Equipped By Grace - Part 2

The title for this evening's message will be Equipped by Grace, Growing Strong in Christ, Part Two. And so to start this evening, I would like to read all of 2 Peter, chapter one, verses three through 11. However, this evening's message will focus in on verses five through nine. After reading the passage, I'll provide a brief recap to bring us all up to speed before diving into our focus verses this evening. So let's read our passage, 2 Peter, chapter one, verses three through 11, reading from the ESV. Starting in verse three. His divine power has granted to us all things, or everything as translated in the LSB and NASB.

His divine power has granted to us all things, or everything that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence. By which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and de-election.

For if you practice these qualities, you will never fall. For in this way, there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. So as an introduction, if we were to summarize part one of this passage that was preached back in May, sort of summarizing 2 Peter chapter one, verses three and four, we could say it this way. God has not left his people spiritually lacking. God has not left his people spiritually lacking.

Peter tells us that God's divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, not some things, not merely enough to get started, not only enough to be forgiven, but not transformed. He has granted all things that pertain to life and godliness. That means the Christian life does not begin with our effort. It begins with divine grace, divine grace. Before Peter ever tells believers to make every effort, he first tells them what God has already given. Before he commands diligence, he announces provision. And before he calls for growth, he reminds them of grace. See, that order matters. It really does matter.

The Christian life is not try harder, so God will accept you. Instead, the Christian life is because God has accepted you in Christ, because he has cleansed you, because he has granted you precious and very great promises, because he has made you a partaker of the divine nature, now make every effort to live as one who belongs to him. So as we come to verses five through nine, we are not leaving grace behind. We must not do that. We must not leave grace behind. Instead, we are seeing what grace produces. We are not moving from grace to human effort. We are moving from grace received to grace exercised.

This is very important because I believe many Christians fall into one of two errors. One error says, "Since salvation is by grace, I do not need to make effort." Passive sanctification, if you will. That might sound spiritual, but it's certainly not biblical. The other error says, "If I make enough effort, I can make myself holy." Workspace, man-centered, sounds very disciplined, but certainly not gospel. Peter avoids both errors in this passage. He does not allow passivity, he does not allow passivity, because true sanctification is progressive and active. Progressive and active, not passive. And he does not allow for self-reliance.

He says God has supplied everything you need. God has supplied, therefore make every effort. That is biblical balance. Grace does not make effort unnecessary. Grace makes effort possible. Grace does not produce spiritual laziness. Grace produces spiritual life. Grace does not teach us to sit still in sin. Grace trains us to grow strong in Christ. And that is the heart of this message. That is at the very heart of this passage. We are equipped by God's grace, but we are called to grow strong in Christ.

So what I hope this evening we take away from this message, one of the main themes I believe God is communicating to us through this word is that sanctification is not passive, it's not passive. It is progressive and active as previously mentioned. And growth and godliness is not automatic. It's not automatic. Christian maturity does not happen by accident. It's no accident. Peter says we must make every effort to supplement our faith. That said, it is important for us to define that carefully and most of all, biblically. This is not human effort apart from God. This is not legalistic striving. This is not self salvation.

This is the spirit empowered diligence of someone who has been cleansed, someone who has been called, someone who has been equipped, and someone who has been changed by the grace of God. John Owen warned, quoting John Owen, he says this, he warned, "Be killing sin or it will be killing you." Be killing sin or it will be killing you. But what's great about this, Owen also guarded us from self-reliance when he said that all other ways of mortification are vain. Owen says this, "It must be done by the spirit." That is the balance we need. We make every effort. We make every effort, but we do so by the power of the spirit.

We pursue holiness, but we do so because Christ first pursued us. We grow in godliness, but we do so because God's grace has already taken root in us. So let's look at 2 Peter, chapter one, verses five through nine. We will unpack these verses in three sections this evening. First, the grace that equips us. Second, the growth that must increase in us. And third, the warning Peter gives when these are absent, absent, oh, absent are stagnant. Sorry, absent are stagnant. Let's read verses five through nine. Then we will dive into some exposition. So verses five through nine, 2 Peter, chapter one, from the ESV.

