foreign<\/p>\n
So today we're continuing to to look at<\/p>\n
the church and ajana tea started us off<\/p>\n
last week and this week we'll look at<\/p>\n
the purpose of the church but before we<\/p>\n
do that let me pray for our time in<\/p>\n
God's word<\/p>\n
uh dear heavenly father we thank you so<\/p>\n
much for this opportunity to come and to<\/p>\n
gather to worship you to sing praises to<\/p>\n
your holy name<\/p>\n
we thank you for your word we thank you<\/p>\n
for your Holy Spirit and we pray that<\/p>\n
you will help us to understand your word<\/p>\n
rightly help us to understand the<\/p>\n
purpose for your church and I ask all<\/p>\n
this in Jesus name amen<\/p>\n
now the church like any good institution<\/p>\n
or organization has been created in an<\/p>\n
orderly and logical Way by an orderly<\/p>\n
and logical God<\/p>\n
God doesn't design things and hope that<\/p>\n
they will work out<\/p>\n
God designed and created the church to<\/p>\n
have a specific purpose<\/p>\n
a mission vision and values and he<\/p>\n
hasn't left us to figure these things<\/p>\n
out on her own<\/p>\n
he has given us his word that contains<\/p>\n
these and so as we look through his word<\/p>\n
we find all of them<\/p>\n
so if we as Grace City Bangkok want to<\/p>\n
honor the Lord as his church then we<\/p>\n
must understand why he created us<\/p>\n
what we are to do and be and how we<\/p>\n
should go about it<\/p>\n
if you go online and look at most larger<\/p>\n
companies on their website you will find<\/p>\n
a place that says about us and if you<\/p>\n
click on this you'll probably see a<\/p>\n
section that has the company's Mission<\/p>\n
their purpose statement their vision and<\/p>\n
values<\/p>\n
and the purpose statement it answers the<\/p>\n
question why<\/p>\n
why do we exist why do we do what we do<\/p>\n
the mission statement answers the<\/p>\n
question what do we do<\/p>\n
the company's purpose is the driving<\/p>\n
force behind their mission so you can<\/p>\n
think of a train with an engine car in<\/p>\n
the back the engine car is what's<\/p>\n
pushing along the rest of the train<\/p>\n
Legos a children's toy company makes<\/p>\n
toys that are made out of small blocks<\/p>\n
that fit together<\/p>\n
and these blocks must be put together to<\/p>\n
form the toy it's kind of like Ikea for<\/p>\n
kids<\/p>\n
everything comes in a box and you have<\/p>\n
to do all the work to put it together<\/p>\n
and so this is a great business strategy<\/p>\n
if anybody's looking to go into business<\/p>\n
this is a great idea because you cut out<\/p>\n
the need for assembly workers<\/p>\n
because the kids assemble everything for<\/p>\n
themselves<\/p>\n
Lego's purpose statement at one time was<\/p>\n
to inspire and develop the Builders of<\/p>\n
tomorrow<\/p>\n
and so the purpose statement of a<\/p>\n
company says something about that<\/p>\n
company's passion and what is motivating<\/p>\n
them to do what they do<\/p>\n
for Lego's company according to the<\/p>\n
purpose statement their passion is to<\/p>\n
encourage children to build and to<\/p>\n
become builders<\/p>\n
and so unlike Ikea the reason Legos<\/p>\n
doesn't put the toys together for the<\/p>\n
children is because they want the kids<\/p>\n
to think for themselves how do I need to<\/p>\n
put these blocks together so that I can<\/p>\n
create what is on the cover of this box<\/p>\n
they were training the kids to think<\/p>\n
creatively which is a trait that<\/p>\n
Builders must have<\/p>\n
and so today we'll look at God's purpose<\/p>\n
statement for the church<\/p>\n
and we will answer the question why do<\/p>\n
we do what we do<\/p>\n
why do we exist what is the driving<\/p>\n
force or should be the driving force of<\/p>\n
all that we are and do as the church<\/p>\n
and a good place to begin our search for<\/p>\n
the purpose of the church is found in<\/p>\n
Matthew 28 16-20 and here we find the<\/p>\n
Great Commission<\/p>\n
now the 11 disciples went to Galilee to<\/p>\n
the mountain to which Jesus had directed<\/p>\n
them and when they saw him they<\/p>\n
worshiped him but some doubt it and<\/p>\n
Jesus came and said to them all<\/p>\n
authority in heaven and on Earth has<\/p>\n
been given to me go therefore and Make<\/p>\n
Disciples of all Nations baptizing them<\/p>\n
in the name of the father and of the son<\/p>\n
and of the Holy Spirit<\/p>\n
teaching them to observe all that I have<\/p>\n
commanded you and behold I Am With You<\/p>\n
Always to the end of the age<\/p>\n
and so here we see that the purpose of<\/p>\n
the church is to make disciples and we<\/p>\n
can break that purpose down further and<\/p>\n
say that the church exists to gather and<\/p>\n
mature God's people in the faith and<\/p>\n
this person it then drives the mission<\/p>\n
of the church<\/p>\n
and you will have to come back next week<\/p>\n
to hear about this Mission and what it<\/p>\n
looks like and how we are to carry it<\/p>\n
out<\/p>\n
a good start to coming up with a purpose<\/p>\n
statement for the church would be the<\/p>\n
church's purpose is to make disciples of<\/p>\n
Jesus<\/p>\n
I'm sure many of you have heard or maybe<\/p>\n
been to watch the kit the Temple of the<\/p>\n
golden mount<\/p>\n
I read that at one time maybe before all<\/p>\n
the the huge skyscrapers were built in<\/p>\n
Bangkok it was the highest point in<\/p>\n
Bangkok<\/p>\n
and it's a large Hill that has a<\/p>\n
spiraling staircase that goes to the top<\/p>\n
and on the top of the mount is a flat<\/p>\n
area with a dome and I read that some of<\/p>\n
the relics of Buddha are supposedly kept<\/p>\n
here<\/p>\n
and when you're on the top you can look<\/p>\n
out and you can see this beautiful view<\/p>\n
of Bangkok it's very beautiful<\/p>\n
it is around 320 stairs to the Top If<\/p>\n
you've ever climbed it you know it's not<\/p>\n
an easy hike up<\/p>\n
there's a section about halfway up<\/p>\n
that has a lot of bells that people ring<\/p>\n
as they are walking up<\/p>\n
and I went with my a group of my friends<\/p>\n
