THE GRACE OF GOD
John 1:14 "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, FULL OF GRACE AND TRUTH."
John 1:16 "From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another."
INTRO.- What we need more than anything is grace, God’s grace.
ILL.- Preacher Charles Swindoll recalled his last spanking when he turned thirteen years old. Chuck said, "Having just broken into the sophisticated ranks of the teen world, I thought I was something on a stick. My father wasn’t nearly as impressed as I was with my great importance and new-found independence.
"I was lying on my bed. He was outside the window on a muggy October afternoon in Houston, TX, weeding the garden. He said, ’Charles, come out and help me weed the garden.’ I said something like, ’NO, IT’S MY BIRTHDAY, REMEMBER?’
"My tone was sassy and my deliberate lack of respect was eloquent. I knew better than to disobey my dad, but after all, I was the ripe old age of thirteen. Dad set a new 100-meter record that autumn afternoon. He was in the house in a flash and all over me like white on rice, spanking me all the way out to the garden. As I recall, I weeded until the moonlight was shining on the pansies.
"That same night he took me out to a surprise dinner. He gave me what I deserved earlier. LATER HE GAVE ME WHAT I DID NOT DESERVE. The birthday dinner was a matter of grace. He showered his favor on this rebellious young man. And I enjoyed grace."
What a beautiful story of grace and it’s something that God has lavished on everyone of us. It’s just that some people are not aware of it.
Here’s another great example of grace and God’s grace in action.
ILL.- Every Sunday for the past 9 years members of the Landisville (Pa) Mennonite Church have prayed for a son of their congregation. Every month they send him a small sum of money, and every month some of them visit him. Prayer, money, and visits. These sound fairly typical for a caregiving church.
BUT THIS SITUATION IS NOT TYPICAL AT ALL. Far from it. Nine years ago, after a meal with relatives on a calm Sunday afternoon, 14-year-old Keith Weaver killed his parents and his sister. The horror of the crime and the loss of lives rocked the Weavers’ family, the church, and the community to the core.
In the midst of their grief and disillusionment, however, members of the Landisville Mennonite Church got busy. They helped clean the house where the murders occurred, established a legal support committee to care for Keith’s needs so that the surviving brother and sister wouldn’t have to, and founded a "seventy times seven" fund to collect money for his expenses.
They studied grief, forgiveness, and victimization in Sunday School and sermons, calling on the expertise of area chaplains and counselors. And a year after the tragedy, they held a memorial service to lament the loss of their loved ones and TO RECOMMIT THEMSELVES TO THE JOURNEY OF FORGIVENESS.
Landisville Pastor Sam Thomas said, "Forgiveness is an act of God’s grace. You don’t forgive and forget. You forgive again and again and again."
Brethren, when I read this story about their forgiveness toward that young 14-year-old murderer I was nearly overwhelmed with feelings of warmth and praise. Warmth that they would do such a gracious thing. And praise to the Lord for His mighty grace at work in their lives!
What we need is more grace! More grace from God and more grace working through us to bless the lives of others! When people are touched by the grace of God they become gracious people. They become an actual extension of the grace of God. They do things they would not otherwise do.
ILL.- Here is God’s grace in action.
- To the woman caught in adultery, Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more."
- For the crowd who crucified him, Jesus prayed, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."
- To the thief crucified alongside, Jesus said, "Today, thou shalt be with me in paradise."
That’s grace in action. And it’s exactly what we all need.
PROP.- I want to share three aspects of God’s grace to us.
1- Saving grace
2- Sustaining grace
3- Sanctifying grace
I. SAVING GRACE
Titus 3:4-5 "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us - not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy."
II Timothy 1:9 Paul speaks of God "who has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus."
Brethren, God’s greatest demonstration of grace is seen in Jesus Christ! WITHOUT JESUS THERE IS NO GRACE! Jesus is the very personification of God’s grace! And His death on the cross was the "greatest show on earth" of God’s grace!