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue. And virtue with knowledge. And knowledge with self-control. And self-control with steadfastness. And steadfastness with godliness. And godliness with brotherly affection. And brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. So the first thing we'll look at this evening, the grace that equips us.

Look at verse five with me. Verse five, for this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith. We'll pause right there. Peter begins verse five with the words for this very reason. That phrase points backward. In other words, it's almost like for what reason? That is sort of the implied question here. And here is the reason. Peter is pointing back to what he describes in verses three and four. The reason is this, because God has granted us all things that pertain to life and godliness. Because he has called us by his own glory and excellence. Because he has given us precious and very great promises.

Because through those promises, we become partakers of the divine nature. Because he has delivered us from the corruption that is in the world through sinful desire. All things we covered in that first message. So for this very reason, what should we do? We should make every effort. Make every effort. So the command to grow, rest on the foundation of grace. Peter does not say make every effort so that God will give you life. He says because God has given you life, make every effort. He does not say make every effort so that you might be cleansed. He says because you have been cleansed, do not forget what you have been cleansed from.

See, the gospel always puts the indicative before the imperative. Always puts the indicative before the imperative. Or in other words, what God has done comes before what we are called to do. What God has done comes before what we are called to do. And at that very same time, what God has done always produces what we are called to do. In other words, grace is never barren. Grace is never barren. Grace is never inactive. Grace is never content to leave a man exactly as it found him. The grace that justifies also sanctifies. The grace that pardons also purifies. The grace that brings us to Christ also grows us in Christ.

See, it's justification and sanctification. In justification, God declares the sinner righteous by faith alone in Christ alone. In sanctification, God progressively makes the believer holy by his spirit through the means of grace. In other words, justification is once for all. Sanctification is progressive. Justification changes our standing before God. Sanctification changes our walk before God. Justification rests entirely on the finished work of Christ. Sanctification flows from our union with Christ and it is worked out in us by the Holy Spirit. Both are gifts of grace. And honestly, they should not be separated.

They go together, if you will. So when Peter says make every effort, he is not contradicting grace. He is not contradicting grace. He is describing the life grace creates. A person who says I have faith but has no desire for virtue, no hunger for knowledge, no pursuit of self-control, no perseverance, no godliness, no brotherly affection, no love. This kind of person should be deeply concerned because saving faith is never alone. See, faith receives Christ and faith that receives Christ should begin to resemble Christ. Peter begins to transition in this verse. He says supplement your faith, add to your faith, supply alongside your faith.

Not because faith is inadequate as an instrument of justification. Faith alone receives Christ. But faith is not meant to remain idle or bare or unfruitful. True faith grows. True faith works through love. True faith bears fruit. It should bear the fruit of the Spirit as seen in Galatians 5, 22 and 23. True faith produces a life increasingly shaped by Christ. That is why Peter is not calling unbelievers to improve themselves. He is calling believers to live out what God has already worked in them. He is saying you have been equipped, now grow. You have been cleansed, now remember. You have been given promises, now walk in them.

You have escaped corruption, now do not return to spiritual nearsightedness. You have come to know Christ, now become fruitful in that knowledge. The second thing we see in this passage, the growth that must increase in us. The growth that must increase in us. Look at verses five through seven. Second Peter chapter one, verses five through seven. Starting in verse five, for this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue. And virtue with knowledge. And knowledge with self-control. And self-control with steadfastness. And steadfastness with godliness. And godliness with brotherly affection.

And brotherly affection with love. See, Peter then gives a chain of Christian morality, if you will. He says to supplement faith with virtue. Virtue with knowledge. Knowledge with self-control. Self-control with steadfastness. Steadfastness with godliness. Godliness with brotherly affection. And brotherly affection with love. We should be careful not to think of these as separate steps where we completely master one before moving on to the next. That is not how Christian growth usually works. These qualities go together. They overlap and strengthen one another. But I believe Peter does give them in a very deliberate order.

