We Need An Ample Supply Of Grace
A message from Philippians 1
SERMON OUTLINES
Mark Bach
3/10/20266 min read
Message- Philippians 1
Verse 19 “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.”
Title- We Need An Ample Supply Of Grace
With all that is going on:
Disappointments
Dashed Hopes
Interpersonal Relationships
Broken Dreams
Hurtful Issues
Dangers and Worrisome Problems
We need it!
I. For the Team to Work!
For everyone to get along.
A. The Team. Verse 1 “ Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ.”
B. The Saints. “…to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons.”
II. For Peace and God’s Presence to Prevail.
Grace and peace go together. Verse 2 “Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”
III. For Thanksgiving to Exist.
Thanks- Verse 3 “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you…”
We need an ample supply of grace…
IV. For Prayers to be Heard.
Prayers- Verse 4 “Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy.”
V. For Fellowship To Occur.
Fellowship- Verse 5 “For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now.”
VI. For God’s work to be done.
A. God’s work- Verse 6 “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
B. Paul’s work- Verse 7 “Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace.”
VII. For Affection to be Had.
Paul’s affection- Verse 8 “For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.”
VIII. For Love to be Expressed.
Love- Verse 9 “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment.”
IX. For Judgment to be Right.
Judgement- Verse 10 “That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ.”
X. For Fruit to be Seen.
Fruits- Verse 11 “Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.”
XI. For Afflictions to be Endured.
Afflictions- Verse 12 “But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel.”
Title- We need an Ample Supply of Grace…
XII. For Bonds to be Used.
Verse 13 “So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places.”
XIII. For Paul’s Example to be Known.
Verse 14 “And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.”
XIV. For Troublers to See.
Troublers- Verse 15 “Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will.”
Title- We need an ample supply of grace…
XV. For Arguments to be Won.
Contention- Verse 16 “The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds.”
XVI. For Love to be Shown.
The heart- Verse 17 “But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.”
XVII. For Christ to be Preached.
The subject of Christ- Verse 18 “What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.”
It is all about one’s spiritual supply of God’s good grace.
Verse 19 “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.”
We must not fail in grace.
We see a story of Louie Zamperini, a survivor of WWII. While on a rescue mission, the B-24 bomber he was in experienced mechanical failure and crashed into the sea. Out of the 11 men on board, 8 were killed.
Louie and two other survivors were adrift at sea in a raft for 47 days. Although he was not religious, Louie prayed day and night. On the 27th day, they came under fire from Japanese planes, and they faced shark attacks. On the 33rd day, one of the men died.
During this harrowing ordeal, Louie made a vow that if he survived, he would serve God. Eventually, rain fell, providing them with the water they needed to stay alive. The raft drifted approximately 2,000 miles until they came upon an island, where they were captured.
Once in captivity, Louie endured severe cruelty at the hands of his Japanese captors. He was beaten, starved, and humiliated. His nose was broken, and a notorious guard known as "The Bird" tortured him daily, forcing him to perform push-ups over sewage until he collapsed.
Louie was eventually liberated, but the trauma he experienced left him with PTSD. He struggled with bitterness and harbored thoughts of revenge against The Bird. His marriage suffered as a result, and his wife even considered divorce.
In 1949, Louie attended a revival crusade as a last effort to save his marriage. During the invitation, he began to leave the tent. As he headed out, he heard the sound of rain on the canvas and remembered his vow to God. He turned back, accepted Christ, and found forgiveness.
In 1952, he returned to Japan to personally forgive the Japanese guards who had mistreated him.
God has the grace we need to forgive.
Hebrews 12:15 “Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.”
God’s Grace gives the following:
Boldness in adversity.
Paul’s boldness- Verse 20 “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”
Perseverance in problems.
Death desired- Verse 21 “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
A True Life to Live.
Verse 22 “But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.”
Real Courage to Die.
Verse 23 “For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better.”
Willingness to Abide.
Verse 24 “Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.”
Help to Go On.
Why?
For the sake of others. Verse 25 “And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith.”
Grace gives the following…
Rejoicing in challenging circumstances.
Their rejoicing a priority. Verse 26 “That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.”
Enables us to make the Gospel look good.
Making the gospel look good. Verse 27 “Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs.”
Unity to work.
“...that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.”
Fearlessness to Face Whatever the Devil throws at you.
Verse 28 “And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.”
Grace gives the following…
The Ability to Endure.
Verse 29 “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.”
Lastly, It Gives a Testimony to Have.
Verse 30 “Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.”
So let’s all get our ample supply of grace we need.
Pray for grace. James 4:6 “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”
Luke 11:9-13 “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”
Grace, Grace, God’s Grace is the supply we need from the God who gives all we find in Him.
Do we have our ample supply?
Philippians 1:19 “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.”