October 9, 2005

Hi again,

I was reminded of something very important yesterday. It was about grace, more specifically the Age of
Grace. I have told many in the past view years that I felt that we are at the end of the just mentioned time.
But at the beginning of this year there was a big tsunami disaster which killed 155,000, more than 94,000
of them in Indonesia alone. I realized then for the first time that the Age of Grace ends for those who die
in such tragedies. They don’t have another opportunity to accept Jesus Christ and the Gospel. Then early
Saturday morning, over 30,000 died in an Asian 7.6 earthquake and 41,000 injured. It reminded me
again. I was grieving a lot and praying for the survivors and hopefully Christian helpers in Pakistan,
Kashmir, India, and Afghanistan. Also, a mudslide in Guatemala has killed over 1400.

On Saturday night, I was able to see the excellent movie “Tribulation”. My faith was challenged by it. If
true Christians have to go through that final tribulation, would I and others I know be willing to risk dying
for refusing to take the Mark of the Beast. Today in Asia and Africa, Christians are being tortured and
killed for their faith in Jesus Christ and the Gospel. Then this morning, www Crosswalk.com had an
unexpected Sunday new feature article which is below the following Scripture passages. It is titled
“Grace Gone Wild: Embrace the Gift”. And then the “Love Worth Finding” satellite TV church service
program had Pastor Adrian Rogers preaching about the final Judgment. It was a harsh sermon. He even
proclaimed that many in the large congregation would end up in the Lake of Fire.

This was such a contrast to some of the preachers I have heard this weekend as I channel surfed. One all
of sudden said prophecy was coming to him, made some noises and some thank you words (like “thank
you Jesus”), and then he asked how many had huge hardships at that time, many of the people in the large
verbal audience raised their hands, and the preacher proclaimed that such hardships would end “tonight”
and a stranger would enter into their lives “tonight” to bless them. If the Apostle Paul and Jeremiah and
Isaiah came back today, they would have to rebuke so many preachers, especially the celebrity ones.
Finally, I heard and read a lot of political arguing. The latter two negative examples are only a part of the
many futile things daily happening at the same time as more and more people are dying. In other words,
the Age of Grace ending for many daily and the Bible says there will increasingly be more disasters.

I have not had such a related group of happenings as I just indicated. I hope that what I have just written
and the following will encourage you to increase your consecration to Great Commission intercessory
prayer and ministries.

Revelation 20:6-15 “6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the First Resurrection: on such the
Second Death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a
thousand years. 7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 and
shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the Earth, Gog, and Magog, to gather
them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9 And they went up on the breadth
of the Earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from
God out of heaven, and devoured them. 10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the Lake of
Fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for
ever and ever. 11 And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the Earth and
the Heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great,
stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life:
and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and Hell delivered up the dead which were in
them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14 And death and Hell were cast into
the Lake of Fire. This is the Second Death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life
was cast into the Lake of Fire.”

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Ephesians 2:8-10 “8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of
God: 9 not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus
unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

1 Corinthians 3:9-19 to only true Christians-- “9 For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's
husbandry, ye are God's building. 10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise
masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how
he buildeth thereupon. 11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12
Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 13 every
man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and
the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. 14 If any man's work abide which he hath built
thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he
himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. 16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit
of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of
God is holy, which temple ye are. 18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be
wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is
foolishness with God. …”

Jude 14-22 14 “And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord
cometh with ten thousands of His saints, 15 to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are
ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have unGodly committed, and of all their hard
speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. 16 These are murmurers, complainers,
walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in
admiration because of advantage. 17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of
the Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; 18 how that they told you there should be mockers in the last time,
who should walk after their own unGodly lusts. 19 These be they who separate themselves, sensual,
having not the spirit. 20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the
Holy Ghost, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto
eternal life. 22 And of some have compassion, making a difference: 23 And others save with fear,
pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.”

Grace Gone Wild: Embrace the Gift

(by Whitney Hopler,Contributing Writer)

God has given all Christians an amazing gift: Grace. But many Christians misunderstand and abuse this
gift. And, in the process, they rob themselves of the joy it's intended to bring them. Here's how you can
avoid bad grace and embrace good grace in your life:

Rescue the concept of grace from both legalists and libertarians.

Understand that, just as you can't earn your salvation, you can't earn grace. God gives it to you freely, out
of love. However, grace doesn't exempt you from your responsibility to obey God. Obeying God is your
gift to Him. Realize that your love for God and gratitude for all He does for you should motivate you to
obey Him more - not less. Recognize that, although there's nothing you can do to earn God's love, there's
plenty you can do to enjoy God's blessings that come with obedience. Know that God's standards of
conduct exist for your benefit, not your detriment. Understand that faithfully living in obedience to God's
commands will give you a much better life than not doing so. Recognize that you should establish
boundaries for other people's behavior toward you rather than allowing them to mistreat you. Seek to live
in a way that honors God, remembering that He deserves nothing less. Realize that bad grace leads to
death, but good grace leads to life.

Let grace give you a new awareness.

Ask God to make you aware of how desperate your situation was spiritually before you came to Christ.
Value the magnitude of God's grace toward you. Understand that pain in your life is a signal that can alert
you to sin you need to deal with for good spiritual health.
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Let grace give you a new status.
Realize that God's grace has transformed you from being His enemy to being His friend. Now, instead of
being a slave, you are a child of God.

Let grace give you a new heart.

Know that your new heart will help you obey God out of genuine desire, rather than fear.

Let grace give you a new master.

Understand that grace frees you not to serve no master, but to serve a new master. Know that all people
are slaves to something - whatever controls their lives. But Christians get to choose the only truly worthy
master - Jesus Christ. This new master liberates you from sin that will keep you in bondage.