And each one matters. So I would like to take each one and just briefly touch on them. Starting with faith. Peter begins with faith. Faith is the starting point. Faith is trust in Christ. Faith receives the promises of God. Faith rests not in our works, our goodness, our discipline, our church attendance, our ability to improve ourselves. Instead, faith rests in Jesus Christ crucified. Risen, and all sufficient. Faith says Christ is my righteousness. Christ is my Savior. Christ is my Lord. Christ is my only hope before God. Everything Peter lists grows out of faith. Without faith, virtue becomes moralism.

Without faith, knowledge becomes pride. Without faith, self-control becomes self-discipline without worship. Without faith, steadfastness becomes stubbornness. Without faith, godliness becomes external religion. Without faith, brotherly affection becomes social warmth or friendliness. Without faith, love becomes sentiment without truth. So Peter begins with faith. But he does not stop with faith. Faith must be supplemented. Faith must become visible. Faith must bear fruit. So he moves on. He moves on to virtue. Peter says to supplement faith with virtue. Virtue means moral excellence.

It is the pursuit of a life that reflects the character of God. It is not simply avoiding scandal, or it is not simply looking respectable. It is moral courage, integrity, purity, and excellence of life. Virtue ask this question. Is my life increasingly honorable before Christ? Do my private choices match my public profession? Am I growing in moral seriousness? Am I becoming more Christ-like in the places no one else sees? This matters. This matters because grace does not lower the standard of holiness. Grace gives us new power and new desire to pursue holiness.

See, the Christian should be a person whose life increasingly displays moral beauty or excellence. Not perfection in this life, not perfection in this life, but real growth, real repentance, real integrity, real change. Peter then moves on to knowledge. Peter says to supplement virtue with knowledge. This is not just information. It is not simply knowing theological terms. What Peter is referring to here is a kind of knowledge of God that is derived from His Word, His will, His ways, and His truths. Knowledge protects virtue from becoming misguided zeal. See, a person may be sincere and still be wrong.

A person may be passionate and still be unbiblical. A person may want to grow but not know what growth actually looks like. So Peter says virtue must be supplied with knowledge. We need scripture. We need doctrine. We need discernment. We need to know who God is, what He has said, what Christ has done, what sin is, what holiness is, what the gospel is, and how we are to walk with Christ. See, this is especially important in 2 Peter because false teaching and severe persecution are in the background of this letter. Peter knows that Christians must grow in true knowledge if they are going to resist. A shallow Christian is vulnerable.

A biblically untaught Christian is vulnerable. A person governed only by emotion, tradition, or cultural assumptions is vulnerable. But knowledge of Christ strengthens the soul. It strengthens the soul. It gives clarity. It gives discernment. It teaches us what is true, what is false, what is wise, what is foolish, what is holy, and what is worldly. But the truth is, knowledge must not remain just in our heads. So Peter continues. He moves on to self-control. Supplement knowledge with self-control. This is where truth begins to govern desires. Self-control is spirit-enabled restraint. Spirit-enabled restraint.

It is the ability to say no to sinful desire and yes to God. It is the fruit of the Spirit ruling the believer's appetites words, thoughts, emotions, actions. Self-control matters because knowledge without self-control generally becomes hypocrisy. A man may know truth and still be ruled by anger. A woman may know doctrine and still be ruled by anxiety, envy, gossip, or bitterness. A person may know the right answers and still be mastered by the wrong desires. So Peter says knowledge must be supplemented with self-control. Self-control says I will not be ruled by my flesh.

I will not be ruled by my tongue, by my impulses, by bitterness, by lust, by pride because I belong to Christ. And hear me this evening, church, this is very important. We must keep grace in focus right here. This is not self-control by self-salvation. Ourself perseverance. This is not white-knuckled moralism. This is the believer depending on the Spirit using the means of grace, repenting quickly, fighting honestly, and refusing to make peace with sin. See the Christian life includes warfare. Some of you have lived that. There's no sanctification without conflict. But the conflict is fought from grace. It's fought from grace.

