IPC Messenger
A W eekly P ublication of T he I ndependent P resbyterian C hurch
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Volume 18 • No 31
Keys of the kingdom
How is it that we get the benefits of what
Jesus accomplished on the cross? By what
means to those benefits flow to us today?
This is a valuable question to ask and a
crucial one to answer. After all, the events
of the cross (death, burial, resurrection,
ascension) took place long ago and far
away. Two thousand years have passed.
Most of us must cross oceans and/or
land masses to get to the place where the
redemptive acts occurred. How do His
benefits cross all that time and all that
space to get to us today?
The biblical answer is the grace of Christ
is communicated to us through the God-
ordained “means of grace.” God has given
means through which He imparts the grace
of Christ. He doesn’t ordinarily call out
to us from heaven or zap us with grace
directly, though He did in the case of the
Apostle Paul. No, ordinarily (a favorite
word among Reformed Protestants) He
uses means. He uses human agency. He
provides spiritual tools for spiritual work.
Primary means
What are those means? We have touched
on this already, but now is the time to
give this question focused attention. Most
anything can be a means of grace. Marriage,
for example, may be a means. So also may
divorce. I know a man whose divorce led
directly to his conversion! Events and
relationships along the whole spectrum
from adversity to prosperity may be means
of grace. “It was good for me that I was
afflicted,” the psalmist recognizes (Ps
119:71). Our concern, however, is with the
primary means. What are the central, the
crucial, the core and ordained means that
God uses to save and sanctify His people?
The traditional answer is the word,
sacraments, and prayer. There are three
and only three primary means. We may
also refer to these as the promised means.
God promises to use His word (in its
various forms: read, sung, prayed, and
especially preached), the sacraments
(understood as visible words), and prayer.
Through those three primary means, God
saves and sanctifies His people.
Keys of the kingdom
Where primarily are the primary means
operative? What is the sphere in which
they primarily function? The biblical
answer is in the church. God imparts His
grace through the ministry of the church.
Jesus gave to the church the “keys of the
kingdom of heaven” (Mt 16:19). These
keys unlock the closed gates of heaven.
Traditionally they have been understood
as the aforementioned means of grace.
The word, verbal and visible, is the key.
Through the gospel word, those dead in
trespasses and sin are born again (1 Pet
1:23-25), spiritual babes are fed (1 Pet
2:1ff), and saints are sanctified (Jn 17:17).
Faith comes by “hearing the word of
Christ” (Rom 10:7). Christ has placed the
word, the key, in various forms, therefore
keys, into the hands of the church.
Consequently, preachers must be “sent” if
unbelievers are to hear. Note, they don’t
Continued Page 2
AUGUST 2018
IPC Messenger
CONTENTS
3 Communion Season
4 Women’s Ministry
5 Music Ministry
Children’s Ministry
Veterans Day
6 Family Corner
7 Announcements
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