In the line of Abraham | Ranjit R

This message was preached  by Ranjit Rodrigues at Word of Grace Church on April 23rd, 2017. To listen/download the audio please click here. To listen to the Sunday's worship and prophetic contributions please click here. Ranjit leads Good News Church in Goa. 

Thank God that we don’t follow a philosophy or a dead idea, but a living person, that is Jesus. We will look at an incident that takes place in Genesis 18 in the life of Abraham. He has had 3 visitors in the story. Noon day in the middle-east and 3 visitors come and one of them is the Lord himself. We follow a living God who comes and meets with us. 

Gen 18: 16- 33 “Then the men set out from there, and they looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes. Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.” He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.” Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” And the Lord went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.”

God wanted to judge the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. But before doing that, he shared with Abraham because he is not ordinary man. He is God’s instrument in this wicked world. I verse 20, the Lord says that the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is very huge. We might think, no one cares about how we live. Whether we are moral or immoral it doesn’t seem to matter. There is wickedness in this city. There is one who cares and his name is God of all gods. We are living on the ground that is owned by the living God. Men and women think that they can live in this world in ways that are pleasing only to themselves. We were put in God’s creation to live in a way that pleases God. The air we breathe, water we drink, everything belongs to God. No one can make a molecule of water out of nothing. We are put here to live God’s way. When man lives on God’s planet in God’s way, things go well with that man.

Therefore, man is accountable to God in the way he lives. God is not absent from creation. He is looking at how we live. These two cities chose to live in ways displeasing to God. There is a God before whom all of us have to give an account for our lives. Many people think I’m young and I’ll enjoy myself, I don’t need to think about God. Don’t worry about the end of the world, because your world could end tonight.

God has come to Abraham and tells him about his plans.

Q. Why is he talking to Abraham about this?

Abraham was a man chosen by God to be blessed so that he could be a blessing to the nations. He says he knows my heart and he will teach my word to his children. The Bible calls us children of Abraham because just like Abraham we are called to live a life blessed by God. You and I are anything but ordinary. When the Lord looks at this great city of Pune, it is you that makes him smile. The favour of God is on you because you are a descendant of Abraham.

God’s plan is to bless you with his abundance and secondly to be a blessing. There is only one way to be a descendant of Abraham. It is by putting your faith in Jesus. You were made in the image of God, to be blessed by God. Darwin’s theory takes away the dignity of man. But we are made with dignity. And when we believe in Jesus we get put into the line of Abraham. When I met Jesus, I was taken out from the dead Rodrigues line and put in the line of Father Abraham. The abundance, prosperity and spiritual connection- that is my portion in God.

After God tells Abraham what he is going to do, the two angelic being start walking away but Abraham stays. Then Abraham approaches God. This is the language of the law courts. Abraham takes his place between man and God before the judge of all. My instinct in this situation would be to say, “I agree they are horrible people, nuke them Lord!” Many people pray for themselves and their families- us four and no more. But we are descendants of Abraham. And like him we are called to stand between heaven and earth- as citizens of heaven. A priest talks to God on behalf of man and talks to man on behalf of God- we are called a royal priesthood. India will be blessed through you. This city needs you. The destiny of Sodom and Gomorrah depended on the intercession of Abraham.

You and I are blessed so that we can bless the nation. The prosperity of our city depends, not on its government but on you and I. In Goa we have a house church in a little village. This village had two bars which was a source of great pain for us. The men would get drunk and spend all their money on drinking. The Lord said that the blessing of this village depends on us. Earth has no access to the blessings of heaven on its own. The only way earth will see the blessing of heaven is when the people of God reach up to heaven, and distribute it on earth. So we prayed for those bars to be gone. In a matter of months, both bars were shut down due to different reasons. Those men are now going home and sitting with their wives and children. We are blessed to be a blessing to the nations.

Q. Why did Abraham stop at 10?

The next chapter says that he couldn’t find even 10 people. So he poured out his wrath on those cities. There isn’t even one righteous man in the sight of God who can stand on the basis of his own righteousness. So, the one righteous man- the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world- had to come from heaven. I hope you feel the pain of heaven every time you break bread. The midday sun closed its eyes when its maker was being put to death. He did it so that we can now be that royal priesthood- blessed to be a blessing.

We have access to supernatural healing. I encourage you to reach up to heaven, and bring healing down and distribute it here on earth. The peace of heaven is another thing we have access to. Never envy the rich for they never sleep well at night. This peace is within our access. When you have someone who is troubled, you can bring down this peace. There is violence in the cities. God will solve it through you. You are a people of great influence. God Bless you.  

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.  

What happened at the cross? | Colin D

This message was preached  by Colin D'cruz at Word of Grace Church on April 14th, 2017 at the Good Friday Service.

6 things we have in the cross:

On the cross, a great salvation was purchased, and yet we live at subsistence level.

1.      Expatiation: The removal of guilt- when we sin we feel guilty. Adam and Eve hid from God. The cross removes our guilt. Only the blood of Jesus can do that. John Newton, a slave trader realized what he had done when he came to faith. He realised that only the blood of Jesus can do it. He wrote amazing grace. Heb 9:14- “how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”. The guilt is removed so that we can serve a big God.