ILL.- A number of years ago I was watching the TV show "20/20" on a Friday night. On the show they interviewed a lady named Marianne Williamson. DID YOU EVER HEAR OF HER? At that time, she was considered to be the "prophet to the stars." The stars of Hollywood, that is.
A number of Hollywood stars, including Elizabeth Taylor, Shirley MaClaine and others, attended her lectures. Knowing that these ladies are listening to her tells you that she really knows what she is talking about. Right?
This lady preacher is preaching a so-called gospel of love, forgiveness and healing. She is teaching people to love themselves, forgive themselves and forgive others. And some of that isn’t bad. It all sounds pretty good until you find out she isn’t preaching any gospel at all! SHE ISN’T PREACHING JESUS AS THE CHRIST, THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD, SAVIOR OF THE WORLD AND AUTHOR OF ALL GRACE!
And brethren, it is only through a personal relationship to Jesus Christ that a person can find forgiveness and healing and learn to forgive others. Amen?
ILL.- Here’s another example. Early last Monday morning, like 5 a.m. early, I read a sports article about the boxer George Foreman. Some writer quoted George Foreman as saying that "Good is good, whether or not one believes in Jesus. To be good is to be saved." TO BE GOOD IS TO BE SAVED?
That writer said, "We live in a age when many believers of all faiths assert that their way is the only road to heaven. George has a contrary view."
Brethren, I got the distinct impression from that writer that George Foreman was preaching a "goodness" type gospel, saying that all one has to do is be good and believe in God and you will be saved. SO I DECIDED TO FIND OUT FOR MYSELF.
What did I do? I emailed Big George Foreman. I really did. I found his Internet site and clicked on "contact" and wrote George a letter. And Big George wrote me back. He wrote, "I don’t think he (the writer) understood what I said. I told him, ’This is a lost and dying world. To be saved you gotta be good. So many people say they don’t believe in God, but they do so much good. That is good. God is good.’" Then he went on to write.
"Believe me, if I thought there were other ways of being saved from this lost world I would not have been preaching ’Jesus the Son of God’ for over 23 years. He is just a writer, doing what he does best. Sorry you got the story wrong!"
Love, George Foreman
AND BIG GEORGE FOREMAN IS RIGHT! And me and George are just like two peas in a pod! Uh huh! Yea, we are! We are buds! And don’t you be giving me any trouble, because I’ll give Big George a call!
Brethren, God’s grace is manifested, demonstrated, shown in us and showered on us in Jesus Christ!
John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father except through me."
Acts 4:12 Peter, speaking of Jesus, said, "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
People can argue with God and Scripture all they want. God’s Word stands true and will stand the test of time and eternity. Heaven and earth will pass away, but not the Word of God!
And people can call us bigots, biased, narrow-minded or whatever, but we still believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God and only true Savior of the world!
Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast."
"Not by works, so that no one can boast." Our salvation is not based on how much we do for God and Christ, nor on how much good we do for others in life.
If our salvation was based on our good works, some people would go around bragging their heads off. We’d never hear the end of it.
ILL.- An active, dedicated, hard-working church member passed away. As he approached the Pearly Gate, he noticed a sign posted reading, "Entrance requirement: 1,000 points."
When St. Peter appeared, the man asked, "How do you get these points?" St. Peter said, "Well, what have good things have you done life?"
The man said, "I was an immersed believer in Christ for 32 years. I didn’t miss a Sunday at church in 14 years. Also, I taught Sunday School for more than 12 years." "Wonderful," St. Peter said, "That’s worth one point."
The man gulped and went on and said, "Well, I also tithed of my income. And I served on the finance committee, the building committee, and I was an elder in the church. If they ever had a fellowship supper they always knew they could count on me. I set up chairs and tables and ran errands for the preacher." (Yea, sure, I believe that) And St. Peter, "Wonderful! That’s worth another point."
The man was perspiring by this time. He said, "I also recruited people for the church. I knew everybody in the church. I always tried to make everybody feel welcome. I took the kids to camp and so on." St. Peter said, "Hey Great! That’s worth another point. Now you’ve got three."