Let grace give you a new location.

Allow grace to lift you out of the graveyard of sin and into a healthy realm of living. Ask yourself, "Even
though I can still choose to live in sin, why would I want to?" Understand that responding to God's
forgiveness with a decision to sin is like stepping into a grave while you're still alive.

Follow a new law.

Understand that, while grace frees you from God's old law detailed in the Old Testament, it doesn't mean
that you're not under any law. Recognize that God's grace is not a license to do what you want, but the
liberty to do what you should. Realize that grace provides you a powerful incentive for obedience.
Rather than obeying God because you fear His condemnation, let your gratitude for His forgiveness
motivate you to obey Him.

Understand the importance of repentance.

Know that, while sin doesn't alter your position in God's family, it does affect your day-to-day
relationship with Him. Be willing to continually acknowledge your disobedience and ask for God's
forgiveness so sin won't distance you from God. Seek to constantly maintain a close relationship with
Him. Have a healthy attitude about sin; don't argue, rationalize, or cover it up. Instead, agree with God
that you are in sin when you are, and that you need to do something about it. Then make specific changes
in your behavior, as God leads you to do so, so you can head in a healthier direction.

Realize that God rewards those who obey Him.

Understand that heaven won't be the same for all Christians. While you can gain admittance for free by
trusting in Christ for your salvation, you won't receive rewards there if you've neglected God's
commands. Christians who were obedient on Earth will receive greater rewards than those who weren't.

Let grace guide how you make decisions.

Realize that, in the many gray areas of life where discernment is necessary to make wise decisions, God
wants you to look for a higher perspective than just personal preferences. Elevate love above knowledge,
the welfare of others above your personal freedom, and God's interests above your desires. When facing
a decision, ask yourself: "Is this behavior lawful?", "Is this behavior profitable?" and "Is this behavior
helpful?".

Let grace help you forgive.

Know that good grace affirms the necessity of forgiveness, recognizes that forgiveness doesn't erase the
natural consequences of offenses, and understands that, although forgiveness can be granted,
reconciliation must be earned. Choose to forgive people who have hurt you and work for reconciliation in
your relationships with them, but understand that reconciliation will only be possible if they respond to
your efforts. No matter what happens, choose to forgive anyway, remembering that God is always willing
to forgive you and will help you through the process of forgiving others.

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Don't let bad grace hurt your marriage.
Understand that grace doesn't give you license to marry whomever you want. Remember that your mate
should be a member of the opposite sex, and a believer, if you want to experience God's blessings in your
marriage. Know that grace doesn't give you permission to cheat on your spouse without lasting
consequences. Realize that adultery leads to fractured marriages, sexually transmitted diseases, and
severely damaged reputations. Even when people genuinely repent from adultery and gain God's
forgiveness, they often still experience these consequences. Recognize that divorce and remarriage are
biblically allowable only in two specific situations - adultery and desertion. Remember that God intends
marriage to be a lifetime commitment, and that divorce should always be a last resort in a troubled
marriage.

Let grace guide your church life.

While bad grace says, "I don't need to join a church," good grace says, "God has provided a church for me
to join." Know that church provides the instruction you need for your spiritual growth, the accountability
you need when you wander, and a more powerful witness to the world than you can have as just a believer
on your own. While bad grace says, "I can miss church as often as I want," good grace says, "I should
attend as frequently as I can." Understand that your presence in church makes a difference to others, and
in your own spiritual development. While bad grace says, "I can give as little as I want," good grace says,
"I should give as much as I can." Understand that everything you have belongs to God, you should seek
the highest rate of return with God's money by investing in what has eternal value, and a tithe should be
the starting place for most Christians. While bad grace says, "I don't have to do anything in the church,"
good grace says, "God has given me the privilege of serving somewhere in the church." Understand that
every Christian has been given a unique spiritual gift or gifts, your spiritual gift(s) are to be used in a local
church, and fulfillment comes from using your spiritual gift(s).

Don't use grace as an excuse to avoid necessary church discipline.

Understand that discipline is necessary to restore a Christian who has been overtaken by sin, maintain a
church's witness, and sustain the health of the entire congregation. Be willing to confront those in your
church when you need to do so. Realize that the degree to which you confront another Christian should
be determined by the kind of offense committed. For personal offenses against you and sin that you
observe in another believer's life, talk privately with the person involved first. Make sure that you
genuinely want to restore your relationship with the person and that you're motivated by a sincere concern
for the person's spiritual health, not simply a desire to shame or punish him or her. If the offender is
unwilling to repent after a private conversation, take a small group of people with you to talk with him or
her. If the person is still unrepentant, report the situation to your church's leaders (or, only if absolutely
necessary, the entire congregation). As a last resort, remove the offender from the congregation. Realize
that this last step is usually necessary only when someone continues to threaten your church's moral,
doctrinal, or emotional health.

Use good grace to help you maintain a healthy balance between freedom and obedience. Resist
judging others unnecessarily; keep your focus on your own spiritual walk. Refuse to trust in works for
salvation, yet recognize your obligation to obey God.

Adapted from Grace Gone Wild! Getting a Grip on God's Amazing Gift, copyright 2005 by Robert
Jeffress. Published by WaterBrook Press, a division of Random House, Inc., Colorado Springs,
Co., www.waterbrookpress.com.

Robert Jeffress is pastor of the 9,500-member First Baptist Church of Wichita Falls, Texas, and the Bible
teacher on the internationally broadcast television program "Pathway to Victory", seen on more than
1,100 cable systems and television stations. A graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dr. Jeffress is the author of 14 previous books.