in 2010 we we climbed to the top<\/p>\n
and there was a cafe there about in the<\/p>\n
midsection and you can stop and get a<\/p>\n
cool drink one of my friends who was<\/p>\n
with us he wasn't in the best shape and<\/p>\n
he also had a heart condition<\/p>\n
and so he said I'm just gonna wait right<\/p>\n
here at this Cafe I'm going to listen to<\/p>\n
these people ringing the bells as they<\/p>\n
come up and I'm going to drink my iced<\/p>\n
coffee lotsie you guys just go on ahead<\/p>\n
I'll be fine where I am I have a nice<\/p>\n
view here that I can see<\/p>\n
and my other friends who were with me<\/p>\n
had been who had been to the top they<\/p>\n
knew the beautiful view at the top and<\/p>\n
they tried to convince this other friend<\/p>\n
to keep going they said you have to keep<\/p>\n
going you have to make it to the top or<\/p>\n
you're going to miss the purpose that we<\/p>\n
came which is to see the beautiful view<\/p>\n
at the top of the mountain<\/p>\n
the view is good here but it is even<\/p>\n
better whenever you get to the top<\/p>\n
so scripture prods us along like my<\/p>\n
other friends prodded this one friend<\/p>\n
along to go to the top to reach the top<\/p>\n
of the purpose of the church we can't<\/p>\n
just leave our purpose statement here<\/p>\n
because there is a greater and there is<\/p>\n
a grander aim that we must get to<\/p>\n
so it wouldn't be wrong to say that the<\/p>\n
Jesus but it wouldn't be complete<\/p>\n
the ultimate aim of the purpose of the<\/p>\n
church is to glorify God in and through<\/p>\n
the church<\/p>\n
so let's look first at how the ultimate<\/p>\n
aim of the purpose of the church is to<\/p>\n
glorify God in the church and then we'll<\/p>\n
look at the same aim through the church<\/p>\n
one place where scripture shows us the<\/p>\n
ultimate aim in the church is in the<\/p>\n
book of Ephesians<\/p>\n
Paul speaks of it throughout Ephesians 1<\/p>\n
through 3 and then he sums it up at the<\/p>\n
end of chapter three<\/p>\n
in Ephesians 1 3-14 Paul gives us a<\/p>\n
picture of God forming and blessing the<\/p>\n
church in and through Christ<\/p>\n
and it says blessed be the God and<\/p>\n
father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has<\/p>\n
blessed us in Christ with every<\/p>\n
spiritual blessing in the Heavenly<\/p>\n
places even as he's chose us in him<\/p>\n
before the foundation of the world that<\/p>\n
we should be holy and blameless before<\/p>\n
him<\/p>\n
in love he predestined us for adoption<\/p>\n
as Sons through Jesus Christ according<\/p>\n
to the purpose of his will to the praise<\/p>\n
of his glorious Grace with which he has<\/p>\n
blessed us in the Beloved<\/p>\n
in him we have Redemption through his<\/p>\n
blood the Forgiveness of our trespasses<\/p>\n
according to the riches of his grace<\/p>\n
which he lavished upon us<\/p>\n
in all wisdom and insight making known<\/p>\n
to us the mystery of his will according<\/p>\n
to his purpose which he set forth in<\/p>\n
Christ is a plan for the fullness of<\/p>\n
time to unite all things in him things<\/p>\n
in heaven and things on earth in him we<\/p>\n
have obtained an inheritance having been<\/p>\n
predestined according to the purpose of<\/p>\n
him who works all things according to<\/p>\n
the counsel of his will so that we who<\/p>\n
were the first to Hope in Christ might<\/p>\n
be to the praise of his glory<\/p>\n
in him you also when you heard the word<\/p>\n
of Truth The Gospel of your salvation<\/p>\n
and believed in him were sealed with the<\/p>\n
promised Holy Spirit who is the<\/p>\n
guarantee of our inheritance until we<\/p>\n
require possession of it to the praise<\/p>\n
of his glory<\/p>\n
one of the themes that runs throughout<\/p>\n
this passage and throughout the rest of<\/p>\n
Ephesians 1 through 3 is that God pours<\/p>\n
out his blessings upon his people<\/p>\n
um in Ephesians 1 3<\/p>\n
it says blessed be the God and father of<\/p>\n
our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us<\/p>\n
in Christ with every spiritual blessing<\/p>\n
in the Heavenly places<\/p>\n
in what way does God bless the church<\/p>\n
and Verses 4<\/p>\n
through 7 we see this<\/p>\n
verse 4A we see<\/p>\n
that God elects us<\/p>\n
and verse 4A it says even as he chose us<\/p>\n
in him before the foundation of the<\/p>\n
world and so before the foundation of<\/p>\n
the world meaning before God created<\/p>\n
anything before he created us he knew<\/p>\n
and he chose who he will love and so<\/p>\n
this indicates that from all of eternity<\/p>\n
God has loved us<\/p>\n
the act of God choosing us as an act of<\/p>\n
eternal love<\/p>\n
Paul goes on to say<\/p>\n
in verse 4B that we should be holy and<\/p>\n
blameless before him and so God planned<\/p>\n
for us to be holy and blameless before<\/p>\n
him in this phrase it paints a picture<\/p>\n
of someone standing before a judge<\/p>\n
the Lord has done everything needed<\/p>\n
through the life and the work of Christ<\/p>\n
to make us appear spotless before him<\/p>\n
in verse 5 in love he predestined us for<\/p>\n
adoption as Sons<\/p>\n
many of you may not have the greatest<\/p>\n
families Earthly families our family but<\/p>\n
because you were part of the church you<\/p>\n
are now part of God's family you have a<\/p>\n
new family a heavenly father who is so<\/p>\n
much better than what you have now on<\/p>\n
Earth<\/p>\n
in verse 7 he says in him we have<\/p>\n
Redemption through his blood the<\/p>\n
Forgiveness of our trespasses<\/p>\n
and so God like any righteous and good<\/p>\n
judge requires that we are held<\/p>\n
accountable for our sin<\/p>\n
Jesus through his death has taken care<\/p>\n
of the punishment for our sins so that<\/p>\n
we are now forgiven<\/p>\n
he has redeemed us from our sinful<\/p>\n
condition before the Lord and the price<\/p>\n
he paid for our Ransom was his own blood<\/p>\n
and these are a few of the many<\/p>\n
blessings that we receive as being part<\/p>\n
