect. Look at verse 7, Ephesians 1. Here's the third thing. God the Holy Spirit tells us
that our redemption by the precious blood of Christ The forgiveness
of our sins by His blood is measured to us according to the riches
of His grace. All blessings come to us according
as He's chosen us in Him. God's predestined us to the adoption
of children by Christ according to the good pleasure of His will.
This is measured out according to His purpose. And this matter
of redemption and forgiveness by the blood of Christ is according
to the riches of His grace. In whom we have redemption through
His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches
of His grace. Redemption is through His blood. The only redemption for sin is
the precious blood of Jesus Christ. God accepts sinners only through
the blood. God forgives sinners only through
the blood. There is no possibility of redemption,
of atonement, of acceptance with God apart from or in addition
to the precious blood of Christ. And all who are redeemed by his
blood have forgiveness. We were forgiven of our sins
when Christ was accepted as the lamb slain from the foundation
of the world. Our sins were forgiven before
ever we committed one. When Christ cried, it's finished.
It was done. And we have this forgiveness
in the experience of grace as the blood is sprinkled on the
conscience by the spirit, giving us faith in Christ so that God
declares us forgiven. This forgiveness is always the
companion of redemption. There is no such thing as the
redemption of a sinner who is not forgiven. And there's no
such thing as the forgiveness of a sinner who is not redeemed.
Understand that. There's no possibility that Christ
shed his blood in vain for anyone. But these two companion graces,
these two companion mercies, redemption and forgiveness come
to sinners according to, are measured out to us according
to the riches of His grace. Grace planned it. Grace provided
it. Grace performed it. Grace applies
it. Grace will complete it in resurrection
glory and grace will have the praise of it. C.D. Cole said poor sinners need a
wealth of grace and God is wealthy in grace. What a statement. We need riches of grace and God
is wealthy in grace, grace, grace, marvelous grace, grace that is
greater than all our sins. Let us therefore come boldly
to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace
to help in time of need. Here's the fourth thing. Our
effectual calling by God, the Holy Spirit, the gift of faith
in Christ, that by which chosen centers redeemed by God's grace
experience this grace. These are measured to us by the
power of God's will and given to us by his will. Look at Ephesians
119. Paul is praying that we might
know what is the exceeding greatness of God's power. What a statement. That we might know the exceeding
greatness of God's power. Ah, look at the sun when it comes
up in the morning. Go out and look at the stars
and count them if you can. No. Watch the treasures of the
snow. Investigate them all you can.
No. Go to the depths of the ocean and behold the greatness of God's
power. No. No. How do you know the exceeding
greatness of his power? It is that which is wrought in
us, the greatness of his power to usward who believe. according to the working of God's
mighty power. Often in the scriptures, you
will run across redundant statements. Were you to write them out in
a paper in an English class, you'd get barked off for it.
Mighty power, that's just redundant. Except when you're talking about
God. How are you going to describe
infinite power? This is how we believe God. This is how God measures out
to us faith in Christ. This is how God measures out
to us his effectual call which causes us to come to Christ believing. It is by the effectual working
of God's mighty power which He wrought in Christ when He raised
Him from the dead. It takes the same thing to cause
you to believe Christ as it took to raise Christ from the dead. Well, that's talking about when
we first believe. And today. At any moment, In any circumstance,
God enables me to believe it is by the power, the unsearchable
riches of the power of God's grace that I believe. And we
know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called, Paul says, according to his purpose. Turn to second Timothy chapter
one. There's very familiar text familiar to you. Sadly, there
are not many places where it's familiar. 2 Timothy 1, verse
9. Paul is writing his last word
to his son Timothy, and he says, God hath called, hath saved us
and called us with an holy calling. And what we did didn't have anything
to do with it. Not according to our works, but
according to, that is, it is measured out to us by His own
purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before
the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing, by
the revelation of our Savior Jesus Christ, who hath abolished
death and hath brought life and immortality to light by the gospel. God ordained that we should be
called. He ordained the time and the
place where He would call us by His grace. He ordained the
means by which you would call us by the preaching of the gospel.
And he ordained everything necessary to cause the sinner whom he's
chosen to cross the path of a gospel preacher at the time of his love
when we call him by his grace. And so he manipulates the affairs
of the universe and causes his own to hear his word. Why on
earth is Onesimus suddenly taken with an urge to rob his master? Why does he run away when he
does down to Rome and find himself arrested for some reason in Rome
at the time he did? Because just then God Almighty
sent his servant Paul as a prisoner to Rome. an Onesimus who would
not hear him as a faithful servant in his master's house. He wouldn't
hear him. He heard Paul preach many times,
but he wouldn't hear him as a faithful servant in his master's house.
