Text: Hebrews 4:14-16

• Illus. God’s grace cannot be captured or adequately understood by looking at only one facet. A sculptor cannot make a bust of a person from a photograph. It will always be out of proportion. You need multiple photographs from various angles in order to get it right or you need someone to pose. Remember, it is the multifaceted grace of God.
• Common bond is that we are all hurting people

• Pain and suffering are a part of the human experience
• Common bond we share with all of humanity
• Link that Christians have with the unsaved

1. The Location of God’s Grace (He. 4:16)
1. Thrones
1. Usually engender fear, respect
2. This is a throne of grace, not of judgment!
2. Incarnation
1. Lets us know that God cares

The incarnation lets us know that God can be touched by our infirmities. Note: God did not "need" the incarnation to understand us. However, the incarnation helps us to know that He knows. We can’t say (rightly or wrongly) "Well, God, you don’t know what it’s like to be a creature, to be human."

2. Identifies God with our weakness as well as our sin
1. Jesus hungered
2. Jesus became weary
3. Jesus wept and faced bereavement
4. Jesus was angry (albeit a righteous anger)
2. Sufficiency of God’s Grace (2 Co. 12:9)
1. Covers every situation
1. Loss/bereavement
1. 1 Thess. 4:13-20 "Comfort one another with these words"
2. "It is well with my soul"
1. Horatio Spafford was a successful lawyer in Chicago
2. Close relationship with Moody
3. Prior to the Chicago fire of 1871 he invested heavily in real estate on the shore of Lake Michigan
4. His investments were wiped out by the fire
5. Prior to this his only son had died
6. Desired a rest for his family so he planned a European vacation for his family in 1873
7. He decided upon Europe so that he could go and help Moody & Sankey in one of their crusades
8. An unexpected business development forced him to send his wife and four daughters ahead of him while he remained in the US to take care of business
9. His family boarded the S.S. Ville du Havre. On Nov. 22 the ship was struck by the Lochearn, an English vessel, and sank in 12 minutes.
10. The survivors landed at Cardiff, Wales several days later and Mrs. Spafford cabled home, "Saved Alone."
11. Spafford then left on a ship to join his wife. It is speculated that he penned the words to "It Is Well…" while crossing the spot that his daughters drowned
12. "When sorrows like sea billows roll"
2. Physical ailment
1. 2 Co. 12:7-9
2. God used this "thorn" to strengthen Paul and make Him more effective
3. Suffering/persecution/reproach
4. Strength
1. Illus. Fish in the Ohio worrying about a drink and the Ohio says, "Drink away little fish, my stream is sufficient for me."
5. Grace suggests that God is good to us even in the difficult times. We tend to look at the circumstances and question the goodness of God.
6. God is good even in the "bad" times
1. He only knows how to give good gifts
2. He is all wise and all good and He knows what He is doing
3. All things work together for good
1. Not, all things are good
2. Illus. Inner workings of a watch. Some gears turn backward for the good of the timepiece.
4. James 1:17 God only knows how to give good gifts
5. God never changes. He is always gracious. "Bad" circumstances do not change the grace of God.
6. Could be worse if not for the grace of God.
2. Covers every person
1. Given to All (Eph. 4:7)
2. God is not a respecter of persons
3. Covers every time period
1. Continues to give (John 1:14-17)
2. God never changes
3. Purpose for trials and grace
1. Individual purpose in molding us
2. Evangelistic purpose in demonstrating His grace through us
1. Auca Indians were saved as a result of the death of Jim Elliott
2. Elizabeth Elliott later returned to the Indians and many of the Auca’s were saved
3. Edifying purpose in using us to help and encourage others
1. Job’s story continues to help us even though it occurred near the beginning of time
2. The problem of bad things happening to good people has been an issue from the beginning of time
4. Eternal purpose that will be revealed in due time
3. Acquisition of God’s Grace
1. Come boldly (He. 4:14-16)
1. Confidently
2. Know that He hears
2. Come humbly (James 4:6; Prov. 3:34)
1. Realize that we are getting something that we really don’t deserve
2. Realize that God resists the proud
3. This is not an oxymoron with point A above
3. Come uprightly (Ps. 84:11)

• Allow the grace of God to work in you when difficult times come
• Allow difficulties to push you to God rather than be a wedge between you and God
• Realize that God’s grace and goodness is actually GREATER in times of need.
• We tend to think that God has left us when in reality, He is more ready to help.
• Device at the children’s museum called the "crown of thorns" used to measure a person and create a mold for the perfect bust that cannot be made from a two-dimensional picture. It is the crown of thorns that helps us to understand the depth of the grace of God.