We do not fight sin to make God love us. We fight sin because God has loved us in Christ. Peter then moves on to steadfastness. Steadfastness. Peter says to supplement self-control with steadfastness. Steadfastness is endurance, perseverance, remaining under pressure without abandoning faithfulness. It is one thing to exercise self-control for a moment. It's one thing to exercise self-control for a moment. But it is a whole 'nother thing to remain faithful over time. The Christian life is not a sprint. It's a long obedience in the same direction, and that's toward Christ.

See, in the 13 years I've been walking with Christ, and maybe it's just me, but there have certainly been seasons when obedience felt costly. Seasons when prayer felt dry. Seasons when holiness felt slow. Seasons when suffering pressed harder and harder. Seasons when temptation returned again and again and again. Seasons when you do the right thing and see very little visible fruit. But Peter says we need steadfastness. Steadfastness. Keep going. Keep praying. Keep repenting. Keep believing. Keep gathering with the church. Keep reading the word. Keep confessing sin. Keep trusting Christ. Keep serving. Keep walking.

Not because your strength is impressive, but because Christ is faithful. Christ is faithful. Steadfastness is not the confidence that I can hold myself up. It is the grace-enabled perseverance of one whom God is holding. The same God who calls His people to endure is the God who perseveres, who preserves His people to the end. To the end. Then Peter moves on and he says to supplement steadfastness with godliness. Godliness is this sort of reverence toward God that shapes all of life. Reverence toward God that shapes all of life. It is God-centered living. It is not religious behavior. It is a life consciously lived before the face of God.

And godliness ask these questions. Am I living with reverence? Am I living with worship? Am I living as though God is present, holy, gracious, sovereign, and worthy? See, godliness should change how we work, how we speak, how we lead, how we suffer, how we parent, how we use money, how we respond to criticism, how we handle success and how we endure disappointment. Simply said, a godly person is someone increasingly shaped by the worth of God, by the worth of God. Godliness means God is not just a Sunday category.

He is the center of reality and His lordship reigns over the mind, over the heart, over the home, over the tongue, over ambition, over suffering, over relationships. His lordship reigns over all godliness. Just hang with me, two more. Peter shifts to brotherly affection. He says supplement godliness with brotherly affection. This is love for the family of God. This is very important because some people imagine godliness as something private and individual only. But Peter will not allow that based on this passage. True godliness moves outward toward the people of God.

If a man says he is growing in holiness but is becoming colder, harsher, more distant, more critical, less patient with the church, something's wrong, something's wrong. Growth in Christ should produce deepening affection for his people, real care, real patience, real forgiveness, real burden bearing. See, the Christian life cannot be lived in isolation. It cannot be lived in isolation. We grow together, we need one another. We are members of one body. We are brothers and sisters in Christ. And so a growing Christian should be growing in affection for fellow believers. That means we become more patient with their weaknesses.

More willing to serve, more eager to encourage, more ready to forgive, more faithful to pray, more committed to unity in truth. And then finally, Peter says to supplement brotherly affection with love. Love is the crown of the list. It is the crown of the list. Love seeks the good of another. Love is sacrificial. Love is truthful. Love is holy. Love is patient. Love gives, love serves. This is the ultimate mark of Christ-like maturity. We are not just growing in personal discipline. We are growing in love. We are not just becoming more morally serious. We are becoming more Christ-like. And Christ-like holiness is never cold. It's never proud.

It's never loveless. The goal of Christian growth is not to become theologically accurate, but personally harsh. The goal is not to become morally disciplined, but relationally indifferent. The goal is not to become separate from sin while lacking compassion for sinners. The goal is Christ-likeness. And Christ is love. Christ is full of truth and grace. So Peter's chain begins with faith and ends with love. And I believe it just paints a beautiful picture. Faith receives Christ. Love reflects Christ. Faith rests in Christ. Love resembles Christ. Faith looks to Christ. Love displays Christ.

The third thing this evening, and I'll try and be quick here, these qualities must be increasing, increasing. Look at verses eight and nine. "For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." Verse nine, "For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins." See, Peter does not simply say that these qualities should be present. He says they should be yours and increasing. That word is crucial, not just yours, increasing. Not merely present in seed form, but growing.

