“Unspeakable”
2 Corinthians 9:10-15
There is so much for which you and I should be thankful. Great and manifold are the blessings that God showers down upon us every day of our lives. Everyday ought to be a day of thanksgiving for what God does and has done in our lives. The greatest blessing that we enjoy is the gift of our redemption through Jesus Christ. Paul refers to it as God’s “unspeakable” or “indescribable” gift, gift that we can never fully comprehend but for which we should be eternally thankful. It is unspeakable because…
I. It is a gift that you and I do not deserve
A. Before receiving this gift the Bible declares that we were in open rebellion to and at odds with God.
B. Ecclesiastes 7:29 “Lo, this only have I found: that God hath made man upright, but they have sought out many inventions."
C. Isaiah 64:6 “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”
D. The human condition can be compared to a drop of poison in a glass of water: all the water is poisoned but it is not as bad as it could be. The water is incapable of being good. No matter how good we may believe ourselves to be; we too, are incapable of really being good.
E. We are unworthy of salvation, we are unworthy of God's love, we are unworthy of God’s mercy. The only thing even that we are worthy of is God’s wrath, and hell. Yet unworthy as we are, for those of us who have received His gracious gift, God has saved us from that which we deserved to have that which we do not deserve.
F. Christ died for completely unworthy people. It is the truth to the words in the song written by John Newton Amazing Grace. “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.” It is unfathomable that he would die for rotten people, “wretches” like you and me. – Randy Alcorn, Unworthy of the Cross.
II. It is a gift that we in our own strength are incapable of receiving.
A. Colossians 2:13 “you, being dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses”
B. 1 Corinthians 2:14 “the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
C. Ephesians 2:1-2 “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience.
D. Titus 3:5 “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit”
III. It is a costly gift you and I could never pay for and was not paid for with money
A. 1 Peter 1:18-19 “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot”
B. 1 Corinthians 6:20 sates that we “have been bought with a price”
C. That price which purchased this gift was paid to God in order to meet the exact the demands of His righteousness. The human blood of the Eternal Son of God was poured out in full payment as the ransom price of our eternal redemption.
D. "Redemption! What a glorious plan;
How suited to our need!
The grace that raises fallen man,
'Tis wonderful indeed!
Twas Wisdom formed the vast design,
To ransom us when lost;
And love's unfathomable mine,
Provided all the cost.
Strict Justice, with approving look,
The holy covenant sealed;
And Truth and Power undertook
The whole should be fulfilled.
Truth, Wisdom, Justice, Power and Love,
In all their glory shone;
When Jesus left the courts above,
And died to save his own." – copied
E. It was a gift of unspeakable sacrifice
F. 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
IV. It is a gift you and I never can lose or have taken back
A. Once you receive this Gift, you will never lose it.
B. Romans 11:29 “for the gifts and calling of God are without repentance,” which means that God never regrets or reverses that He has given this unspeakable gift.
C. John 10:28 “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”
D. Watchman Nee tells about a new convert who came in deep distress to see him. “No matter how much I pray, no matter how hard I try, I simply cannot seem to be faithful to my Lord. I think I’m losing my salvation.” Nee said, “Do you see this dog here? He is my dog. He is house-trained; he never makes a mess; he is obedient; he is a pure delight to me. Out in the kitchen I have a son, a baby son. He makes a mess, he throws his food around, he fouls his clothes, he is a total mess. But who is going to inherit my kingdom? Not my dog; my son is my heir. You are Jesus Christ’s heir because it is for you that He died.” We are Christ’s heirs, not through our perfection but by means of His grace.
E. Numbers 23:19 "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he not said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
V. It is a gift that brings unspeakable joy to you and I
A. 1 Peter 1:7-8 “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory”
B. Joy of having found forgiveness
1. Psalm 32:1-5 “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones waxed old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah
2. There's a Spanish story of a father and son who had become estranged. The son ran away, and the father set off to find him. He searched for months to no avail. Finally, in a last desperate effort to find him, the father put an ad in a Madrid newspaper. The ad read: Dear Paco, meet me in front of this newspaper office at noon on Saturday. ALL IS FORGIVEN. I LOVE YOU. YOUR FATHER. On Saturday 800 Pacos showed up, looking for forgiveness and love from their fathers. - Bits & Pieces, Oct. 15, 1992
C. Joy of being accepted
1. Ephesians 1:3-6 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
2. The need for belonging is an essential need for all human beings. There is a God shaped vacuum in every human heart that man does not understand nor is able to fill. It is only through God’s unspeakable gift that we are made whole as we become members of the Family of God.
3. My Father is rich in houses and lands
He holdeth the wealth of the world in His hands!
Of rubies and diamonds, of silver and gold,
His coffers are full, He has riches untold.
My Father’s own Son, the Saviour of men,
Once wandered on earth as the poorest of them;
But now He is reigning forever on high,
And will give me a home in heaven by and by.
I once was an outcast, stranger on earth,
A sinner by choice, and an alien by birth;
But I’ve been adopted, my name’s written down,
An heir to a mansion, a robe and a crown.
I’m a child of the King, a child of the King;
With Jesus my Saviour, I’m a child of the King. – Fanny Crosby
D. Joy of knowing and receiving God’s unfathomable love
1. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
2. 1 John 3:16 “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us.”
I have a song that Jesus gave me,
It was sent from heaven above;
There never was a sweeter melody,
‘Tis a melody of love.
I love the Christ, who died on Calv’ry,
For He washed my sins away;
He put within my heart a melody,
And I know it’s there to stay.
‘Twill be my endless theme in glory,
With the angels I will sing;
‘Twill be a song with glorious harmony,
When the courts of heaven ring.
(Chorus)
In my heart there rings a melody,
There rings a melody with heaven’s harmony;
In my heart there rings a melody;
There rings a melody of love! – Elton Roth
