By Grace Alone -- Ephesians 2:4-2:10
Grace It is UNDESERVED KINDNESS. Someone has said, “Grace is everything for nothing to those who don’t deserve anything.”
An atheist once said, “If there really is a God, may He prove Himself by striking me dead right now.” Nothing happened. The atheist proudly announced, “You see, there is no God.” His friend responded, “You’ve only proved that He is a gracious God.”
“Grace is the power of God made available to meet all our needs.” - Joyce Meyer
MAIN IDEA: Only by God’s grace can we be saved.
ILLUSTRATION:
You may know the story about the Sunday School teacher who wanted to teach her class about grace. And so one day she asked them, “If I sold my house and my car and gave all my money to the church, would I get into Heaven?”
“NO”! the children all answered.
Again she asked, “If I cleaned the church every day, mowed the yard, and kept everything neat and tidy, would I get into Heaven?”
And again, the answer was “NO!”
“Well,” she continued, “then how can I get to Heaven?”
In the back of the room, a five-year-old boy shouted out, “You gotta be dead!”
Christian faith is not about what we can do for God, but what God has done for us. What Luther saw in the spring of 1513 turned the world of religion on its head. In Luther’s time, the church was basically teaching that God was passive, but humanity was to be active. That is, God was on His throne reigning. And human beings were to be scurrying around seeking to win God’s favor.
Luther’s eyes were opened to another reality--that it is God who is active. Salvation is all about what God has done in Jesus Christ. Because Christ gave himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world, our debt to God is forever paid.
Why do I need to be saved? Because I am a sinner and the wages of sin is death; eternal separation from the life of God.
During a British conference on comparative religions, experts from around the world debated what, if any, belief was unique to the Christian faith. They began eliminating possibilities. Incarnation? Other religions had different versions of gods appearing in human form. Resurrection? Again, other religions had accounts of return from death.
The debate went on for some time until C. S. Lewis wandered into the room. “What’s the [commotion] about?” he asked, and heard in reply that his colleagues were discussing Christianity’s unique contribution among world religions. Lewis responded, “Oh, that’s easy. It’s grace.”
The notion of God’s love coming to us free of charge, no strings attached, seems to go against every instinct of humanity. The Buddhist eight-fold path, the Hindu doctrine of Karma, the Jewish Mosaic covenant, and the Muslim code of law—each of these offers a way to earn approval. Only Christianity dares to make God’s love unconditional [Perfect Illustrations for Every Topic and Occasion, pp. 116-117; citation: Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing about Grace?].
I. I can NEVER DO ENOUGH to deserve salvation.
In 2001, Reader’s Digest asked Muhammad Ali what his faith meant to him. Ali replied, “[It] means [a] ticket to heaven. One day we’re all going to die, and God’s going to judge us, [our] good and bad deeds. [If the] bad outweighs the good, you go to hell; if the good outweighs the bad, you go to heaven.” That’s what many people believe. But that’s not what the Bible says.
“For 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” (Eph. 2:8-9).
READ James 2:10; and Rom. 3:19.
I need to be saved by grace. I need undeserved salvation.
II. Christ DID ENOUGH to provide salvation for me.
There are only two principles by which God deals with people—grace and law.
Think of the nature of God: 1) God is all-powerful, the Creator. 2) God is everywhere. 3) God is personal. 4) God is holy; the Righteous Judge. And 5) God is love. These all fit together in the Biblical portrait of God. But you cannot have love without holiness; nor holiness without love. In human judges, or in almighty God!
According to the principle of grace, God deals favorably with people in a way they do not deserve. Law requires Him to deal with people in a way they deserve. Since sinners deserve hell, they cannot be delivered from this penalty by law.
The spiritual blindness of man is evident in that all their religions teach that people are saved by their works, the very principle which bars them from acceptance with God. No one can ever be saved from his sins apart from God’s grace.
This is exactly what Martin Luther experienced for himself. He knew he was a sinner, and he knew he could not by himself escape God’s justice. He felt condemend. Until he understand God’s grace in Christ.
What has Jesus done for me? Here are 7 different words the NT uses to describe Jesus’ gracious action on our behalf.
