Title: Grace Is Greater
Place: BLCC
Date: 1/7/18
Text: Hebrews 12.15
CT: We have to experience God’s grace to understand it.
[Screen 1]
FAS: I am a firm believer in following Jesus. I could preach about following Jesus every week and be correct in what I need to do. Truth is known, I do preach about following Jesus every week to some degree.
The thing is that when Jesus invites us to follow Him, he also invites us to deny ourselves and take up a cross. [Screen 2] Luke 9.23. Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.
Most of us don’t like that idea too much. What does Jesus mean by saying to take up our cross? We want to follow Jesus, sure, but this denying ourselves and taking up our cross sounds just a little bit out there. We want to accept Jesus’ invitation but we like our comfortable lifestyle that means we follow Jesus as long as we can forget about carrying our cross.
I mean we want to be, as close to Jesus so we can get the benefits from Him, but not so close that it requires us to give up something we want. When Jesus offers his gracious invitation to people in need, that is all of us, it actually makes them uncomfortable. So much so that many often-left Jesus in large crowds to go home.
John 6.66, From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
I mean what if this morning I picked out something to get on that you are really struggling with. I know I do this occasionally. I do step on your toes, after I have already stepped on mine all week. I do this because I love you all and don’t want anyone to go down hill.
Let’s say I go home after a really tough preaching session. I really came down on some sin in a big way. Someone handed me a scripture as they left. I was busy and didn’t have time to read it, but I thanked the man for giving it to me. But when I got home I cleaned out my pockets so Kathy would not get all over me for leaving stuff in there for her to deal with. [Screen 3]
There was the scripture: Hebrews 12.15, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”
LS: After reading that I did some real searching of my heart. I still want to challenge everyone I preach to, but I always have it in the back of my mind, the Holy Spirit reminding me to see that no one misses the grace of God.
The word “misses’ could be translated to mean “fails to receive” or ‘fails to obtain” or “fails to experience.” My goal and prayer for this sermon series is that you receive, obtain and experience the grace of God in all your life.
[Screen 4]
Happy New Year. First time I have really got to speak to you this year. I have big hopes for our church this year. I want to reach as many people with the love of Christ as possible. Counting on you to make it happen.
At the beginning of each New Year there is usually an article of new words that have been brought out during the past year. It is kind of cool to see new words that are being used by people.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not using the words to impress you. Using words that people aren’t familiar with can seem somewhat puerile (childishly foolish) and maybe even a bit jejune (immature, uninformed).
Well I looked up some new words for us from last year. [Screen 5]
Ping, Face palm, and Froyo.
Ping- Instead of listing all the ways for someone else to get in touch with you, keep it simple and tell them to ping you. While ping used to be computer-specific, it now means to get in touch digitally, regardless of the platform.
Face palm-If you’ve thoroughly embarrassed yourself, or if you’re feeling that way about someone else’s behavior, go ahead and face palm. This word can also be used as a noun: “Bridget’s presentation this morning was a total face palm.”
Froyo- Ice cream’s vaguely garbage cousin finally got its due in 2017. While frozen yogurt has long been part of our vocabulary, froyo just got its own dictionary entry, meaning, more-or-less, “That gallon-sized cup of dessert I’m pretending is healthy, despite all the brownie pieces I just put on it.”
These are new words with new meanings. They are interesting and capture our attention for this reason. They are new and yet they define something familiar. [Screen 6]
Grace is not a new word to us. It is familiar and that can be a problem for us. When we use a word we hear a lot it becomes boring. The word grace is used very frequently and has become so common it is hard to see it as “amazing grace”.
We were married to Mr. Law. He was a good man, in his way, but he did not understand our weakness. He came home every evening and asked, "So, how was your day? Did you do what I told you to? Did you make the kids behave? Did you waste any time? Did you complete everything I put on your To Do list?" So many demands and expectations. And hard as we tried, we couldn't be perfect. We could never satisfy him. We forgot things that were important to him. We let the children misbehave. We failed in other ways. It was a miserable marriage, because Mr. Law always pointed out our failings. And the worst of it was, he was always right! But his remedy was always the same: Do better tomorrow. We didn't, because we couldn't.
Then Mr. Law died. And we remarried, this time to Mr. Grace. Our new husband, Jesus, comes home every evening and the house is a mess, the children are being naughty, dinner is burning on the stove, and we have even had other men in the house during the day. Still, he sweeps us into his arms and says, "I love you, I chose you, I died for you, I will never leave you nor forsake you." And our hearts melt. We don't understand such love. We expect him to despise us and reject us and humiliate us, but he treats us so well. We are so glad to belong to him now and forever, and we long to be "fully pleasing to him"
Being married to Mr. Law never changed us. But being married to Mr. Grace is changing us deep within, and it shows.
Ray Ortlund, "Who are you married to?" The Gospel Coalition blog—Ray Ortlund (2-15-15)
I know many of you have heard countless sermons about grace. You may have even read some books on grace. But I hope to get you to see the word again for the first time. [Screen 7]
Hebrew 12.15 “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God”
A warning of what happens when someone does miss it follows this command. [Screen 8]
“And that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” Hebrews 12.15.
