Introductory Consideration
1. I don’t know what came over me. I’m not a fighter - I’m not even built like one. But something he said or did just rubbed me the wrong way. Before I knew it I did something that I had never done before or have done since. It was not a very Christian thing to do, especially when most of the people there were from my youth group. It was not even smart - for he was much stronger than me, But I was so upset that I punched him right in the face. Before he could return the favour, a few others grabbed him and stopped him. I almost could see my life passing before my eyes. I knew that with one punch, it could all be over for me, but I wanted the thing settled and dealt with. And so, perhaps against my better judgement, I asked the others to let him go. I deserved to be punched back - it order to make things even. I was scared, but after they let Tom go, he said it was alright. He didn’t need to hit me back and he never held what I did against me. I had been spared. I did not get that which I deserved. I experienced something called grace.
2. A few years ago, my daughter had just finished a basketball game at CKSS. She backed up out of her parking spot and heard a bang as the car suddenly stopped. She had backed up into a corvette and took a chunk out of the bumper. Almost any other car would have been better. She called me and after I came, we tried to find the owner. We worried about the cost to repair the car. Bbut when the owner came out, she looked at the damage and said "don’t worry about it. My husband has a body shop and he was going to fix up the car anyway". We were relieved. Again I had experienced this thing called grace.
3. Have you ever experienced grace in your life? Perhaps a policeman stoping you for speeding and just giving you a warning when you deserved a ticket. Perhaps a time when you said hurting words to a friend or spouse and they forgave you. Each one of us, at certain times, experiences grace.
4. Grace is not getting what we deserve.
5. To be a born again Christian we must experience grace. In fact, as we saw in our look at the covenant, our relationship with God is based on grace.
6. But even as believers, we fail to comprehend the wonder, the incomparable riches of God’s grace.
7. This morning we consider the fullness and extent of God’s grace and how it should affect the way we live our lives.
Teaching
1. The greatest blessing we receive as a result of God’s grace is our salvation.
a. Twice, in verses 5 and 8, Pauls tells us "It is by grace you have been saved." But this means little unless we understand what it is that we are saved from.
b. vs. 1 - you were dead in your sins. Sometimes we think of sin as a small problem that we need to get over. We fail but so does everyone else.What’s the big deal? he big deal is that we were dead in sin and still are unless you are saved. Dead, not sick. Not a case of taking a pill and feeling better in the morning, but dead with no life in us at all. Perhaps you say "I’m alive" - true but you are "as good as dead" since that will be your destiny.
c. That means that we acknowledge that the wages of sin is death, but also means that we take a deep look at self at see ourselves for what we are. Means, as HC# 60 says, that "my conscience accuses me of having grievously sinned against all God’s commandments and of never having kept any one of them" and that "I am still inclined toward all evil".
d. This is a tough thing to admit. We may even have lived our whole lives as a "Christian" - going through all the motions. But unless we know that we are sinful through and through, we cannot and will not experience the grace of God.
e. Toughest times I have had in life is when confronted with my own pride and selfishness and need to control. Spent weeks depressed at times. I didn’t like what I saw in mirror. But it is only then that I was able to rejoice in what God did for me in Christ.
f. vs. 5 says that God made us alive in Christ.
i. How? - vs. 6 says that God raised us up with Christ. In Romans 6, Paul says that if we died with Christ , we believe that we will also live with Him
ii. If we see our sin, die to self and self-reliance, then we do not need to continue to mourn our sin but we are raised to new life with Christ.
iii. Heidelberg Catechism #60 says that "without my deserving it at all, out of sheer grace, God grants and credits to me the perfect satisfaction, righteousness and holiness of Christ, as if I had never sinned or been a sinner, as If I had been perfectly obedient as Christ was obedient for me."
iv. Christ died ands paid penalty of my sin so that I might live. That is grace.
v.That is how, but why should God do that for me? vs. 4 tells us- "because of His great love for us". "Amazing love, how can it be, that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me."
g. The result of this great act of grace gives us eternal life and a restored relationship with God. It means we are seated in the heavenly realms with Christ. Perhaps not yet in its fullness but we will be one day
h. And why? So that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace. The coming ages might mean the time when Christ returns to establish His rule, but I believe, because of what follows, that it means even now, as Christ rules in our hearts.
i. And so we are Christians, recipients of God’s grace already, made alive by His grace.