2.      Propitiation- this is the taking away of the anger of God. Because He is just, he is angry with sin. Those who don’t know Christ will face the anger of God. John 3:36- “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” Rom 5:9- “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”, 1 Thess 1:9-10- “For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”Only in Jesus is the anger of God appeased.

3.      Reconciliation- removal of enmity. God is hostile to us and we to God because of our sin. Isaiah 59:2- “your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” The mind of the flesh is hostile to God.
Col 1:21- “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds”
2 Cor 5:18-19- “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.”
Col 1:19-22- “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him ”

4.      Justification- we have been declared righteous not on the basis of your behaviour but on what Christ has done. 2 Cor 5:21 “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” we became the righteousness of God. you are as righteous as Jesus. Romans 3:21-23-“But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” He granted us a righteousness apart from the law. Justification does not make us righteous, but pronounces us righteous. Heb 10:14- “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”

5.      Citizenship- we are now citizens of heaven. Col 1:13- “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son” we are called into his marvellous light. Phil 3:20- “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ”

6.      Redemption- Eph 1:7- “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace” We were once slaves to sin. When we are purchased bu the blood of Jesus, we are redeemed. We are set free. No longer slaved to sin, but to Christ. So we need to find out what pleases God.

All this happens to us the moment we believe. He dies so that I might live. Will I live for him? There are two more things that happen when we believe in Jesus, but not immediately.

Sanctification- Although we are declared righteous, we are being sanctified on a daily basis.

Glorification- one day we will be with Jesus forever in our glorified bodies. 

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.  

Remembering the Resurrection| Colin D

This message was preached  by Colin D'cruz at Word of Grace Church on April 16th, 2017. To listen/download the audio please click here. To listen to the Sunday's worship and prophetic contributions please click here

Jesus is risen!

We are remembering and celebrating the resurrection of Jesus today. It is not an optional thing to believe in the resurrection of Jesus. It is the cornerstone of our faith. Romans 10:10- “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God rose him from death, you are saved”

What the resurrection shows is that not only did Jesus rise from the dead, but that we too will rise one day.

In a Calvin and Hobbes comic, the teacher asks, does anyone have any questions? Calvin says, what is the purpose of human existence? It is a very good question. If you want to know the truth, you need to go to Jesus, because he is the truth. We find the purpose of human existence in Jesus. The truth is that death is only a doorway to life eternal. On the other side, there are two options- life eternal in the presence of God or separation from God forever and ever.

Q. What is Easter all about?

The Fact and reality of the resurrection- many years ago, I was shy to tell people that Jesus died and rose from the dead. It sounds like a fairytale. The resurrection is rooted in reality. It is true. When Jesus rose from the dead, there were many witnesses. The disciples were scared after Jesus’ death. But after the resurrection and pouring out of the Holy Spirit, they became bold.

We are familiar with the resurrection account. Matthew 27:57- 60 “When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away.” Jesus was really dead. In John 19: 31-34 “the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water.” After crucifixion, the people can live on the cross for a few days. They broke the legs because then not being able to breathe, they would die. But when they came to Jesus, they found that he was already dead. Jesus chose the moment of his death. The soldiers poked a spear in his side and a sudden flow of water and blood came from his side. This is important because some people believe that Jesus was not truly dead.

The disciples did not believe Jesus could rise. But the Pharisees did. They took precautions to make sure he doesn’t rise. They rolled a rock weighing 1 and half tonne. Then they put a roman seal and then soldiers to guard the tomb.

Matthew 28: 1-7 “Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he[a] lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” Jesus rose from the dead. After he rose, this is what happened.

Jesus then appeared to them. In verse 9- 10 Jesus said ““Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”” He appeared to the disciples and then many others. But the Pharisees paid off the soldiers to lie for some money. They tried to cover it up but

Q. what does it effect my life today that Jesus rose from the dead?

1.      Death has been defeated 1 Cor 15: 55- 57“Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

We should not be afraid of death. Death is only a doorway and if you are a believer you will be in the presence of God forever. You will be rejoicing on that day. Only one generation will not die- the generation that will be here when Jesus returns.

2.      If the resurrection is not true, our faith is useless. Verse 17- 19 “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied”. But we have hope. In light of the resurrection, we need to be clear how we are going to live.

3.      What kind of resurrection is it going to be? “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.” Our hope is that one day, we will be in the presence of God with a new spiritual body. A body that is perfect. Verse 50- 52 “I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.”

The purpose of our life is to proclaim the gospel. One day we will pass through the doorway of death and be given a glorified body with which we will live forever. With our body, we will not survive heaven. We will have a glorified body.

Finally Paul says, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

Life may be tough. But because of our hope, we give ourselves to his purposes.

Q. How are we living?

The soldiers knew the resurrection was true, they took some money and denied the resurrection. Whereas the disciples changed the world. Whatever we do, our labour is not in vain. One day we will be reward. The reward we get is not the same for everyone. In verse 40- 42, “There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. So is it with the resurrection of the dead” The splendour of our resurrected bodies will differ from one to another, and it will depend on how we live for God here on earth.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.  