so what do these verses tell us about<\/p>\n
the church's relationship to God<\/p>\n
is the one who blesses and the church is<\/p>\n
the one who receives these blessings<\/p>\n
and so the church exists because God<\/p>\n
wants to have a people to pour out his<\/p>\n
blessings upon<\/p>\n
and verse 5 it says that<\/p>\n
to the purpose of his will<\/p>\n
and so how does God bless us<\/p>\n
it is in love that God blesses us God<\/p>\n
the Father didn't act in a cold or<\/p>\n
mechanical way when he predestined us<\/p>\n
for adoption as sons and daughters<\/p>\n
God is Not passionless<\/p>\n
he determined our destiny to be his<\/p>\n
children because he is a loving God and<\/p>\n
he was compelled by love to do so<\/p>\n
and to love someone always involves an<\/p>\n
action but is never just an action alone<\/p>\n
to love someone involves the emotions<\/p>\n
when you love someone it means that you<\/p>\n
act in a way that is best for that<\/p>\n
person that comes from a heart that<\/p>\n
wants the best for that person<\/p>\n
there's a good motive that is behind<\/p>\n
that action and so love involves both<\/p>\n
action and emotion<\/p>\n
so when Paul tells us that God In Love<\/p>\n
predestined us for adoption it means<\/p>\n
that God planned for us to be his<\/p>\n
children in order to bring about<\/p>\n
something good for us and it also means<\/p>\n
that it was done out of his desire for<\/p>\n
our good<\/p>\n
does God love us because of anything<\/p>\n
that we have done<\/p>\n
no we can't earn God's love God loves us<\/p>\n
because he loves us<\/p>\n
we can't earn that love and we don't<\/p>\n
deserve that love and so how does God<\/p>\n
Express his love towards us<\/p>\n
we've talked about it we've sang about<\/p>\n
it this morning<\/p>\n
in verses 7 through 8<\/p>\n
we see that in him we have Redemption<\/p>\n
through his blood the Forgiveness of our<\/p>\n
trespasses according to the riches of<\/p>\n
his grace which he has lavished Upon Us<\/p>\n
in all wisdom and insight<\/p>\n
and so one of the ways that God<\/p>\n
expresses his love to us is through his<\/p>\n
grace<\/p>\n
we hear the term Grace a lot our<\/p>\n
Church's name is Grace City uh has Grace<\/p>\n
in it<\/p>\n
what is Grace<\/p>\n
in the New Testament one of the basic<\/p>\n
meanings of the word is gift<\/p>\n
when we look at the the way Paul uses it<\/p>\n
here to describe the way that God has<\/p>\n
blessed the church we can say that Grace<\/p>\n
means a gift given by God<\/p>\n
all of the blessings that we receive<\/p>\n
from God are by his grace they are gifts<\/p>\n
from God<\/p>\n
and so whenever you look at Grace in<\/p>\n
this text it also carries with it the<\/p>\n
idea not only of a gift but of a gift<\/p>\n
given somebody who to somebody who has<\/p>\n
no merit before God who has done nothing<\/p>\n
good to deserve it<\/p>\n
in fact we Ascend against God and so we<\/p>\n
only have demerit to offer God we have a<\/p>\n
strike against us in God's book<\/p>\n
Jerry Bridges tells a story from his<\/p>\n
childhood to illustrate God's grace he<\/p>\n
says that his family lived near a train<\/p>\n
track whenever he was a boy and a lot of<\/p>\n
times homeless men would ride these rail<\/p>\n
cards on the train<\/p>\n
they would often get out out at the stop<\/p>\n
near his house and they would come to<\/p>\n
his house and they would knock on his<\/p>\n
door his mom would go to the door and<\/p>\n
they would ask her for food<\/p>\n
he said his mom would go into the the<\/p>\n
kitchen and prepare a warm meal for<\/p>\n
these men and serve these men a war Mill<\/p>\n
he said they hadn't mowed their grass<\/p>\n
they hadn't painted their house or<\/p>\n
washed their Windows prior to asking for<\/p>\n
the food<\/p>\n
they showed up at the doorstep with<\/p>\n
empty hands and empty pockets they<\/p>\n
couldn't pay for the mill and they had<\/p>\n
done nothing to deserve it and so this<\/p>\n
is an illustration that shows us how God<\/p>\n
freely blesses us whenever we don't have<\/p>\n
any Merit before God<\/p>\n
Bridges then adds a fictional side to<\/p>\n
the story he says suppose that one of<\/p>\n
these homeless men had stolen things<\/p>\n
from our house the week before<\/p>\n
when the man came to the door and my<\/p>\n
mother saw him she recognized him as the<\/p>\n
thief<\/p>\n
this time when the man asked her for a<\/p>\n
meal in her eyes he's done nothing to<\/p>\n
earn it he has no merit before her while<\/p>\n
at the same time he has stolen our<\/p>\n
belongings and so my mother views him as<\/p>\n
having demerit<\/p>\n
instead of going to the phone to call<\/p>\n
the police she again goes to the kitchen<\/p>\n
and prepares a plate of worn food for<\/p>\n
and this is like the divine grace that<\/p>\n
we see God pour out upon his church in<\/p>\n
our text today<\/p>\n
God freely bestows and lavishes good<\/p>\n
things upon his sinful people who only<\/p>\n
have the Merit to offer him<\/p>\n
and what is the greatest display of<\/p>\n
Grace that he has lavished upon the<\/p>\n
church<\/p>\n
and John 3 16 we read<\/p>\n
for God so loved the world that he gave<\/p>\n
his only son so that whoever believes in<\/p>\n
him will not have will not perish but<\/p>\n
have eternal life<\/p>\n
and so the greatest gift he gave was a<\/p>\n
person it was his only son<\/p>\n
it is only because of the giving of<\/p>\n
Jesus that the father is able to bestow<\/p>\n
upon us and lavish us with all the gifts<\/p>\n
that's mentioned in this text<\/p>\n
and that is what Paul repeats several<\/p>\n
times in this passage all the blessings<\/p>\n
that God gives are in and through Jesus<\/p>\n
all the blessings that we have as the<\/p>\n
church are because of what God has done<\/p>\n
for us in Christ<\/p>\n
God is a loving and gracious God and<\/p>\n
this is his amazing character this is<\/p>\n
who he is he has a desire to Lavish his<\/p>\n
sinful people who don't have any good<\/p>\n
deeds to present to him with love and<\/p>\n
with Grace<\/p>\n