[Screen 9]
Deuteronomy 29.18, Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the Lord our God to go and worship the gods of those nations; make sure there is no root among you that produces such bitter poison.
The context of this Old Testament text is significant since it deals with idolatry and worship of little “g” gods. Those who were from the Hebrew era were causing enough friction to be able to gain some insight from this text.
When we miss grace, a bitter root begins to grow. In the Hebrew world a bitter root is something that is toxic.
Religion without grace is poisonous.
A relationship without grace is poisonous.
A heart without grace is poisonous.
The bitter may be small and slow in its growth, but the poison eventually takes effect
In this series we will be looking at the greatness of grace and the effect it will have on our lives. But we must be sure we admit there is also a non-grace effect. When we miss out on grace the poison of bitterness and anger will eventually become too big to bury. The poison of guilt and shame will eventually destroy a soul.
[Screen 10]
Eric Riddell was from Scotland. He ran in the 1924 Olympics. It was run in July of that year in Paris France. He was put in a bad position because he was a Christian and the 100-meter run was on Sunday. He was criticized for not running, but held his ground. While Harold Abrahams ran the 100 meter preliminary Eric preached to a congregation in another part of France. Abrahams went on to win the final race and set a world record that would stand for 56 years.
Eric went on to compete in the 400-meter race on Tuesday. At the gun Eric bolted into a three-meter lead. As the race progressed, Fitch the American leader began to close in on Eric, but Eric sped up. As he crossed the finish line with a five-meter lead, his head cocked back and his arms flailing the air, Eric brought home the gold medal. This is the story that Chariots of Fire is about.
Eric Liddell was a sprinter as an Olympian, but the young believer in Christ, who was just 22 years old at the time of the race, provides a powerful example of one who runs the marathon for Jesus. Based on his commitment to Christ he “Threw off” the general public and the power he would have gained had he also won the 100- meter run. He endured the strenuous preparation for the Olympics but he also became a missionary in China, where he died in a Chinese prison.
In all things he took his cue from Jesus who was his sustainer, example and guide. Throwing off what kept him from following Christ he chose the path of perseverance. Liddell had a clear vision of what his mission was for Christ and he took it to the max.
As we look at those like Eric Riddell, who looked to Christ as to how he should run his life, we should reflect what we might need to throw off. There may be things that aren’t that bad, but yet are keeping us from truly following Jesus. Certain possessions, hobbies, patterns of life, or even people we hang with can keep us from following Jesus and the ideal God has for our life. [Screen 11]
Looking at Facebook or watching a certain TV program may be minor things for us to consider unless they keep you from following Jesus. Watching sports can be a distraction if they are keeping you from Jesus’ will for you. A new romantic relationship can be distracting if that person is not in Christ. We must assess how we are responding to the pull of popularity, position or place in our given life occupations. If they keep you from following Jesus they will eventually bring you down.
It goes without saying that all sins, including especially sins of lust, greed, hatred and pride take away our ability to run the race to follow Jesus. These things must be rejected over and over again if we are to run well following Jesus.
The premier sin to be done away with is the sin of abandoning Christian commitment all together. We must keep our eyes on Jesus who has shown us what to scorn and what to hold onto. His grace is what brings us into ending well in the race.
[Screen 12]
There are numerous books that teach the doctrine of grace. I have read some myself. I am less interested and actually probably less qualified than these books on grace. What I want is for you to experience grace. I believe that grace is best and most thoroughly understood not by explanation alone, but through experiencing real grace in your own life.
What do you know about romantics love? You can read about love in a book. It may tell you about all the chemical changes you go through. It may show you some fine ways to meet someone. But the only way you are truly going to understand true love is to experience it.
And when something is best understood through experience it’s best taught with stories. You experience the idea you are trying to understand through a good story. The Bible is full of great narratives that allow us to experience grace. When Jesus wanted to help people understand the grace of God, he didn’t give a lengthy explanation. Instead he told the story of the prodigal son that had to receive grace to return home.
Jesus and Paul approach grace in a different way. Paul uses the word grace more than one hundred times in his letters as he helped the church understand grace. Jesus, on the other hand never used the word grace. Instead he showed us what it looked like. Both approaches are helpful and needed. Paul’s lessons on grace came from his own experience with grace. Because if grace is taught without experiencing it, it doesn’t amount to much in what the person receives.
God’s grace is compelling when explained but irresistible when experienced.
Conclusion: My goal for this sermon series is that we all understand the grace of God by experiencing it.
Grace is yours to receive no matter what you have done and no matter what has happened to you.
You will personally experience the truth that grace is greater.
Grace is powerful enough to erase your guilt.
Grace is big enough to cover your shame.
Grace is real enough to heal your relationships.
Grace is strong enough to hold you up when you are weak.
Grace is sweet enough to cure your bitterness.
Grace is satisfying enough to deal with your disappointment.
Grace is beautiful enough to redeem your brokenness.
Grace explained is necessary but grace experienced is essential.
[Screen 13]
Hebrews 12.15, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Idleman, Kyle; Grace is Greater; Baker Books, Grand Rapids Michigan, Chapter 1, 2017
Guthrie, George, NIV Application Commentary-Hebrews, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI,1998