A. SUBSTITUTION: Jesus died in my place (1 Peter 3:18).
B. JUSTIFICATION: Jesus made me right with God (Rom. 4:25).
A word from the courts. God sees me innocent, no longer guilty.
C. RECONCILIATION: Jesus made peace with God possible(2 Cor. 5:19).
Jesus the bridge
D. ADOPTION: Jesus made me a part of God’s family.
“He predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will” (Eph. 1:5).
E. REDEMPTION: Jesus purchased my salvation with his blood(1 Peter 1:18-19).
A marketplace word, refering to slaves being purchased. We were slaves to sin until Jesus purchased us out of the slave market and set us free from sin’s bondage; now we belong exclusively to Him.
F. ATONEMENT: Jesus satisfied God’s justice (1 John 2:2; 4:10).
In heathen circles it was a word that meant “to appease the anger of the gods.” Biblically to satisfy the justice of God and his anger at sin, so that mercy is given.
G. FORGIVENESS: Jesus sent my sins away from me. (Eph. 1:7).
In the movie Saving Private Ryan, a group of Army Rangers receive a mission to go deep into enemy territory to save Private Ryan. They hit skirmish after skirmish, and some of them are killed along the way. They finally get to where Private Ryan is holed up, and they say, “Come with us. We’re here to save you.” He says, “I’m not going. I have to stay here because there’s a big battle coming up, and I’m not going to abandon my fellow soldiers.”
What do the Rangers do? They all stay and fight, and almost everyone dies except Private Ryan. At the end, one of the main characters—played by Tom Hanks—is sitting on the ground. He’s been shot and he’s dying. But the battle has been won.
Private Ryan leans over to him, and Tom Hanks whispers, “Earn this.”
A Christian pastor who was a Ranger, has written: "It’s very unlikely that any Ranger would say, “Earn this.” Why? Because the Ranger motto for the past two hundred years has been “I chose this.” In other words, I volunteered for this. So, if Tom Hanks was really a Ranger, he would have said, “I chose this. You don’t have to earn this. I give up my life for you. That’s my job.”
And so, when you look at the cross and see Jesus hanging there, what you don’t hear is “Earn this.” What He says is “I chose this. You don’t have to pay anything for it” [adapted from Perfect Illustrations for Every Topic and Occasion; citation: Tom Allen, Preaching Today #200].
Not "earn this;" but Jesus said, "Remember this!"
Grace is often defined by using the five letters of the word: God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.
III. Salvation is a GIFT for me to RECEIVE, not a REWARD for me to EARN (Rom. 6:23).
ILLUSTRATION:
A student in a youth ministry class at Hannibal-LaGrange College in Missouri learned this lesson from his professor.
This student had left work early so he could have some uninterrupted study time right before the final in his Youth Issues class. When he got to class, everybody was doing their last minute studying. The teacher came in and said he would review with them for just a little bit before the test. They went through the review, most of it right on the study guide, but there were some things the teacher was reviewing that this student had never heard of. When questioned about it, the teacher said that this material was in the book and they were responsible for everything in the book. The class couldn’t really argue with that.
Finally it was time to take the test. The prof. instructed the class to leave the exam booklets face down on the desk until everyone had one and then he would tell them to start.
When the students turned the exam booklets over, every answer was already filled in! The bottom of the last page said the following: “This is the end of the Final Exam. All the answers on your test are correct. You will receive an ‘A’ on the final exam. The reason you passed the test is because the creator of the test took it for you. All the work you did in preparation for this test did not help you get the A. You have just experienced . . . grace.”
The teacher then went around the room and asked each student individually, “What is your grade? Do you deserve the grade you are receiving? How much did all your studying for this exam help you achieve your final grade?”
This student, writing about this experience, says, “Now I am not a crier by any stretch of the imagination, but I had to fight back tears when answering those questions and thinking about how the Creator has passed the test for me.”
Afterward his teacher had this to say: “I have tried to teach you all semester that you are a recipient of grace . . .” The teacher went on to say he had never done this kind of final before and probably would never do it again, but because of the content of many of their class discussions, he felt like they needed to experience grace. Not just talk about it, but experience it. [From “Mike’s Funnies List.” Cited on Pastor Tim’s Illustrations List.]