he called us to himself informed the<\/p>\n
church in order to bless us to express<\/p>\n
his love and his grace and so the church<\/p>\n
exists in order for God to have a people<\/p>\n
to bless<\/p>\n
and all these blessings that God has<\/p>\n
given us in and through Christ are<\/p>\n
special and they're wonderful<\/p>\n
but as great as these blessings are in<\/p>\n
themselves that is not God's ultimate<\/p>\n
aim for the purpose of the church<\/p>\n
God's ultimate aim is not to elect a<\/p>\n
people to himself it's not to present<\/p>\n
holy and blameless people before him<\/p>\n
it's not to adopt us as Sons and<\/p>\n
Daughters or to redeem us<\/p>\n
so what is his ultimate amen blessing us<\/p>\n
in love according to his grace why does<\/p>\n
the church ultimately exist<\/p>\n
let's look at Ephesians 1 11 through 14<\/p>\n
where we see an example of the purpose<\/p>\n
of the church driving the mission of the<\/p>\n
church in him we have attained an<\/p>\n
inheritance having been predestined<\/p>\n
according to the purpose of him who<\/p>\n
works all things according to the<\/p>\n
Council of his will so that we who were<\/p>\n
the first to Hope in Christ might be to<\/p>\n
the praise of his glory and him you also<\/p>\n
when you heard the word of Truth The<\/p>\n
Gospel of your salvation and believed in<\/p>\n
him were sealed with the promised Holy<\/p>\n
Spirit who is the guarantee of our<\/p>\n
inheritance until we acquire possession<\/p>\n
of it to the praise of his glory<\/p>\n
and so we remember that we said that the<\/p>\n
purpose of the church is driving the<\/p>\n
mission of the church in one part of the<\/p>\n
mission the church's mission is<\/p>\n
evangelism<\/p>\n
and so we share the gospel of those who<\/p>\n
don't know Christ as Lord and savior and<\/p>\n
why do we do this<\/p>\n
what is the purpose behind it it's what<\/p>\n
we've already looked at in Matthew 28 so<\/p>\n
that they may hear the truth believe and<\/p>\n
trust in Jesus in order to become his<\/p>\n
disciples and so we want people to come<\/p>\n
to know Jesus and to submit to him as<\/p>\n
Lord and savior<\/p>\n
and what is the ultimate aim of that<\/p>\n
purpose we see that in verse 12 so that<\/p>\n
we who were the first to Hope in Christ<\/p>\n
might be to the praise of his glory<\/p>\n
and then in verses 13 and 14 you also to<\/p>\n
the praise of his glory<\/p>\n
and so the ultimate aim for people to<\/p>\n
become Disciples of Christ is not a<\/p>\n
person's salvation as good and wonderful<\/p>\n
as that is but for a person's salvation<\/p>\n
to reveal God's glory and for him to<\/p>\n
receive praise for it<\/p>\n
we also see this aim in Paul's doxology<\/p>\n
in chapter 1 verse 3.<\/p>\n
he says blessed be the God and father of<\/p>\n
our Lord Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
and blessed here it can be translated as<\/p>\n
praise<\/p>\n
and so you see Paul practicing the<\/p>\n
doctrine that he is teaching he doesn't<\/p>\n
just write down a bunch of facts and<\/p>\n
doctrines about the church here<\/p>\n
God's passion for the church has become<\/p>\n
Paul's passion for the church he is<\/p>\n
living out the ultimate aim for the<\/p>\n
purpose of the church which is to<\/p>\n
glorify God<\/p>\n
and lastly we see it<\/p>\n
whenever Paul sums up all this at the<\/p>\n
end of chapter three so we see it<\/p>\n
chapter 3 verses 20 through 21 now to<\/p>\n
him who is able to do far more<\/p>\n
abundantly than all that we ask or think<\/p>\n
according to the power at work in a<\/p>\n
within us to him be glory in the church<\/p>\n
and in Christ Jesus throughout all<\/p>\n
generations forever and ever amen<\/p>\n
and when you get to the the top of<\/p>\n
golden Mount you see a dome on the top<\/p>\n
and on top of this Dome is a pillar with<\/p>\n
a light on the top of it and if you were<\/p>\n
able to stand on top of that light it<\/p>\n
would be the highest point on the mouth<\/p>\n
you couldn't go any higher and in the<\/p>\n
same way whenever we look at the purpose<\/p>\n
of the church and look at the ultimate<\/p>\n
aim or the height of that purpose we<\/p>\n
find that it is to display the glory of<\/p>\n
God God is glorifying himself in the<\/p>\n
what does it mean to what is the glory<\/p>\n
of God<\/p>\n
John Piper defines the glory of God or<\/p>\n
tries to define the glory of God in his<\/p>\n
book Desiring God he says glory is not<\/p>\n
easy to Define it is like Beauty how<\/p>\n
would you define Beauty<\/p>\n
some things we have to point at rather<\/p>\n
than Define but let me try God's glory<\/p>\n
is the beauty of his manifold<\/p>\n
Perfections<\/p>\n
it can refer to the bright and awesome<\/p>\n
Radiance that sometimes breaks forth<\/p>\n
invisible manifestations or it can refer<\/p>\n
to the infinite moral Excellence of his<\/p>\n
character<\/p>\n
in either case it signifies a reality of<\/p>\n
infinite greatness and worth<\/p>\n
and so according to Piper God's glory is<\/p>\n
the beauty of his manifold Perfections<\/p>\n
god is perfect in all the ways that God<\/p>\n
is<\/p>\n
he is perfect in his attributes and his<\/p>\n
wisdom his power his presence and the<\/p>\n
list could go on so all the ways that<\/p>\n
God is perfect add up to form a beauty a<\/p>\n
weight and Excellency a Grandeur a worth<\/p>\n
of God which is his glory<\/p>\n
and you can see the way that God has<\/p>\n
whenever you can compare some of those<\/p>\n
characteristics of God that are found in<\/p>\n
US<\/p>\n
God created us to have the ability to<\/p>\n
have a certain amount of wisdom<\/p>\n
we have a certain limited amount of<\/p>\n
knowledge and we can apply that<\/p>\n
knowledge to life in a limited way<\/p>\n
but God knows all things he knows how to<\/p>\n
apply that knowledge in every way and<\/p>\n
and then in the very best way possible<\/p>\n
God has created us to have a certain<\/p>\n
limited amount of power God has given me<\/p>\n
hands to build with I can make a cake<\/p>\n
with ingredients I buy from the store<\/p>\n
