How would you get something from point A to B? That’s a very broad question. Depending on what you’re trying to move and what the distance is makes all the difference. If you were moving oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, a pipeline might seem to be the logical choice. If you were trying to get water in and out of your house, PVC pipes are an inexpensive vehicle. What about God’s love? You can’t bottle that. It weighs nothing, yet it can remove unbearable guilt off of countless souls. How far does God’s love travel? It needs to reach every soul in the whole word. Where does it start? God, of course.
The phrase “Means of Grace” is not found on the pages of Scripture. It is a theological short had for how God communicates his love. The reason why this is a vitally important topic is because if a person looks for God in the wrong place or tries to use means that God has not approved, he or she will be disappointed, confused, or worse.
Consider a morning on a still lake fishing. Just the glassy surface of a body of water can be calming. Yet no matter how that experience goes, he still walks away guilty and damned. People around the world have tried to communicate with God – maybe using dreams or drug induced hallucinations. Some simply use prayer. The problem with enjoying nature or reaching God on our terms is that it doesn’t work. The only way that God has promised to respond to his people is through the means of grace – the Gospel in word and sacrament. This Sunday was the first in a three-part mini-series. We looked at an overview of the means of grace followed by a closer look at the Word of God. The sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion will be covered over the next two Sundays.
How does God use his word to communicate his love to the world? Watch this week sermon taken from Romans 10.
Topic(s): Verbal InspirationBook(s): Romans
Series: Ref500
Tag(s): God's Word, Holy Spirit
Speaker(s): Fred Guldberg