Unpacking God's Gift

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift" 2 Cor. 9:15

The Lord is continuing to reveal the truth of His grace to us, and yesterday He showed us the following:

• In Christ the believer has received grace upon grace. John 1:16
• In Christ the believer has received fullness of life. John 10:10; Col. 2:10
• In Christ the believer has received every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm. Eph. 1:3
• God wants the believer to walk in the fullness s/he has received, now. 2 Cor. 6:1,2
• God wants the believer to walk in His fullness so that s/he will minister His grace to others.
• God has given the believer His Spirit so that s/he will understand what s/he has freely received. 1 Cor. 2:12
• The fruitfulness of the gospel depends on the revelation the believer has of God's grace! Col.1:6
• What the believer has freely received, s/he is to freely give as a minister of God's grace. Mt. 10:8; 1 Cor. 11:23; Acts 3:6; 1 Peter 4:10,11
• God has made the believer competent as a minister of His Spirit and grace. 2 Cor. 3:6
• For the believer to be an effective minister of God's grace, s/he must believe s/he has received and s/he must humble him/herself for grace to abound. God gives grace to the humble. James 4:6

Faith and humility are the keys to overflowing with God's grace.

• Humility "has no confidence in the flesh." Phil. 3:3
• Humility is confidence in God and no confidence in self apart from God. John 5:19; Phil. 4:13

In response to God's amazing revelation, we spent time ministering God's grace to one another in His power and in the confidence that He is able to make all grace abound to us (2 Cor. 9:8). Hallelujah!

Some highlights of the week have been the start of our study in the Letter to the Hebrews at our Tuesday Bible study; our worship team supporting Voice in the City at their Arise Shine! meeting on Saturday and hearing the testimonies of lives being changed by God's grace in the church and outside the church. Hallelujah!

This weekend we will have our KLF Training days with Mike and Kay Chance. Check here for details...

Quote of the week:

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10

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Honouring God with the Grace of Giving

Glory to God!

More and more people are attending our midweek meetings and being abundantly blessed! Our Tuesday prayer meeting was very powerful; the women are exploring FAITH on Thursdays; the men were encouraged at Men's Prayer Breakfast and IMPACT! went to a concert together on Friday and had a great time with their new youth leader, Alexander Blair.

Yesterday's meeting was very special and a lot of fun. The Lord is speaking to us about honouring Him and yesterday we looked at how we honour God with our finances. This is what He showed us:

1. Many Christians live according to the Law or even the absence of the Law - they are legalistically motivated by what is and what is not permitted instead of living according to the Father's heart. John 5:39,40
2. A legalistic and religious mind-set seeks to live according to what is and what isn't said in the Bible instead of finding out why it is said.
3. People who treat God legalistically live according to the Letter rather than the Spirit or the heart of God. 2 Cor. 3.6
4. Christians who ask the question, "Do I need to tithe and how much should I tithe?" reveal a legalistic approach to God! Their giving is motivated by what is and what isn't required in the Bible.
5. The correct question to ask is, "How can I honour God with what He has given me and how do I reveal the heart of God with my giving?" This question reveals a giver who is motivated by the heart of God rather than the law or the absence of the law!
   

We honour God with the grace of giving as we reveal in the natural what we believe we have received in the spiritual. Rom. 15:27

• The Lord then showed us that to live by the Spirit or the heart of God is to be enthusiastic (possessed by God) and to take initiative. 2 Cor. 8:3,4,16,17; 9:1,2

After God's Word to us, we collected money from young to old to bless one another with and to reveal the heart of the Father. There was much rejoicing as people received a blessing and as we celebrated God's abundant generosity towards us. Hallelujah. Our desire as God's people is to be a people after His own heart who know the heart of the Father and who make His heart known with a spirit of generosity!

In the evening we had the privilege of serving the needy as we blessed them with physical and spiritual food, love, worship in song and a spirit of generosity. Glory to God!

We are looking forward to this Saturday as people from all over Germany and other nations will gather together in Frankfurt for the Jesus March. Our worship team will be involved and we're excited to be part of an event that will lift the name of Jesus and exalt Him!

Quote of the week:

"But just as you excel in everything - in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us - see that you also excel in this grace of giving." 2 Cor. 8:7

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