but God can speak a world into existence<\/p>\n
by the power of His word<\/p>\n
so we have these two characteristics of<\/p>\n
wisdom and power like God has but God<\/p>\n
has them to a much greater degree than<\/p>\n
we do<\/p>\n
and I think Piper is right in saying<\/p>\n
that for some things like God's glory we<\/p>\n
must point to rather than Define<\/p>\n
no illustration can ever capture the<\/p>\n
glory of God because it is the glory of<\/p>\n
God<\/p>\n
nothing can ever compare to it but I<\/p>\n
think an illustration might help<\/p>\n
before I propose to Carly I went<\/p>\n
shopping for engagement ring and I did<\/p>\n
some research online and experts say<\/p>\n
that you must look for four C's when<\/p>\n
looking at a diamond the first C is the<\/p>\n
cut diamonds are a cut in a certain way<\/p>\n
that reveal their beauty and so if if a<\/p>\n
diamond is cut too narrow or if it's cut<\/p>\n
too deep then it's not going to reveal<\/p>\n
the the beauty of the diamond like it<\/p>\n
could<\/p>\n
the next is the color you want a<\/p>\n
colorless Diamond you don't want any<\/p>\n
hint of yellow in it the next is Clarity<\/p>\n
you can take a magnifying glass and look<\/p>\n
at the dime and you can see any<\/p>\n
Perfections in it and those<\/p>\n
imperfections will throw off the sparkle<\/p>\n
of the diamond and then lastly you look<\/p>\n
at the carrot which is the weight or the<\/p>\n
size of the diamond the larger the<\/p>\n
diamond the more beautiful the more<\/p>\n
worthy and the more expensive it is<\/p>\n
I would go into some jewelry stores and<\/p>\n
look at the most expensive diamond they<\/p>\n
had not because I ever thought about<\/p>\n
buying it or that I could buy it but<\/p>\n
because I wanted to look at the Quality<\/p>\n
and the beauty of the diamond<\/p>\n
some rings that I looked at were twenty<\/p>\n
thousand dollars and so some of the<\/p>\n
merchants they would come over they<\/p>\n
would pull the ring out they would put<\/p>\n
it on the top of the case for me to look<\/p>\n
at it and I would kind of just back up a<\/p>\n
little bit and say no thank you I don't<\/p>\n
want to touch it and I would just say I<\/p>\n
just want to look at the beauty from<\/p>\n
afar and so I looked at several rings<\/p>\n
and so I was able to to get a feel for<\/p>\n
the worth of diamonds and so I would go<\/p>\n
in and look at these<\/p>\n
the biggest diamond they had and I would<\/p>\n
see these diamonds and I would say wow<\/p>\n
that is a diamond and so it would make<\/p>\n
all the other dimes in the store seem<\/p>\n
small it would make them look like a<\/p>\n
little rocks compared to these big<\/p>\n
beautiful diamonds<\/p>\n
in a similar way God in all of his<\/p>\n
Perfections is off the charts in the<\/p>\n
four C's he has a weight a beauty a<\/p>\n
worth that is so much beyond anything<\/p>\n
and he in fact unlike diamonds or<\/p>\n
anything else is in a class of his own<\/p>\n
that we can barely understand and<\/p>\n
describe with words<\/p>\n
I think Exodus 14 2-4 can also help<\/p>\n
point point us to what the glory of God<\/p>\n
the Israelites God's people in the Old<\/p>\n
Testament were slaves at one time in<\/p>\n
Egypt they were forced to do hard labor<\/p>\n
and they were not allowed to Worship the<\/p>\n
Lord and the way that the Lord<\/p>\n
instructed them to<\/p>\n
and so God sent all these plagues these<\/p>\n
swarms of flies these frogs against the<\/p>\n
Egyptians so that they would send the<\/p>\n
Israelites away and this eventually<\/p>\n
works and so the Israelites are fleeing<\/p>\n
Egypt and they're fleeing Pharaoh<\/p>\n
they're about to cross the Red Sea and<\/p>\n
what does God tell them to do<\/p>\n
he says tell the people of Israel to<\/p>\n
turn back and then camp in front of<\/p>\n
pahirath between migdal and the sea in<\/p>\n
front of Bowser fraud you show on Camp<\/p>\n
and facing the sea<\/p>\n
for Pharaoh will say of the people of<\/p>\n
Israel they are wandering in the land<\/p>\n
the Wilderness has shut them in and I<\/p>\n
will harden Pharaoh's heart and he will<\/p>\n
pursue them and I will get Glory over<\/p>\n
pharaoh and all his hosts and the<\/p>\n
Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord<\/p>\n
and they did so<\/p>\n
so what is God doing here he tells<\/p>\n
Israel to to turn back to go in the<\/p>\n
opposite direction so that Pharaoh will<\/p>\n
think that they are lost and Pharaoh<\/p>\n
will come after them<\/p>\n
and why does God do this<\/p>\n
Pharaoh was a a great and a powerful<\/p>\n
leader in a great and powerful Nation<\/p>\n
God was going to reveal his power over<\/p>\n
pharaoh and over the Egyptians and how<\/p>\n
does he do this<\/p>\n
God through Moses Parts the Red Sea the<\/p>\n
Israelites walked through to the other<\/p>\n
side the Egyptian Army pursues and then<\/p>\n
God closes the Red Sea killing the<\/p>\n
Egyptian Army<\/p>\n
and so God revealed his glory in his<\/p>\n
magnificent and awesome power that he<\/p>\n
showed over pharaoh and the Egyptians<\/p>\n
when we look at our text of God forming<\/p>\n
the church the glory of the Lord is<\/p>\n
being revealed through his character<\/p>\n
it's like taking a diamond and turning<\/p>\n
it in the light and seeing it Sparkle<\/p>\n
you say wow that is beautiful<\/p>\n
through his love and grace he's<\/p>\n
revealing how great and awesome he is he<\/p>\n
is displaying his glory here through his<\/p>\n
love and grace just like he's displayed<\/p>\n
his glory through his power over the<\/p>\n
Egyptians<\/p>\n
and so the church exists for God to have<\/p>\n
a people to demonstrate his character<\/p>\n
and his attributes in order to reveal<\/p>\n
his glory<\/p>\n
God created the church to show off his<\/p>\n
power his wisdom his love and<\/p>\n
magnificence<\/p>\n
the church acts like a<\/p>\n
display board or a display case for<\/p>\n
God's glory<\/p>\n
when you have a display case or a<\/p>\n
display board what are you usually<\/p>\n