When he's stripped and emptied and broken by his own hands brought
down, he is by God's providence brought down, and now he hears. and God's pleased to call him
by his grace. Everything according to God's
purpose. Oh, preacher, and you who hear
me, let us learn and ask God to give us grace to understand
that he does all things well. What God does in your life and
in mine. What God does ruling and overruling
even the evil around us in us and committed by us. God does
everything well and he is working out the salvation of his elect
exactly as he will. There is a purpose in God's call,
and the call is according to purpose. We are called according
to his purpose, not accidentally, but on purpose. God called us,
made us his sons by irresistible grace and omnipotent mercy, making
us new creatures in Christ, creating his hope, Righteousness and in
true holiness making us partakers of the divine nature And that
brings us to the fifth thing turn to Titus chapter 3 here Regeneration and conversion this
new creation work of grace is Performed in God's elect according
to the measure of his infinite mercy look at Titus 3 verse 4 After that, the kindness and
love of God our Savior toward man appeared. How is it that
it appears? Not by works of righteousness,
which we have done. Do you ever notice when Paul
says you're saved by grace, he almost always backs up and said,
now, just in case you don't understand that, your works don't have anything
to do with that. Not by works of righteousness, which we have
done. But according to his mercy, he saved us. How's that? By the washing of regeneration.
The word of God is often described in scripture, pictured in scripture
as water. Say by the washing of water,
by the word, the washing of regeneration. We're washed and made clean.
in the blood of Christ as God, the Holy Spirit applies the word
to our hearts, giving us faith in Christ by the washing of regeneration
and renewing of the Holy Ghost. That is by the regenerating work
of God, the Holy Spirit, which he shed on us abundantly through
Jesus Christ, our savior, that being justified by his grace,
we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Turn back to Ephesians chapter 2, Ephesians 2. Now, I want you to see this is the
experience of all God's people. This is what all God's people
experience. Brother Todd Nyberg and I were
talking earlier this morning. He called and asked me about
some things. He said, you know, I fully believe that when a person
hears the truth, they know it immediately. You just know it. You may have never heard it before.
That's it. And you might even fight about
it. You may even get upset with it, but you know it's truth and
you can't deny it because this is true to the experience of
every believer. Ephesians 2. You hath he quickened. You hath he made alive. That's the word made alive who
were dead. For the Larry and his prayer
made a distinction between deadness and dead. Dead is not a sort
of deadness. We experience a deadness in our
lives. Even as believers, this is dead,
dead. You has God made alive who were
dead in trespasses and in sins, wherein in time past you walked
according to the course of this world. according to the prince
of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the
children of disobedience, among whom also we all had our conversation. This is exactly how we all lived
in times past, in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children
of wrath, even as others. Now, some of you behaved differently
than others when you were dead in trespasses and in sins. In
my house, my oldest sister, bless her heart, that sweet thing,
she never did anything wrong in her life. I don't ever remember
her doing anything wrong. I remember one time she had Daddy's
new 57 Cadillac, and I'd already taken the paint job off of it,
but she was driving the thing, and she got jammed up sort of
a 7-Eleven place. We called it Mickey's. Somebody
behind her blew a horn at her, and she ripped the side off of
it. I mean, I can just picture her.
She had to literally burn the rubber off the tires to get it
through there. She hit it. But she ripped the side off of it.
That's all right. That was Jean. If I'd have done it, I'd have
been dead. But not Jean. She never did anything wrong
in her life. She's sweet. Still is. Sweetest thing you
ever met. Not her brother, Don. But this was our conversation.
hers and mine, yours and mine. This is how we lived in the days
of our own godliness and rebellion. We all lived in the lust of our
flesh. All of you and me. And we fulfilled the desires
of the flesh and of the mind. And we were by nature Children
of wrath, that is children who hated God. Children who deserve
God's wrath just like everybody else. But God. Two of the sweetest words in
all the English language. But God. Watch this. Who is rich
in mercy. For his great love, wherewith
he loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses and sins,
hath quickened us together with Christ. By grace you're saved,
and hath raised us up together and made us set together in heavenly
places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might
show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward
us. through Christ Jesus. What kind
of love are we talking about? I will love them freely. What
kind of grace contrived the scheme? Eternal, free, and sovereign
grace. Why does God show mercy to such
sinful creatures as we are, abject wretches like us? Because of
his great love wherewith he loved us. Turn to Colossians chapter
1. Here's the sixth thing. The Lord God in great mercy gives
us strength for every day, strength for every trial, strength for
every trouble, strength for every burden as it is needed. And it does so by the measure
of his own glorious power. Colossians one verse nine. For
this cause, we also. Since the day we heard it, do
not cease to pray for you. And desire that you may be filled
with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. That you might walk worthy of
the Lord unto all pleasing. Being fruitful in every good
work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Strengthened with all
my now watch this. according to his glorious power unto all patients and long-suffering
with joyfulness. He who is our Savior says, my
grace is sufficient for thee. And whatever It is that he would
have you to endure. Whatever it is, he would have
you to suffer. Whatever it is, he would have
you to do. Whatever it is, he lays in your
path. His grace is sufficient. And it will be proved so as it's
needed. Not beforehand. Not beforehand. It is grace sufficient because
it's effectual grace. God's free, sovereign, effectual
grace is sufficient to save all his people, sufficient to save,
to pardon, to justify all his elect, sufficient in every time
of need, sufficient when you're healthy, and sufficient when
you're sick. Sufficient when you're full of
joy and sufficient when you're full of sorrow. Sufficient in
life and sufficient in death. Sufficient at last to present
us faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy. The strength we have as believers,
as Paul describes it here in Colossians 1, to walk worthy
of the Lord unto all pleases. What a statement. What a prayer. I pray, Paul says for you, that
you may walk worthy of the triune Jehovah unto all pleasing. Being fruitful in every good
work, increasing in the knowledge of God. How on earth can you
do that according to the riches of his power. You see, we have
no more strength in ourselves to please God or to serve God,
no more strength in ourselves to believe God than we do to
save ourselves. The Lord Jesus says, without
me, you can do nothing, nothing. But believing Him, trusting Him,
accepted of God in Him, walking with Him by faith, we walk worthy
of God unto all pleasing. Walk worthy of God unto all pleasing. The thing Brother Todd was asking
me about this morning was this thing of the believer You know,
man is born of God because he doeth righteousness. What's that
talking about? That man who is born of God can't
do anything but righteousness. He cannot sin, he's born of God.