Not stagnant, not dormant, not yesterday's evidence, increasing. This is where the passage begins to sort of press into the conscience. Peter is not asking only, did you once make a profession of faith? He is asking, is grace bearing fruit in you now? Are you growing? Is virtue increasing? Is knowledge increasing? Is self-control increasing? Is steadfastness increasing? Is godliness increasing? Is brotherly affection increasing? Is love increasing? Not perfectly, not evenly, not without setbacks, but truly increasing. See, there is a difference between slow growth and no growth.

There is a difference between struggling growth and stagnant religion. There is a difference between a believer who is grieved by weakness and fighting by grace and a person who is content to remain ineffective, unfruitful, and spiritually nearsighted. Peter says these qualities must be increasing. That's what God's word tells us in this passage. That means sanctification, as mentioned earlier, is progressive, it's active. The Christian life should not be stagnant. We should be able to look back and say, by the grace of God, I do not love sin the way I once did. By the grace of God, I do not excuse bitterness the way I once did.

I do not neglect scripture the way I once did. I do not treat the church as lightly as I once did. I do not respond to trials as hopelessly as I once did. I do not see Christ as dimly as I once did. Again, not because we are impressive, but because grace is powerful. I believe this wholeheartedly. Where grace reigns, growth follows. Where grace reigns, growth follows. Peter says if these qualities are yours and increasing, catch this, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. The verse basically gives you the exposition. If these are yours and increasing, that's the result.

And that is remarkable. He does not say increasing virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love will make you more religious. He doesn't say that. He says they will keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful. So you know what that means? Fruitfulness is tied to increasing Christ-likeness. They are connected. See, there was a time in my life where I can look back, early in my walk with Christ. And as I was working through this, it just hit me. Effectiveness in the Christian life does not come from simply being active. But there was a time where I thought busyness meant something.

But you know what, a person can be busy and be ineffective. A person can be religiously active and spiritually barren. A person can attend church, know the church, or Sunday school language or lingo, serve invisible ways, and still lack growing grace. Peter is saying in this passage that usefulness in the knowledge of Christ is connected to growth in the character of Christ. If these qualities are increasing, we become fruitful in knowing Him. Our knowledge becomes living knowledge. Our doctrine becomes worship. Our theology becomes obedience. Our faith becomes visible. Our confession becomes credible. Our life becomes fruitful.

Peter does not want believers to have a knowledge of Christ that is surface level. He wants a knowledge of Christ that produces fruit. There is a kind of knowledge that can define terms, but not transform life. There's certainly a kind of knowledge that can win arguments, but not kill pride. There's certainly a kind of knowledge that can spot error, but not produce love. There's certainly a kind of knowledge that can explain grace, but not extend grace. Peter says that if these qualities are increasing, we will not be ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. True knowledge of Christ is fruitful knowledge.

To know Him is to be changed by Him. To behold Him is by faith that is being transformed by Him. To walk with Him is to bear fruit. So the question is not merely, "Do I know about Christ?" The question is, "Is my knowledge of Christ making me fruitful?" Are you more useful for the Lord today? Are you more tender toward people? Are you more serious about sin? Are you more confident in His promises? Are you more patient in trials? Are you more willing to serve, willing to love, willing to be humble and watchful? Most of all, are you aware that everything good in you, in me is by grace? By grace. Peter then gives the contrast.

If these qualities are not increasing, what happens? Look at verse nine. Whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. That is a sober warning. Peter describes spiritual decline in three ways in that verse. First, ineffective. Second, nearsighted. Third, forgetful. He begins with ineffective. A stagnant Christian becomes ineffective. That does not mean a true believer loses all value before God. It means his life becomes unfruitful and lacking in usefulness. Spiritual stagnation dulls our witness. It weakens our discernment. It makes our knowledge unproductive.

It causes the life we profess and the life we live to sort of drift apart. I don't think Peter is saying this. We should not hear this as a condemnation meant to crush the humble believer. We should hear it as a loving warning meant to awaken us. Peter is saying do not waste the grace that has been given to you. Do not live as though cleansing from sin is a small thing. Do not settle for a faith that is not growing. Christ did not cleanse us so we could remain comfortable in immaturity. He cleansed us to make us his own. He cleansed us to bear fruit. He cleansed us to walk in meanness of life. Then we have that second warning, nearsighted.

