Sanctifying Grace

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Please join me in the prayer to the Holy Spirit.

In 1962, Dick and Judy Hoyt welcomed their son, Rick, into an unsuspecting world — a world that would forever be changed by their presence and sacrifice. Because of complications with his birth, Rick was diagnosed as a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. According to a CBS interview, Dick remembers the advice of the doctors who suggested that his son would essentially be non-functioning, and that he should place him in an institution.

Dick refused.

Instead, he brought Rick home with the intention of giving him a full and rich life. Swimming, sledding, street hockey and just about any other activity the Hoyt family could engage in, were all-inclusive family activities. Dick noticed that his son lit up whenever the two of them were active together. When Rick turned 12, thanks to a custom speech device, he began communicating with his father, finally able to tell his father what he suspected all along.

Rick loved being with his dad.

In 1977, Rick heard about a five-mile road race to benefit a recently paralyzed lacrosse player. He told his father he wanted to participate. It was not the race, nor was it the running he would never be able to do that inspired this desire. It was Rick’s compassionate nature and desire to help others that motivated him.

One problem: Dick was not a runner.

Great fathers, however, make sacrifices. Great fathers give up their time, money and physical energy for the sake of giving their children a better life, or sometimes, merely a smile. Dick may not have been a runner, but as a great father, his son’s request was all the motivation he needed. He agreed and pushed his son’s wheelchair the full five miles.

What happened next changed the course of the Hoyts’ lives, as well as countless others, for the next 37 years. After returning home, Rick typed out on his computer, “Dad, when I’m running it feels like my disability disappears.”

(Huffington Post-April 18, 2014)

My name is Roy Lowe and the title of this talk is Sanctifying Grace.

Just as a diamond has many facets, the Grace of God has different attributes. There is only one Grace; however, that Grace works in many different ways in the life of the believer. Prevenient Grace is God’s activity from the moment of conception until we submit to His call. Justifying Grace is the gift of God by which we accept for ourselves the relationship offered to us in Christ Jesus. The means of Grace help us celebrate and strengthen that relationship. The obstacles to Grace are attitudes and actions that hinder that relationship. And Sanctifying Grace is the gift of God providing the desire and the power to grow in our relationship with God-forever. Our physical birth begins the physical process of growth and maturity, so spiritual birth begins the process of spiritual growth and maturity. Sanctifying Grace is the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit working in and through the heart and life of every Christ follower. Grace is God’s active love toward me; but, it is also God’s love in action toward other through me. Grace working in our lives involves both love and action.

Sanctifying Grace is the process of opening ourselves to the work of the Holy Spirit in and through us. It is divine energy transforming our heart and life. It makes us ripe for Glory.

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Restoring: restoring our relationship with God and others. We can’t earn God’s love by changing our ways. Rather, we change our ways because God loves us and gives us the grace for a fresh start. We receive God’s spirit “bearing witness with our spirit” that we are beloved children of God. Our knowledge of our identity as children of God forms the foundation for all other relationships.

Imparting: new life, new light, new strength, and a new heart. Justifying grace is the moment when the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us. This means we are declared “not guilty” because of all that Christ did for us on the cross. Sanctifying grace is the process by which the righteousness of Christ is imparted to us- it becomes part of who we are.

Perfecting: us in the image of God and the likeness of Christ. Conversion is a process. It happens once; but, not all at once. It is a lifelong process of dying to what is evil and rising to what is holy. As a Christian matures, their life displays certain qualities known as the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). To be perfected means to be pruned. A life of grace is a life in process and some of that process is painful.

Equipping: us to do the work of Christ in the world, to be the hands and feet of Christ. Sanctifying grace is the work of the Holy Spirit empowering us to see and serve Christ in the least and lost of our cities. The Holy Spirit equips us with gifts for ministry (1 Cor. 12:4-7 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good). Every person is gifted, and every gift is needed. The Holy Spirit equips us to obey the great commandment (Matt. 22:37-39 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.) and the great commission (Matt 28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age).

So, how do we grow in sanctifying grace? Growth is a natural process. Jesus likened it to a branch connected to a healthy vine. We abide in Christ through prayer, Christ abides in us through study, we bear much fruit through action. It is natural but we must open our hearts to receive grace as a gift. We then share that grace in the body of Christ through participation in the community and small accountability groups. It is there that we are strengthened and nurtured. We then respond by full participation in the mission of Christ in the world.

Over the course of the last 3 days, we have learned that God desires a relationship with us more than we desire a relationship with Him. God’s role in sanctifying grace is to fill us with the Holy Spirit and fire. Our role is to open our hearts and walk in the spirit with Christ each day. Small groups are a means of sanctifying grace for disciples-from the time Jesus called the first disciples to this very day, small groups are an essential means of grace.

In Emmaus, small accountability groups are called reunion groups. When we meet with a small group, we follow the order on the group reunion card, which you will find on your table. Please take your card now and look at it with me as we introduce you to this essential means of sanctifying grace. Reunion groups are the Emmaus community’s primary means of support on the journey toward spiritual maturity.

Video: “The Story Of A Father’s Love” (YouTube)

For 3 days we have asked God to fill us with the fire of His love. Let me remind you that love is a verb, an action word. When you think about sanctifying grace, I want you to remember this father and son. Our Father not only equips us but He runs every step of this race with us. He carries us to places that were unattainable before. He doesn’t quit on us, so we can not quit on Him.