That's what John says in 1 John chapter 3. And the old man, the
old man Adam, can't do anything but sin. And yet, what that old
man is, and what that new man is, I truly am. Paul said, when
I sin, it's no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in
me. That's what he said. And then he says, I delight in
the law of God after the inward man. But which one's him? Both. Both. I am Adam and I am Christ. By nature, what Adam is, that's
what I am. By grace, what Christ is, that's
what I am. And that new man in me does what's
right. And the old man, only that which
is wrong. And yet everything that's done
involves both the new and the old. So that we in this flesh
can never, can never cease from sin. Our acceptance with God
all together in union with Christ the Lord in him and with him
believing him dare I say what I know I just
read in this book dare I say it dare I not for 40 of my soul
nearly 44 years I have walked on this earth with
God unto all pleasing by Jesus Christ. My life, an acceptable sacrifice
to God by Christ Jesus. And the same is true of you who
believe God. One more thing, Philippians 4.19. God's mercy gives us supply by the way according
to the riches of his glory. Watch this. Paul writes to these
Philippians and he says, my God shall supply all your need according
to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. What a statement. What a promise. If that doesn't ring your bell,
your clacker's broke. My God shall supply all your need, temporal
and eternal, carnal and spiritual, according to His riches in His
glory by Christ Jesus. His coffers are full and his
coffers are infinite and they can never be diminished. I have
a beautiful picture of it in 1st Kings 17. Elijah goes to
the widow of Zarephath and she prepares for him a cake and something
to drink and she goes back to the barrel and the barrel of
meal Never ceased to be full of meal until she quit reaching
in there to get some. And the cruise of oil never diminished,
though she poured oil out of it, poured oil out of it, poured
oil out of it. It had just as much oil to begin
at the end as it did in the beginning. That's the riches of God's grace
by which he supplies all your need. According to his riches
in glory by Christ Jesus Now, let me see if I can make
a clear application of this and I'll send you home come back
to Matthew chapter 9 Verse 27 I'll wait till you get
there. I want you to see it Matthew
9 27 When Jesus departed thence, two
blind men followed Him, crying and saying, Thou Son of David,
have mercy on us. And when He was come into the
house, the blind men came to Him, and Jesus saith unto them,
Believe ye that I am able to do this. Do you believe I'm able to do
this? Do you believe He's able to sustain you? and keep you,
and use you, and make you honorable to Him, able to uphold you, able
to give you grace sufficient, able to present you faultless
before the presence of His glory. Do you believe He's able? They
said unto Him, Yea, Lord, I do believe You're able. Then
touched He their eyes, saying, according to your faith be it
unto you and their eyes were opened what on earth is he teaching he's not teaching us that his grace or his mercy comes
to us according to the measure of our faith Thank God that's not the case. Thank God that is not the case. All these boons of mercy come
to us according to the measure of Him who is the object of our
faith. He didn't ask these blind men,
do you strongly believe? Are you sure you believe? Do
you sufficiently believe? He says, do you believe that
I can give you sight? I believe that. Be it unto you
according to your faith. I urge you, children of God, as you receive Christ Jesus the
Lord, so to walk in Him. I read today about a Chinese
woman. In her paganism, she tried all
her life long to do something to give her merit in the eyes
of her heathen gods. She once dug a well for somebody
with her hands and a crude shovel, 25 feet deep, 15 feet wide. When she was an old woman, God
saved her by his grace. And when she was 80 years old
and dying, she held out her crippled hands with which she had labored
all her life and sang, Rock of Ages, cleft for me. Let me hide
myself in thee. Let the water and the blood from
thy wounded side which flowed be of sin the double cure. save
from wrath and make me pure. Not the labor of my hands can
fulfill thy laws demands. Could my zeal, no respite, no,
could my tears forever flow. All for sin could not atone.
Thou must save and thou alone. Nothing in my hand I bring simply
to thy cross I cling. naked come to thee for dress,
helpless look to thee for grace. Thou, I to thy fountain fly. Wash me, Savior, else I die. Our Heavenly Father, thank you. for your rich, rich,
rich, unfailing mercy in Christ Jesus. According to the multitude of
your tender mercies, blot out our sins. The greatness of our sin removed
by the greatness of your mercy through the blood of Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.