All of us here need to EXPERIENCE grace--not just know about it intellectually.
Many of us grew up in homes where love was conditional. We were not conscious of it, but that is how we experienced life as a child. Our parents’ acceptance was performance-based. If we did well, we experienced our parents’ approval. If not, we experienced their disapproval. And so, at a level at which we are not even aware, all our lives we have been trying to measure up to our parents’ expectations. And the sad thing is that we never can.
And so many of us have this deep sense of unworthiness. And you know something interesting--it’s some of the finest people in the church who have this sense of unworthiness. And it’s robbed us of our joy. We’ve tried to do the right thing all our lives and all it has gotten us is that we are standing on the outside looking in at the joy others seem to have.
All our lives we have been taught about salvation by faith, but we have not associated it with that deep unhappiness that many of us feel.
Here is the good news: You do not have to measure up. You do not have to be at the top of your class. You are accepted. You are loved. Salvation, wholeness, healing of the inner person by God is not performance-based. In fact, in order to experience God’s grace, you and I have got to somehow forget everything we’ve ever learned about being good. That sounds radical, doesn’t it? But that is what Luther saw half a millennium ago. We are saved not by our performance, but by our faith in an omnipotent and all-loving God.
Salvation is a GIFT for me to RECEIVE, not a REWARD for me to EARN.
How do I receive the gift of salvation?
• By ADMITTING that I am a sinner.
• By BELIEVING that Jesus Christ died from my sins and rose from the grave.
• By CALLING to God for salvation.
These are the ABC’s of salvation: Admit, Believe, and Call.
If you would like to receive God’s gift of salvation today, would you please repeat this prayer after me:
(Sinner’s Prayer)
Sources:
Wayne Brouwer, STANDING OUTSIDE GRACELAND, www.sermons.com
Jonathan McLeod, "Amazing Grace" (August 2006).
BY GRACE ALONE
What is “grace”? It is __________________________________.
Only by God’s grace can we be saved. Why do I need to be saved? Because I am a sinner and the wages of sin is death; eternal separation from the life of God.
I. I can _____________________________________ to deserve salvation. (Eph. 2:8).
II. Christ ____________________________ to provide salvation for me.
A. _____________________: Jesus died in my place. (1 Peter 3:18).
B. _____________________: Jesus made me right with God. (Rom. 4:25).
C. _____________________: Jesus made peace with God possible. (2 Cor. 5:19).
D. _____________________: Jesus made me a part of God’s family. (Eph. 1:5).
E. __ ___________________: Jesus purchased my salvation with his blood. (1 Peter 1:18-19).
F. ______________________: Jesus satisfied God’s justice. (1 John 2:2).
G. ______________________: Jesus sent my sins away from me. (Eph. 1:7).
Grace is often described as God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.
III. Salvation is a ____________ for me to ____________, not a ____________ for me to ____________. (Rom. 6:23).
“The Gospel is good news of mercy to the undeserving. The symbol of the religion of Jesus is the cross, not the scales.”—John Stott
How do I receive the gift of salvation?
• By ADMITTING that I am a sinner. (1 John 1:8-9).
• By BELIEVING that Jesus Christ died from my sins and rose from the grave. (John 3:16-17).
• By CALLING to God for salvation. (Rom. 10:13).
These are the ABC’s of salvation: Admit, Believe, and Call.
RESPONSIVE SCRIPTURE READING:
“God’s Amazing Grace”
LEADER: From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.
ALL: For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (John 1:16-17)
LEADER: For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
ALL: That though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor,
LEADER: So that you through his poverty might become rich. (2 Cor. 8:9)
ALL: This is how God showed his love among us:
LEADER: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
ALL: This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. (1 John 4:9-10)
LEADER: He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
ALL: For as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
LEADER: As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. (Ps. 103:10-12)
ALL: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
LEADER: And are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:23-24)
ALL: Where sin increased, grace increased all the more. (Rom. 5:20)
LEADER: But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
ALL: And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
LEADER: In order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
ALL: For It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves,
LEADER: It is the gift of God—not of works, so that no one can boast.
ALL: For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:4-10)
LEADER: God demonstrates his own love for us in this:
ALL: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
