Sermon Central
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Amazing Grace
Contributed by Dan Cale on Aug 15, 2004 (message contributor)
Summary: This is the third in a letter study series on Ephesians and looks at God’s grace as it affects our past, present, and future.
Amazing Grace
Ephesians 2:1-10; 19-22
As we look at Paul¡¦s instructions to the church we find the blueprints for the building of the church. Every building has a cornerstone ¡V a stone that when laid becomes the starting point and the key point of all the building. Tonight we look at that cornerstone and it is one word ¡V Grace. To understand grace Paul begins with who we were.
1) Our Past ¡V Every one of us here has a past. Some are better than others ¡V some worse ¡V but all of us have a BC life. Paul tells us the truth about our BC life.
„« V1. You were dead. It¡¦s hard to think about our lives that way but it¡¦s true. We were dead. Remember Jesus didn¡¦t come to make bad people good ¡V He came to make dead people live.
„« V.2-3 You were Carnal ¡V Life BC is based on self. Self life is dominated by the enemy ¡V here called the prince of the power of the air. But lust (love twisted and corrupted) is the nature of the carnal mind.
„« V3b You were objects of wrath ¡V objects of God¡¦s anger. Sinners in the hands of an angry God. The scriptures teach that the mind set on the flesh in in enmity(conflict) with God.
2) Our Present ¡V It is here that Grace becomes the foundation. Grace is applied ¡§lavishly¡¨ to our hearts and several things happen.
„« By Grace we are Saved V8 ¡V we are saved by no merit of our own but simply by the grace of God. We are saved from our past ¡V saved from wrath.
„« By Grace we are Raised v6 ¡V We are raised with Christ to new life. The truth is by grace we die and are given rebirth. We are raised with Christ to new life.
„« By Grace we are Recreated v10 ¡V We are made new ¡V we are reconstructed ¡V the old man is done away with and the new man is formed. We are recreated into a new person, with a new heart ¡V no longer under the domination of the spirit of the power of the air but now under the power of the Spirit of God.
3) Our Future v19 ¡V Our citizenship is changed ¡V we are no longer of this world. We are in this world but not of this world. Our home is not here ¡V we are not sojourners on the journey of life. Home is now a place not built with hands eternal in the heavens. Now our citizenship is in the Kingdom of God.
Grace transforms death into life.
Grace gives us a future.
Isn¡¦t grace Amazing?
