A Miracle of Grace
The sermon emphasizes the miraculous nature of regeneration and the importance of trusting in God's sovereignty in accepting the supernatural work of God in regenerating souls.
J.C. Philpot preaches about how every regenerated soul is a miracle of grace, emphasizing the Divine power required to quicken, convict of sin, and bring souls to the throne of mercy. He discusses cases where God works miracles of grace with abundant displays of power, such as the conversions of Paul, Augustine, and Huntington, each accompanied by supernatural manifestations. Philpot challenges the audience not to doubt these extraordinary displays of God's grace but to recognize and appreciate them as genuine testimonies of Divine intervention in people's lives.
Text
A miracle of grace
by J. C. Philpot
Every regenerated soul is a miracle of grace. To quicken, to convince of sin, to bring to the bar of judgment, and thence, by pouring out a Spirit of grace and supplication, to the throne of mercy, to reveal Christ, to deliver the soul from death, the eyes from tears, the feet from falling, is as much an operation of Divine power as to create a world--or to raise the dead from the grave!
But there are cases where the Lord seems to work these miracles of grace with a more abundant and unusual display of Divine power. To call the crude fisherman of the Galilean lake to be a disciple and an apostle was really as much a miracle of grace as to convert the learned pupil of Gamaliel. But the conversion of Paul was accompanied by circumstances outwardly more supernatural and miraculous than the call of Peter. Augustine was directed to take up and read the Bible that lay at his side by a voice from heaven so audible to his outward ears that he at first thought it was that of a boy calling in an adjoining garden. Huntington, in his little tool-house, had a manifestation of Christ clothed in garments dipped in blood. Who can doubt the veracity of these men, when the whole tenor of their subsequent lives bore the strongest witness to the genuineness and reality of their Christianity? It is true, that in these extraordinary cases we want stronger evidence than seems requisite in the more usual and ordinary operations of Divine grace. But where that evidence is given, and there is no reason to believe the individual is a deceiver or deceived, to refuse assent to unusual displays of God's grace, merely because they differ from or surpass our own experience, would seem to be a refined species of infidelity.
Sermon Outline
- The Miraculous Nature of Regeneration
- Extraordinary Displays of Divine Power
- The Importance of Evidence
- The need for stronger evidence in extraordinary cases
- The importance of trusting in God's sovereignty
Key Quotes
“To quicken, to convince of sin, to bring to the bar of judgment, and thence, by pouring out a Spirit of grace and supplication, to the throne of mercy, to reveal Christ, to deliver the soul from death, the eyes from tears, the feet from falling, is as much an operation of Divine power as to create a world--or to raise the dead from the grave!” — J.C. Philpot
“Who can doubt the veracity of these men, when the whole tenor of their subsequent lives bore the strongest witness to the genuineness and reality of their Christianity?” — J.C. Philpot
Application Points
- We should trust in God's sovereignty and accept the miraculous work of God in regenerating souls.
- We need to be open to the possibility of extraordinary displays of God's grace in the lives of others.
- We should not refuse assent to unusual displays of God's grace merely because they differ from or surpass our own experience.