trying to do<\/p>\n
you're usually trying to show off<\/p>\n
something of significance or importance<\/p>\n
when I was a young child I liked to go<\/p>\n
to my go with my parents to a piece of<\/p>\n
restaurant they would order take out<\/p>\n
pizza and so I would go with them to to<\/p>\n
pick it up and the restaurant was right<\/p>\n
next to a karate studio and the studio<\/p>\n
building had a large window in it and so<\/p>\n
I would go as a little boy and I would<\/p>\n
watch all these people practicing karate<\/p>\n
and so I thought that was neat so I like<\/p>\n
to go to watch them practice karate but<\/p>\n
I also like to go and look at this<\/p>\n
display case that they had in the studio<\/p>\n
if you've ever been into a karate studio<\/p>\n
you know how big the trophies are that<\/p>\n
these people win I mean some of them are<\/p>\n
higher than I are taller than I am and<\/p>\n
so I like to go into to Marvel at these<\/p>\n
trophies and I always wanted to become a<\/p>\n
student so that I could get one of these<\/p>\n
trophies<\/p>\n
and what does the trophy do it<\/p>\n
represents something and it points to<\/p>\n
something they point to how talented the<\/p>\n
person is who want it<\/p>\n
the person who won it showed some<\/p>\n
greatness a person won a tournament or<\/p>\n
they broke so many bricks with their<\/p>\n
fist to earn this Trophy and it's to<\/p>\n
show the great feats that the recipient<\/p>\n
has accomplished to get it<\/p>\n
and so through election presenting us as<\/p>\n
holy and blameless before him adopting<\/p>\n
us and redeeming us these are like God's<\/p>\n
they point out his great character and<\/p>\n
reveal how great he is<\/p>\n
doing all of these things in love<\/p>\n
according to his grace but they are<\/p>\n
ultimately for displaying his glory<\/p>\n
so God has glorifying himself in the<\/p>\n
so we've seen that the ultimate aim of<\/p>\n
the purpose of the church is to glorify<\/p>\n
God in the church let's look now at that<\/p>\n
aim through the church<\/p>\n
we see this in one of the prayers that<\/p>\n
Jesus prayed for the church while he was<\/p>\n
still living on Earth he is talking to<\/p>\n
God the Father<\/p>\n
in John 17<\/p>\n
22-23 he says the glory that you have<\/p>\n
given me I have given to them that they<\/p>\n
may be one even as we are one i in them<\/p>\n
and you and me that they may become<\/p>\n
perfectly one so the world may know that<\/p>\n
you sent me and loved them even as you<\/p>\n
love me<\/p>\n
and so God's love here just like we saw<\/p>\n
in Ephesians is on display and this time<\/p>\n
it's not only in the church but it's<\/p>\n
through the church the glory of the<\/p>\n
church in the world is a reflection of<\/p>\n
God's glory and so the purpose of the<\/p>\n
church is to be a light to the world<\/p>\n
through its Unity as the church<\/p>\n
functions in unity whenever we love one<\/p>\n
another work together with one purpose<\/p>\n
and Mission it expresses the unity of<\/p>\n
so once again God is glorifying himself<\/p>\n
in this time through the church<\/p>\n
church is to glorify God and this has a<\/p>\n
very vast and Cosmic scope to it<\/p>\n
in Ephesians 3 7-10<\/p>\n
Paul says this about himself<\/p>\n
of this gospel I was made a minister<\/p>\n
according to the gift of God's grace<\/p>\n
which was given me by the working of his<\/p>\n
power to me though I am the very least<\/p>\n
of all the saints this Grace was given<\/p>\n
to preach to the Gentiles The<\/p>\n
unsearchable Riches of Christ and to<\/p>\n
bring to light for everyone what is the<\/p>\n
plan the plan of the mystery hidden for<\/p>\n
ages in God who created all things so<\/p>\n
that through the church the manifold<\/p>\n
wisdom of God might be known to the<\/p>\n
rulers and authorities in the Heavenly<\/p>\n
places<\/p>\n
and so the glory of God that is revealed<\/p>\n
through the church is not only revealed<\/p>\n
to those in the church and in this world<\/p>\n
it is to be revealed to the rulers and<\/p>\n
the authorities in the Heavenly places<\/p>\n
who are these rulers and authorities in<\/p>\n
the Heavenly places they are the Angels<\/p>\n
and other hosts that God has created who<\/p>\n
are in heaven<\/p>\n
in First Peter 1 10-12 it tells us that<\/p>\n
these angels in heaven have a great<\/p>\n
desire to look at the work God is doing<\/p>\n
in the church and to see his glory<\/p>\n
it says concerning this salvation the<\/p>\n
prophets who prophesied about the grace<\/p>\n
that was to be yours searched and<\/p>\n
inquired carefully inquiring want person<\/p>\n
or time the spirit of Christ in them was<\/p>\n
indicated when he predicted the<\/p>\n
suffering of Christ and the subsequent<\/p>\n
glories<\/p>\n
it was a revealed to them that they were<\/p>\n
serving not themselves but you and the<\/p>\n
things that have now been announced to<\/p>\n
you through those who preach the good<\/p>\n
news to you by the Holy Spirit Sent From<\/p>\n
Heaven things into which Angels long to<\/p>\n
look<\/p>\n
and so the Angels long to look into what<\/p>\n
God is doing through the church they<\/p>\n
long to look at God's wisdom his love<\/p>\n
his grace displayed in the church that<\/p>\n
reveal his glory<\/p>\n
God's glory has always been the ultimate<\/p>\n
aim of the purpose for God's people<\/p>\n
if you look at God's people in the Old<\/p>\n
Testament the nation of Israel you look<\/p>\n
at what was supposed to be the center of<\/p>\n
their life as a nation you would find<\/p>\n
the temple and in the temple you would<\/p>\n
find sections you would find them the<\/p>\n
holy place and then you would find the<\/p>\n
most holy place<\/p>\n
and what was special about the most holy<\/p>\n
place it was where God made his glory<\/p>\n
known in a special and unique way<\/p>\n
and so God's purpose to display his<\/p>\n
glory has always been at the center of<\/p>\n
his purpose for his people<\/p>\n
God has always had one people with one<\/p>\n
ultimate aim to make his glory known<\/p>\n