Worry showed all over the man’s face. With a note of resignation he said, "That entrance requirement is awfully tough. I don’t believe anybody could get in there without the grace of God." And St. Peter said, "AHM, THAT’S WORTH 997 POINTS."
And brethren, no one can get into heaven without the grace of God as demonstrated in Jesus Christ! Jesus is the road, the pathway, the door.
II. SUSTAINING GRACE
ILL.- An old Scottish lady was visited by a very young preacher who was short on experience. She was a Christian and he said to her, "But just suppose that after all God should let you sink into hell?" She replied, "He would lose more than I would. All I would lose would be my own soul, BUT HE WOULD LOSE HIS GOOD NAME."
Brethren, do we have any assurance of our salvation in heaven?
ILL.- A former Buddhist who became a Christian wrote, "One of the hardest things to understand was why I didn’t have to work my way to heaven. In Buddhism you must pray hard, burn incense and give many offerings. Even so, you can’t know for sure if you’ll go to heaven."
Brethren, do you realize that people outside of Christ have no assurance of salvation?! BUT YOU DO! You are standing right smack dab in the middle of God’s sustaining grace!
Romans 4:7-8 "Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him."
Why is it that the Lord will never count our sins against us at death nor the judgment? IT’S BECAUSE OF JESUS! And it’s because we’ve put our trust and our hope in Him and Him alone!
Our sins are covered by His blood! He bore our sins in His body on the tree! He became sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God!
God’s grace sustains us in this way and we need to learn to walk with our heads held high! And there should some leap in our walk and talk! We should live a joyous life because we know where we’re headed. AND IT’S ALL BECAUSE OF JESUS!
Now, God’s grace sustains us in another way.
ILL.- The story is told about a man who was walking across the road and was hit by a car. The impact knocked him down and he was in a coma for several days before regaining consciousness. When he opened his eyes, his loving wife was standing beside his bed, holding his hand.
He said, "You know, Judy, you’ve always been right by my side. When I was a struggling college student, I failed again and again. But you were always there with me, encouraging me to go on trying."
He said, "And when I got out of school and went for all my interviews and failed to get any of the jobs, you stayed right there with me, helping me to find a job."
"Then I started to work at this little firm and finally got the chance to handle a big contract. But I blew it because of one little mistake, and yet you were there beside me all the way.
"Then I finally got another job after being laid off for sometime. But I never seemed to be promoted and my hard work was never recognized. And so, I remained in the same position from the day I joined the company until now. And through it all, you were right there by my side."
At this point in the conversation his wife began to get tears in her eyes. He continued, "And now I’ve been in this accident and when I woke up, you’re the first person I saw. And there’s something I would really like to say to you...."
He said, "JUDY, I THINK YOU’RE JUST PLAIN BAD LUCK!"
Brethren, there are times in our lives when we think we experience nothing but bad luck. We may not necessarily blame it on our mates or even God, BUT WE FEEL AS THOUGH WE’VE BEEN DUMPED ON IN LIFE. And this is where God’s sustaining grace comes in. God’s grace can sustain us and keep us going if we will let it.
ILL.- It’s been said that "when the going gets tough, the tough get going." There may be some truth in that statement, but it’s not the whole truth for us who are in Christ.
When the going gets tough (and it does) that’s when we lean on the grace of God! It is not dumb nor sissy to ask for help, especially from God! It’s the smartest thing we could do.
Hebrews 4:16 "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
The grace of God can sustain us through it all if we will let it. If we will let Him!
1- Saving grace.
2- Sustaining grace.
III. SANCTIFYING GRACE
ILL.- One time a certain preacher said to his congregation, "There’s a theory around that if people don’t smoke, don’t drink, don’t overeat, or engage in extramarital sex, they’ll live a lot longer. THE TROUBLE IS, WE WON’T KNOW FOR SURE UNTIL SOMEBODY IN THIS CONGREGATION TRIES IT."
I know that sounds very bad, but for some churches it may be more true than we might think.
