Original Broadcast: January 2011
Monthly Theme: Pastoral Epistles (1 Timothy 1)
And the grace of our Lord overflowed for me
with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
(1 Timothy 1:14)
Jesus' grace is abundant and overflowing to those who love Him. The abundance of grace comes to us through faith and love. Grace, faith and love are all linked together in Christ. By His grace, we believe. By His grace, we love. Our faithful reaction to Him is governed by His grace. Without His grace, we have nothing.
The most wonderful thing about Jesus is that He doesn't give us just enough. He gives in abundance. He makes our cup overflow, as Psalm 23 reminds us. Jesus pours His grace into our cup and doesn't stop at the brim. His grace continues to pour out upon us. It flows out of our cup and spills out into the lives of our neighbors.
The grace Jesus poured onto St. Paul overflowed his cup and spilled out to all the churches he founded throughout the Empire. His cup overflowed into many others' cups. If it weren't so, we might not be here today as Christian people. Or there might not be that many of us. Jesus' grace has poured out from one believer to another since the beginning of the world. It's a never-ending chain. You are a link in that chain.
What links are attached to you? Don't hinder Jesus' overflowing grace, but allow Him to work through you to bless others. Amen.