2. But God wants us to know more and more how great, how incomparably rich His grace is toward us. And that is what He goes on to tell us in verses 8-10. We see how great and extensive, all encompassing His grace really is.
3. In vs. 8 Paul again reminds us that we are saved by grace, but He tells us that we are saved through faith. HC#60 says "all I need to do is accept this gift with a believing heart." We are only saved when we trust that what God did in Christ is true and is necessary, when we rely on Him rather than ourselves. When we allow Him to sit in the throne rather than ourselves. When we move our into the passenger seat and let him take the wheel.
a. Hard to do - few weeks ago Herb drove us to the men’s conference. Road was treacherous, vehicles in the ditch. There were 6 men in the car - each used to being the driver. Each of us probably wished we were behind wheel and once in a while even gave some suggestions. We probably should have each had a play steering wheel so we could pretend to be in control.
b. We need to give over control to God. But that is humanly impossible to do. It is natural to want to be in control - if not over others, at least over our own lives. Faith is not a normal thing.
c. And so even the faith that we have is a gift of God’s grace. "For it is BY grace you have been saved, THROUGH faith and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God." Even faith is not our own doing. We cannot believe unless God sends Holy Spirit to us to give us a new heart.
d. As parents we may want so much for children to have faith. We teach them, show them, pray for them, but we cannot do anything that guarantees faith, it is God that gives faith. We have role, but God must change their hearts .
4. But God’s grace goes much further, as vs. 10 shows. WE ARE GOD’S WORKMANSHIP created in Jesus Christ. When we were born again we became God’s workmanship. A precious work of art created by God Himself. You are God’s workmanship! Not a poor copy or cheap reproduction! But an original by the master artist. What does that mean?
5. First - grace enables us to live as God’s child. The biggest fear I had when I accepted Christ - would I be able to live as Christian was to live. Would I be a good witness or hurt the name of Christ? I, we can be, but only through grace of God. 1 Cor 15:10 "But by the grace of God I am what I am,"
a. Even our character and attitudes is the work of God. The fruit of the Spirit is just what it says - not the fruit of John or Fred or Ann.
b. Even our spiritual growth is by the grace of God. Phil 2:12-13 "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."
c. It is not who we are but who is in us, at work in us. When going door-to-door in London to invite people to new church in Whitehills, a person saw Christ in me even though I was not feeling very loving. It was hot and I just wanted to get done, did not care if anyone came to door. But lare person came to church because they saw Christ in my face.
d. 2 Cor 4:7 "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." Context of this passage - that grace enables us to withstand trials and tribulations.
6. God enables us to serve God and one another.
a. vs. 10 says we were created to do works. God made us such that we can be useful tools to be used by Him.
b. 2 Cor 9:8 "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." Grace abounds in us, overflows in us - so that our good works will abound or overflow.
c. The gifts or abilities are by God’s grace. Rom 12:6 "We have different gifts, according to the grace given us."
7. And even the opportunities to serve God are given to us as part of His grace.
a. vs. 10 - the good works were prepared in advance by God for us to do. God has already prepared opportunities for you, for us, to do good works.
b. Like mother mixing ingredients, rolling out dough, putting on oven and giving child cookie cutter so she can make cookies.
8. God’s grace is everything. We cannot boast in anything. In faith, in who we are, in our gifts, in our good works, in our blessings. God’s grace is incomparable! How wonderful He is!
9. Do you experience His grace in your life? If so, give thanks and show forth His grace by being gracious to one another. Think of what He has done for you and give thanks.