and the church will spend eternity<\/p>\n
viewing and enjoying the glory of God<\/p>\n
seen in his grace shown in the church<\/p>\n
in Ephesians<\/p>\n
chapter 3 verse 21 we again read<\/p>\n
to him be glory in the church and in<\/p>\n
Christ Jesus throughout all generations<\/p>\n
forever and ever amen<\/p>\n
and then in chapter 2<\/p>\n
verses four through seven it says but<\/p>\n
God being rich in Mercy because of the<\/p>\n
great love with which he has loved us<\/p>\n
even when we were dead in our trespasses<\/p>\n
made us alive together with Christ<\/p>\n
by Grace you have been saved and raised<\/p>\n
us up with him seated us with him in the<\/p>\n
Heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that<\/p>\n
in the coming ages he might show the<\/p>\n
immeasurable Riches of his grace and<\/p>\n
kindness towards us in Christ Jesus<\/p>\n
and in my ESV Study Bible<\/p>\n
the note on verse 2 or verse 7 in<\/p>\n
Chapter 2 it says<\/p>\n
verse 7 of chapter 2 answers the<\/p>\n
question of why God lavish such love<\/p>\n
upon his people so that they will Marvel<\/p>\n
for all of eternity over the incredible<\/p>\n
kindness and love of God it will take<\/p>\n
all of eternity to Fathom God's love<\/p>\n
and those who are saved will never Plumb<\/p>\n
the depths of it<\/p>\n
then in the Book of Revelation we get a<\/p>\n
sneak peek into what will take place<\/p>\n
into heaven in heaven<\/p>\n
in Revelation 7<\/p>\n
verses 9 through 12 we read after this I<\/p>\n
looked and behold a great multitude that<\/p>\n
no one can number from every nation from<\/p>\n
all tribes and peoples and languages<\/p>\n
standing Before the Throne and before<\/p>\n
the lamb clothed in white robes with<\/p>\n
palm branches in their hands crying out<\/p>\n
with a loud voice salvation Belongs To<\/p>\n
Our God who sits on the throne into the<\/p>\n
lamb and all the Angels were standing<\/p>\n
around the throne around the elders and<\/p>\n
the four living creatures and they fell<\/p>\n
on their faces before the throne and<\/p>\n
worshiped God saying amen blessing and<\/p>\n
glory and wisdom and Thanksgiving and<\/p>\n
honor and power and might be to our god<\/p>\n
so if we were to come up with a purpose<\/p>\n
statement for the church what would we<\/p>\n
say or what could we say<\/p>\n
I think a good purpose statement for the<\/p>\n
church would be the purpose of the<\/p>\n
church is to Make Disciples of Christ<\/p>\n
with the ultimate aim of glorifying God<\/p>\n
what does all this mean for us as a<\/p>\n
church why do we need to know the<\/p>\n
purpose of the church<\/p>\n
I think the first thing is to know where<\/p>\n
we should focus as the church the<\/p>\n
purpose of an organization is its<\/p>\n
driving force it influences the mission<\/p>\n
of what we do and the values how we do<\/p>\n
it God has given us the mission and<\/p>\n
values in his word that we'll look at<\/p>\n
next week so we need to know these and<\/p>\n
they are defined for us but it's easy to<\/p>\n
go outside of these and think the the<\/p>\n
church is required to to be something or<\/p>\n
to do something and it's not<\/p>\n
knowing the purpose of the church it<\/p>\n
helps us to to focus on stay on the<\/p>\n
tracks that God has laid for us so that<\/p>\n
we don't Veer off track<\/p>\n
God commanded Adam and Eve before sin<\/p>\n
ever took place in the garden to take<\/p>\n
care of the garden to take care of<\/p>\n
everything that he created<\/p>\n
in that command it still holds for us<\/p>\n
today and so we are to take care of<\/p>\n
God's creation we are to take care of<\/p>\n
his creatures<\/p>\n
but this is not the task of the church<\/p>\n
some Christians in the church may be<\/p>\n
called to do this as their occupation<\/p>\n
but this is not our mission as a church<\/p>\n
our purpose is to Make Disciples of<\/p>\n
Christ so as we<\/p>\n
so we as the church we don't open up a<\/p>\n
veterinarian clinic this is not our<\/p>\n
purpose and this shouldn't be our<\/p>\n
passion our purpose at this church is<\/p>\n
the discipleship of people for God's<\/p>\n
glory<\/p>\n
there have been several times in church<\/p>\n
history when the the church and the<\/p>\n
national government had been combined<\/p>\n
the church influenced the national<\/p>\n
government the national government<\/p>\n
influenced the church<\/p>\n
and there was a misuse and abuse of<\/p>\n
power in both the church and the<\/p>\n
national government and this should have<\/p>\n
never had happened because the purpose<\/p>\n
of the church is not to run the national<\/p>\n
government the purpose of the national<\/p>\n
government is not to run the church<\/p>\n
and there's also a danger of not<\/p>\n
understanding the full purpose of the<\/p>\n
church what is the danger of only<\/p>\n
understanding half of our purpose<\/p>\n
statement when we only look at the<\/p>\n
purpose of the church as being to make<\/p>\n
disciples<\/p>\n
if you take away that back engine car<\/p>\n
that is driving the rest of the Train<\/p>\n
the next engine car then drives it and<\/p>\n
when this happens the church can become<\/p>\n
man-centered instead of god-centered we<\/p>\n
can think that the ultimate aim of the<\/p>\n
purpose of the church is for the good of<\/p>\n
man<\/p>\n
and the church becomes about man and so<\/p>\n
we have to be careful when we are<\/p>\n
thinking and talking about the ultimate<\/p>\n
Aim so that we do not diminish the<\/p>\n
subordinate aims you don't want to say<\/p>\n
God didn't create the church for the<\/p>\n
good of man because he did<\/p>\n
we disciple people so that they come to<\/p>\n
know and to cherish and to enjoy God we<\/p>\n
disciple people so that they are<\/p>\n
equipped to go out into the world and to<\/p>\n
love their neighbor<\/p>\n
you don't want to diminish the good that<\/p>\n
people experience from this but you have<\/p>\n
to do something that we are often not<\/p>\n
good at you have to hold two things that<\/p>\n