Where is your Strength? | Chris B

This message was preached  by Chris B at Word of Grace Church on April 9th, 2017. To listen/download the audio please click here.

We don’t grieve like those who have no hope. Each time someone dear passes away, we know we will see them again.

This week we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. We call it the Palm Sunday. As Jesus was entering Jerusalem, everyone had a certain expectation of the King who was prophesied. Hosanna in the highest. They expected to see strength.

Q. What is Strength?

On Palm Sunday, we see a picture of a king coming and reigning like the world never knew. This is depicted in Zechariah 9:9-17: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River[c] to the ends of the earth. As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. For I have bent Judah as my bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior's sword. The Lord Will Save His People. Then the Lord will appear over them, and his arrow will go forth like lightning; the Lord God will sound the trumpet and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south. The Lord of hosts will protect them, and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones, and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine, and be full like a bowl, drenched like the corners of the altar. On that day the Lord their God will save them, as the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on his land. For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty! Grain shall make the young men flourish, and new wine the young women”

People sang praises to God in fullness of joy at the coming of the king. So what is the strength that they expected from this King?

1.      The expectation of the crowds: The crowds were expecting a champion who will unify the world by political leadership and Israel will once again gain political importance. Jesus’ kingship was very different from political domination.

2.      The expectation of Jesus’ disciples: The disciples were looking for divine insurrection. They were looking for heaven’s support. Luke 9:51-56: “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But he turned and rebuked them. And they went on to another village.” The disciples said, you are strong beyond all strength. They wanted him to demonstrate his own strength to annihilate the enemies. They were expecting a political king with a heavenly fire power.

3.      The expectation of Satan- Satan’s expectation was for Jesus show his own strength by independently asserting his reign. In Matthew 4:8- 10 Jesus’ encounter with Satan goes like this- “Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” ” Satan thought Jesus just came to take the kingdoms in his own strength. We try to do this all the time. 

Q. What is Jesus’ view of Strength?

Biblical strength never involves sin. Side- stepping pain wasn’t his idea of strength. Jesus’ view of strength was perfect submission. Luke 18: 31-34 “And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise.” But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.” Jesus was telling his disciples that he is going to die for no guilt of his own but that he will rise again and come back!

Philippians 2:4-11- “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. ”

The ability to submit yourself completely to God- that is true Biblical Strength- the way Jesus did.

Q.  What does it have to do with us?

Luke 9: 23 “And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” The call to Jesus is a call to deny ourselves. It is so good for us to sobermindedly see the death of Jesus.

In Hebrews 12: 2 Paul says speaking of Jesus, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Nehemiah 8:10 says that the Joy of the Lord is our strength. The joy we have in Jesus is so great that we consider everything we have is rancid garbage. If you know him, you have deep joy. All of this makes sense. If you don’t know him, this is insanity. That is a helpful distinction for us. We have an honest assessment of ourselves- do I know him? What would you say? Where do you find your Joy? How long-lasting is it?

He is no fool who would give up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose- that is an eternity with Christ. Let’s pray!

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.  

Model Church for the Modern World| Colin D

This message was preached  by Colin D'cruz at Word of Grace Church on April 2nd, 2017. To listen/download the audio please click here. To listen to the Sunday's worship and prophetic contributions please click here

For us as a church, we look at a church in the Bible and we model after it. In Acts 4:32-37 – “ Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.”

 Acts 5:12-16 “Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico.None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. 16 The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.”

We see that there are all kinds of people in a church. But we have some guidelines in this church.

1.      The church of God comprises of people who are regenerated. No one is born a Christian. Eph 2- a true church consists of Born- again believers of Jesus Christ. Romans 10:9- Those who are born in a Christian family have the advantage of being exposed to the word. But they have to take a decision at one point.

2.      One heart and mind- There is unity in the church. Marriage is one sort of such unity. Phil 2:1-2 “So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” We do everything together in unity. For meeting together, to be there and to play my role.

3.      Community- they shared everything they had. That is powerful. There was openness and sharing. We find out about people’s needs and meet those needs.

4.      Signs and wonders- In verse 15, there was such power in the early church. We ask for anointing to see healing. We must be hungry for that. Let’s not be content with what we already have. Seek after him.

5.      Full of Grace- we can be people who are constantly adding value to people and not finding fault. When someone has sinned against you, count 10 of your own faults. All these things are a result of grace.

6.      Extravagant giving- in times of extraordinary need, they gave extravagantly. It wasn’t safe giving. The presence of God is validated by the giving of people. Only the grace of God can enable us to give.

7.      Supernatural Increase- 5:14- more and more people were being added to the church. We have to play our part. With so much of persecution all around us, we can get comfortable not being persecuted. Let’s work while there is light. Meet a person who does not know Christ. Let’s be like this early church.

Examine our own life. Are you born again, united, fitting in with what’s going on, sharing, etc. Let’s not be satisfied with the current level of experience of signs and miracles. Let’s grow in our number. We will model the early church in these we will on the right track.  

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that have people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service. To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.