The Lord will give grace and glory. Psalms 84:11 (NKJV)
Pause for a moment and reread today’s verse; let that truth set your heart on fire for your precious Savior. The promise is almost too great to comprehend: the Lord will give grace and glory—never one without the other, for the first always leads to the second. Let’s take a look at both aspects of this glorious promise.
To the sinner who has trusted in Christ alone for eternal life, grace is poured out beyond measure. You see, this grace not only saves, it also sanctifies along the way. It comes to the believer is every imaginable way.
- Instructing grace is given to train us up in the disciplines of our faith, that we might grow and mature in our faith in order to live a life that is pleasing and acceptable in His sight.
- Comforting grace is given to meet us in our deepest place of need, as we are confronted by the storm winds that blow our way.
- Disciplining grace is given to correct us when we wander away from our Good Shepherd, which we, like sheep, are all prone to do.
- Preserving grace is given to keep us from finally and fully falling away, even though we stumble and fall as we walk through the valleys of life with our Lord.
These are just a few examples of the grace upon grace that is poured out in your life today. But that’s not all! There is that three-letter conjunction that immediately follows the word grace and immediately precedes the word glory . . . AND! The psalmist is revealing the incredible truth that after grace comes glory. That little word “and” is the golden chain that connects our past with our promised future. And what God has brought together, no man, no demon, no power can separate. When grace has done its work in the life of the believer, glory awaits. When we cross the Jordan, we cross from grace to glory. The first promise of grace prepares us for the second promise of glory.
Believer, does the promise of these “Bookend Blessings” encourage you today? Regardless of where this message finds you—whether you are standing at the summit, basking in the sunshine of victory or struggling to keep your head above the waves of challenge that are crashing all around you—God has given you grace that will ultimately lead to glory . . . the glory of the new heavens and the new earth, which eye has not seen and ear has not heard . . . the glory of the streets of gold that you will walk upon one day . . . and the glory of the radiance of the Son that will continually shine upon you forever and ever, world without end.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 