are true and to elevate one and say this<\/p>\n
is the ultimate aim it's not either<\/p>\n
God's glory or man's good it's both<\/p>\n
God's glory and man's good and these<\/p>\n
connect but God's glory is at the top<\/p>\n
but because the glory of God is the<\/p>\n
greater the highest than we say that it<\/p>\n
is the ultimate aim<\/p>\n
it's like the light on top of golden<\/p>\n
Mount the engine car is pushing the<\/p>\n
train to destination a and it doesn't<\/p>\n
stop until it gets there<\/p>\n
and when we think about Redemption we<\/p>\n
should say man this is good for man and<\/p>\n
the rest<\/p>\n
of the church God loves us so much that<\/p>\n
he would send his son to die for us but<\/p>\n
at the back of the train at the back of<\/p>\n
the Train the engine car that's pushing<\/p>\n
everything along it should be an<\/p>\n
astonishment at and a drive for the<\/p>\n
glory of God<\/p>\n
so when we think about the purpose of<\/p>\n
the church our thought should be God you<\/p>\n
created us for the good of your people<\/p>\n
which includes me but ultimately your<\/p>\n
aim in what the church's aim should be<\/p>\n
is to show and to point to your glory<\/p>\n
another application is that we can draw<\/p>\n
is that we are part of something Grand<\/p>\n
it is tempting to to do as the preacher<\/p>\n
did in Ecclesiastes and look at life<\/p>\n
from an Earthly perspective<\/p>\n
in Ecclesiastes the preacher looks at<\/p>\n
life from an Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
and he comes to the conclusion that life<\/p>\n
is vanted to your meaningless<\/p>\n
but we are part of something Grand we<\/p>\n
have a great purpose<\/p>\n
we get to be used by God to display his<\/p>\n
glory not because of how good we are but<\/p>\n
because of his love and grace<\/p>\n
when we think about the purpose of the<\/p>\n
church it helps us with one of our<\/p>\n
greatest needs that we have which is to<\/p>\n
take our eyes off herself so that we are<\/p>\n
not the center of our own attention<\/p>\n
and this is what we were made for<\/p>\n
the word will tell us that we are made<\/p>\n
to be the center of our attention when I<\/p>\n
was looking at colleges in the states I<\/p>\n
toured one school whose slogan was it's<\/p>\n
all about you<\/p>\n
and so there is a drive and there's a<\/p>\n
push in our culture to make us think<\/p>\n
that life is all about us and it's not<\/p>\n
why do people like to sit on the beach<\/p>\n
all day and stare at the ocean<\/p>\n
why do we go to Hui hen<\/p>\n
why do we go to Chiang Mai and look at<\/p>\n
the mountains or look in the telescope<\/p>\n
to see the unending galaxies<\/p>\n
it is in search of something Grand there<\/p>\n
is pleasure in losing yourself in<\/p>\n
something that is bigger than yourself<\/p>\n
Jimmy Carter a former U.S president<\/p>\n
um dedicated his life after his<\/p>\n
presidency to eradicating the guinea<\/p>\n
worm and it's a worm that people get<\/p>\n
from drinking contaminated water or<\/p>\n
eating raw fish this worm can grow<\/p>\n
inside a person to be a couple of feet<\/p>\n
long and it will eventually make its way<\/p>\n
outside the body by excreting acid so a<\/p>\n
small hole<\/p>\n
is formed in the skin and the worm<\/p>\n
eventually comes out<\/p>\n
and so in the mid 80s when President<\/p>\n
Carter started this war on this worm<\/p>\n
there were millions of cases of people<\/p>\n
in Africa who were infected by it<\/p>\n
and in 2022 there were only 13.<\/p>\n
how did President Carter do it<\/p>\n
it wasn't by himself he gathered a team<\/p>\n
around him and how did he gather a team<\/p>\n
he sold people on a vision and was<\/p>\n
passionate about the purpose behind what<\/p>\n
he was doing<\/p>\n
people wanted to be involved in<\/p>\n
something that was so big so huge that<\/p>\n
we made such a huge impact<\/p>\n
and so we were made to be part of<\/p>\n
something that is larger than ourselves<\/p>\n
and this is what our hearts were<\/p>\n
designed for to lose ourselves in<\/p>\n
something greater than ourselves<\/p>\n
and there is nothing more significant<\/p>\n
greater more valuable or better than God<\/p>\n
which means there is no higher aim for<\/p>\n
anything to display and point to his<\/p>\n
what a calling what a purpose we have as<\/p>\n
in the last application is that the<\/p>\n
purpose of the church should prepare our<\/p>\n
hearts for carrying out the mission of<\/p>\n
the church next week we'll look at our<\/p>\n
mission as a church and we want to be<\/p>\n
like Paul and that the purpose of the<\/p>\n
church it captivates our hearts as we<\/p>\n
carry out the mission of the church<\/p>\n
let's pray<\/p>\n
dear heavenly father we thank you so<\/p>\n
much for calling us to yourself we thank<\/p>\n
you for<\/p>\n
them in your church and love and in<\/p>\n
Grace<\/p>\n
the Lord we thank you for calling us to<\/p>\n
be involved in the discipleship of your<\/p>\n
people<\/p>\n
I pray that you will help us to be<\/p>\n
faithful to do that<\/p>\n
faithful to be a light in this world<\/p>\n
dear Lord you are using your church you<\/p>\n
are working in your church to show your<\/p>\n
love your grace your unity and so I pray<\/p>\n
that you will help us to be that as<\/p>\n
Grace City I pray that you will<\/p>\n
Captivate our hearts<\/p>\n
by this purpose<\/p>\n
so that whenever we live out and do the<\/p>\n
mission of the church still Lord we are<\/p>\n
motivated<\/p>\n
to see people come to know you to come<\/p>\n
to love you<\/p>\n
and ultimately to point to your glory<\/p>\n
dear Lord we ask all this in Jesus name<\/p>\n
amen<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20230609","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WJL4dJ_06wo","video_id":"WJL4dJ_06wo","video_duration":"45:22","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=640"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":641,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640\/revisions\/641"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}