Peter says the one who lacks these qualities is nearsighted. That is a vivid image. Nearsightedness means you can see what is close but you cannot see what is far. Spiritually, it sort of means becoming consumed with what is immediate and losing sight of what is eternal. A nearsighted Christian sees worldly comfort more clearly than Christ's Kingdom. He sees criticism more clearly than God's approval. He sees pleasure more clearly than holiness. Spiritual nearsightedness shrinks the soul. It makes sin look reasonable. It makes sin look reasonable. And at the same time, it makes obedience look optional.

That is why not leaving grace behind matters here so much. The third thing Peter says here is forgetful. Peter says the one who lacks these qualities has forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. This may be the most heartbreaking part of the passage. Forgetfulness is dangerous. Maybe some of you know people that would fit into this category. Peter does not mean the person cannot remember the fact intellectually. He means the cleansing no longer grips the heart. It no longer grips the heart. The mercy of God has faded. The person begins to live as though cleansing from sin were a small thing. And that is spiritually deadly.

When we forget what we have been cleansed from, we stop marveling at grace. When we stop marveling at grace, we stop hating sin. When we stop hating sin, we stop fighting it. When we stop fighting it, we become ineffective, nearsighted, and unfruitful. This is why the gospel must never become old news. To us as believers, we must remember. Remember what you were. Remember what sin had done. Remember your guilt. Remember your helplessness. Remember the mercy of God. Remember the cross. Remember the cleansing. Remember that Christ did not merely improve you. He redeemed you. He redeemed you. Remember that you were not mistaken. You were guilty.

Remember that you were not weak. You were dead in sin. Remember that you were not in need of advice. You were in need of resurrection. And God, in his grace, gave you Christ. Gave you Christ. Christ cleansed you. He washed you. He purchased you. He called you. He gave you promises. He gave you his spirit. Christ gave you everything needed for life and godliness. So do not forget. Do not forget. So I'm gonna close here. We need to bring the passage together. Peter calls believers to make every effort. But we must never detach that effort from grace. That is why I love the John Owen reference earlier in the message. It's so helpful.

He did not minimize the believer's duty to fight sin. But he also insisted the work must be done by the spirit. It's that balance, that balance of scripture, balance of truth. Philippians 2 says to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Why? Because it is God who works in you both to will and to work for his good. Pleasure. We work because God works in us. We make every effort because God supplies grace. We grow because God gives. Growth. So please do not leave this evening hearing this message. I must now sanctify myself in my own strength. No, you cannot. You cannot. If you try to, a couple of things will happen.

Couple of things will happen. You will either become proud or despairing. Proud or despairing. Proud if you think you are succeeding, despairing if you realize you are not. But Gospel sanctification looks to Christ. It says Christ, you have cleansed me. You have given me promises. You have given me your spirit. You have called me to holiness. Help me make every effort. Help me grow in virtue. Help me grow in knowledge. Help me grow in self control. Help me grow in steadfastness. Help me grow in godliness. In brotherly affection. In love. Make these qualities mine and make them increase. That is the prayer of a grace-taught heart. Not passive.

Not proud. Instead dependent. Humble. And active. Peter's message is clear in this passage. We have been equipped by God's grace. Now grow strong in Christ. Verses 10 and 11. Really button this whole passage up so nicely. I'll leave you with this and then we'll pray. "The Christian life is a life of grace "from beginning to end." That's why I said earlier we cannot leave grace behind. As we move from verses three and four into five through nine, we cannot leave grace behind. We cannot accomplish these things without God's grace at work in our life. The Christian life is a life of grace from beginning to end.

Grace saves, grace cleanses, grace equips, grace trains, grace strengthens, grace produces effort, grace bears fruit, grace keeps us. And one day, grace will bring us home. So church, let us be a people who are not passive in sanctification. Not careless with grace. Just not forgetful of cleansing. And certainly not content with spiritual nearsightedness. Let us be a people equipped by grace and growing strong in Christ.