When the grace of God touches our lives we should "shape up." We should live different lives from the rest of the people of the world.
Titus 2:11-12 "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ’No,’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age."
The grace of God should sanctify us. Sanctification is the act of becoming holy and godly. And this process should start when we come in contact with God’s grace and surrender our lives to Jesus Christ.
The grace of God should motivate us to live right. It should be a controlling power in our lives.
ILL.- In 1993, the then Alabama Governor, Guy Hunt, was convicted of looting $200,000 from his inaugural fund and spending it on himself. Here is what he purchased: a marble shower, a riding lawnmower, and a cow. Expensive cow!
Now, what’s so surprising about a politician taking money that was designated for something and using it for himself? Normally, we wouldn’t be so surprised, but in this case, Gov. Guy Hunt was a Primitive Baptist church preacher. IN OTHER WORDS, HE CLAIMED TO BE A CHRISTIAN MAN AND YET HE STOLE MONEY!
ILL.- We all remember the televangelists, Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart. Jim Bakker built something of an empire with his Heritage USA and PTL club. He preached a gospel of health and wealth. He was convicted in 1989 of mail and wire fraud. He was using money that was sent to him for a specific purpose for other purposes. AND ONE PURPOSE WAS HIMSELF!
He was sentenced to 45 years in prison, but served only 5 years. Later, he wrote a book entitled, "I Was Wrong." And he was wrong and at least, he admitted it.
ILL.- The very popular televangelist Jimmy Swaggart in the meantime was laying it on Jim Bakker for his sin when he himself was engaged in sinful acts. In 1986 the Jimmy Swaggart ministry pulled in $141.6 million dollars. That was the year before Jimmy fell. He was caught up in incidents that involved several prostitutes. From then on, his ministry has gone downhill.
Brethren, we admit that we all sin. Don’t ever be so proud as to say you don’t sin. WE ALL SIN. AND WE ALL STRUGGLE WITH SIN DAILY.
But the grace of God is supposed to change that. At least, in time.
ILL.- Vance Havner once told the story about Dr. Clyde Turner who was the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Greensboro, KY. A youngster in the Sunday School was a terror and nobody knew what to do with him. Finally, he stopped coming to Sunday School. Dr. Turner said, "I am ashamed to say it, but I think we were all glad of it." Nobody made any special effort to get him back.
But one day they were having a little meeting and here came that boy running down the aisle with a musical instrument case under his arm. "Dr. Turner," he said, "they gave me a fiddle for being good."
"In the first place," Dr. Turner said, "I could imagine nobody giving him a fiddle; and in the second place, certainly not for being good."
The boy sensed the wonder on the pastor’s face and said, "You see, doctor, I am gooder than I used to be." Dr. Turner said, "I saw him scamper down the hall and I thought, ’YES, THANK GOD, BY THE GRACE OF GOD A LOT OF US ARE GOODER THAN WE USED TO BE.’"
Thank God for His wonderful, amazing grace! Because it is by surrendering to His powerful grace that we all can become "gooder" than we used to be!
CONCLUSION----------------------------------
ILL.- In a corner of the churchyard of Olney Parish Church there is a large tombstone on which the inscription reads: "John Newton, clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ preserved, restored and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy."
John Newton was the son of a sea captain engaged in Mediterranean trade. His mother died when he was 6, and after several years at school, he joined his father’s ship at the age of 11. Immorality, debauchery and failure followed. Rejected by his father and finally jailed and degraded, he later served on slave ships where he incurred the hatred of his employer’s black wife.
He was eventually brought to his senses by reading THE IMITATION OF CHRIST by Thomas a Kempis, the great German preacher of the 13 and 1400’s. He became converted to Christ. At the age of 39 he became a minister of the gospel and was the Pastor of the Olney Church for 15 years. He wrote many hymns and the most familiar being:
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.
The grace of God can save us but only if we respond to it. The grace of God can sustain us but only if we trust it. The grace of God can sanctify us but only if we surrender to it.
