Last week, as the final installment in the Disciplines of Grace Series, Jon Bricker preached on the discipline of preaching the gospel to yourself. To accompany the message, Charis gave away copies of pastor Joe Thorn‘s book Note To Self (read my review of Note To Self Here). This is part of the current 7 week sermon series we are running though at Charis Community Church. A concurrent devotional series for the week has been constructed to go along with the series. This format is encouraging growth in belief and understanding of the Gospel. If you go to Charis, this should be a helpful tool for you to grow in gospel maturity. If you do not go to Charis, but want to follow along, please join us as we go through this devotional series!
Week 7: Note To Self
(The Discipline of Preaching to Ourselves)
I once heard a preacher say, “You’ll never preach the Gospel to others better than you preach it to yourself.” What? Preach the Gospel to myself? What does that mean?
It means that I am still in need of the Gospel myself. The Gospel is not simply the doorway into the grace of God; it informs and equips me to live according to the grace of God everyday. The word of God’s grace is what builds and establishes me in my faith (Acts 20:32; Jude 20,21).
The truth is, I need the grace of God today as much as I needed it 10 years ago, because I am still a sinner in need of a Savior…just as I was 10 years ago (1 Timothy 1:15)! My need for the Gospel has not gone away. In fact, my awareness of my need for the Gospel has only increased! And this is not unfortunate…this is glorious! God does not save me by grace and then perfect me by my own works. He saves me by grace, and progressively transforms me by grace. This means that I don’t need the Gospel of grace just for my one-time justification; I need the Gospel for my on-going sanctification (2 Corinthians 3:12-18).
I am forgetful, though. I am prone to forget that I need God. I am prone to forget that I have died to sin and been resurrected into life with God. I am prone to forget that Jesus is the Bread of Life and Fountain of Living Water. I am prone to forget that Jesus is my righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. I am prone to forget that Jesus has sent me into the world just as the Father sent Him. I am prone to forget that Jesus is with me always, even to the end of the age. I am prone to forget all of these Gospel truths and many, many more (Hebrews 2:1).
So I need to preach to myself. I need the God’s truth more than anyone I know, because I am prone to live for myself according to my own ways as much as anyone I know. So before, during, and after I confront and encourage others with the truth about Jesus, I need to be diligent to confront and encourage myself!
God, help us be diligent to pursue godliness through the word of your grace. Guard us from our tendency to live according to legalism or license that comes from our forgetfulness and unbelief, and let us be faithful in calling ourselves back to the truth of the Gospel.
Day 1: Luke 18:9-14
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Day 2: 1 Corinthians 15:1-8
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Day 3: 2 Corinthians 3:12-18
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Day 4: Romans 3:9-26
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Day 5: Romans 6:1-14
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Day 6: Romans 6:15-23
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Day 7: Romans 7:7-8:4
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Discussion
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