Why Salvation Is So Awesome! Series

INTRODUCTION

• SLIDE #1

• It is easy to talk about how we are supposed to cling to God in the good times and the bad.

• The “Christian Thing” is to say that no matter what you are facing, keep your chin up and trust God.

• The folks Peter was addressing his letter to were facing difficult times and as we have talked about last week many were facing the thought of leaving their faith.

• AS Peter tries to encourage them to soldier on, in the section we will explore together this morning, we are going to reveal some encouraging issue that have to do with salvation, things that make salvation an awesome thing.

• It is one thing to realize that God offers us the opportunity to receive salvation; it is another to see why what we are offered is so awesome and why it is so worth anything we face in this life to stay with it.

• We have a GREAT gift from God or if you do not have this gift, God wants you to have it.

• The gift from God is so great that even in the process of waiting to receive it in full, even if we are called to suffer for our faith, the suffering is SO worth it!

• If you are struggling

• Turn to 1 Peter 1:10-12 with me.

• SLIDE #2

• 1 Peter 1:10-12(ESV) 10Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

• SLIDE #3

SERMON

Salvation is so awesome because…

I. Salvation is based on grace through Jesus!

• As the people are going through difficult times, they are reminded of their salvation.

• I find it telling that Peter uses the word grace when he speaks on the subject of salvation.

• One of the reasons that salvation is so awesome is the fact that it is based on grace through Jesus.

• Throughout time man has tried do various ways to try to earn their salvation. The trend continues even to this day.

• Think about the futility of trying to earn your way into heaven. Where would you start? What would you do? What standards would you use? How would you know if you are good enough?

• Is God one of those teachers who say it takes 95% for an A? Does God grade on the curve?

• How many times can you fail and still make it?

• Going back to the issue of standards, whose do you use, can you just make up your own, and then how do you know that the standards you picked are the right ones?

• What if you FEEL that your chosen path is the right one only to find at the end of it all that you were WRONG?

• I do not think people really appreciate how awesome it is to know that our salvation is based on grace through Jesus!

• When you base your salvation on YOUR performance you have no assurances.

• As Peter tries to offer encouragement to those who are going through tough times, he wants them and us to know that one thing we do not have to worry about is EARNING salvation because salvation is based on grace through Jesus.

• To understand what this means, let us examine what the word GRACE means.

• Biblically speaking our short definition of grace is GOD’S UNMERITED FAVOR.

• Let us look at the words in that simple definition.

• GOD’S- this means this gift is God’s to bestow. If the gift belongs to God then God is the one who says who receives it. He also dictates how one goes about receiving it.

• UNMERITED- For those who were or are in scouts, you can get merit badges. How do you get those badges? You EARN THEM. If you are one who receives MERIT raises, how do you get the raise? You EARN the raise.

• The word MERIT means- something that deserves or justifies a reward or commendation; a commendable quality

• If you earn something that is what you get, in the scouts you get a merit badge, on the job you get a pay raise.

• UNMERITED then would mean that you get something you DID NOT earn.

• You do not have to EARN salvation; you just accept God’s gift and the terms of how to receive the gift.