Amazing Grace, Pt.1 (Good Friday)

WELCOME

Please turn to 1 Chronicles 17 - this will be our text tonight as well as Easter Sunday.

Tonight, it is appropriate to remember, that’s what our Savior instructed us to do in gatherings like this. Not because today is a Holy day, but because he is himself the holy one and has given us this meal of remembrance together. So, remember, reflect, but don’t return. Don’t reject, as we remember, as we reflect, let that lead to rejoicing. Because tonight is about our rescue. Rescue secured, not through our actions, but the finished work of another on our behalf.

Consider what Paul says in Romans…

Romans 5:6–8

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

On Good Friday, we reflect on the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross—where love and justice met.

On this day, grace took on flesh, bore our sin, and gave us hope. That’s why tonight it’s appropriate for their to be reflection and rejoicing together!

a bit of the backstory:

God created a kingdom, and he is the King

he made human beings to represent him in that kingdom

Adam and Eve rejected this call, which led to sin and death

But God promised to defeat the Serpent through the seed of the woman, who is also the seed of Abraham

Through Abraham’s family, and specifically Judah’s royal seed, David, the covenant blessings would come to the world

Because all are guilty and deserve death, the sacrifices of the Mosaic law revealed more clearly their need for a substitute. - [adapted from Bruno, Chris. The Whole Story of the Bible in 16 Verses]

Why 1 Chronicles?

1 Chronicles reminds the people of Judah, who are resettling after the Babylonian captivity, of their heritage as God’s children, the Lord’s commitment to King David, and their need to trust God for their future.

Key Verse

“Your name will be established and magnified forever, saying, ‘Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, is Israel’s God.’”

— 1 Chronicles 17:24 ESV

READ (1 CHRONICLES 17)

LOOKING BACK: GRACE—It’s Weight & Cost

GOD’S NATURE: GRACIOUS

God’s nature is to delight in giving unmerited favor to those who are undeserving

Ephesians 2:8–10 (ESV)

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

His grace toward sinners is found most clearly in the salvation He has provided through Christ.

Because of sin, humanity is undeserving of salvation—all of us have turned our backs on God, and as a result, we deserve death (Rom. 6:23).

Romans 6:23 (ESV)

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

However, instead of leaving people in their sins, God has demonstrated His graciousness by providing atonement and forgiveness for our sins through the death and resurrection of Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21).

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV)

21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

THE WEIGHT OF SIN & COST OF REDEMPTION

David marveled at God's grace & mercy; we, too, should stand in awe.

Jesus bore our sins and brought us in; the cross is God's ultimate act of grace.

1 Chronicles 17:7 – 'I took thee … from following the sheep.'

Without Christ—lost, broken, and in need of saving grace.

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.’

WRETCH: (OLD ENGLISH-banished person) - v.16

LOOKING AROUND: God’s Presence with Us

1 Chronicles 17:8 – 'I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked...'

CHRIST’S HUMILIATION

Although God the Son was equal with God and worthy of all the glory God receives, He chose to humble Himself by taking on human flesh.

He left His glorious state and came in the likeness of sinful flesh (Rom. 8:3)

He experienced a humiliating death on a cross (Phil. 2:6-8) by becoming sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21).

Even in suffering, God walks with us. ‘Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come...'

The cross was painful, but grace sustained Jesus to complete the work.

ILLUS: He was born into the rough-and-tumble world of 18th-century seafaring, the son of a shipmaster. Early in life, he tasted the harshness of the ocean and quickly spiraled into a life marked by rebellion, profanity, and moral decay. As a young man, he entered the slave trade, becoming deeply involved in one of history’s greatest evils. His heart was hard, his conscience numb, and his sense of direction completely lost. Yet it was during a brutal storm at sea—while his ship was on the verge of sinking—that something extraordinary happened. Gripped by fear and desperation, he cried out for mercy. That moment began a transformation that would eventually change the course of his life. Over time, he left the slave trade, became a minister of the gospel, and used the rest of his days to proclaim the grace that had rescued him from the depths. Out of the ashes of his past came a song that has echoed through generations. A hymn that has been sung in churches, whispered in hospital rooms, and wept over at funerals. A song that captures the mystery of redemption in just two profoundly simple words: Amazing Grace. This incredible life story reminds us that no one is beyond the reach of God’s mercy. No past is too dark, no sin too deep for the light of His grace to shine through. As we turn now to reflect on that legendary hymn, let us do so with fresh eyes and grateful hearts, remembering just how amazing grace truly is.

Through many dangers, toils and snares,

I have already come;

'Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,

And grace will lead me home.

LOOKING FORWARD: Promises Fulfilled in Jesus

1 Chronicles 17:12 – 'I will establish his throne forever.'

- The cross was not the end—God's plan was always resurrection and victory.

CHRIST’S EXALTATION

The death of Christ was the ultimate example of His humiliation, the resurrection of Christ from the dead is the first and glorious example of Christ’s exaltation.

Christ was exalted when God raised Him from the dead, and Christ was exalted when He ascended to the Father’s right hand.

He will be exalted by all creation when He returns.

All of these aspects work together to magnify the glory and worth of Christ, resulting in the praise of the glory of His grace in rescuing sinners.

'The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures.'

Return to Romans 5:8 (opening passage) - Hope rises from suffering, and grace leads us home.

APPLICATION

If you go anywhere else but Christ, you will not find grace, but only more legal demands for righteousness. This is why “grace alone” is crucial to understanding “Christ alone”: because it’s possible to have faith in a Christ alone who is not the real Christ.

When you’re weary and worn out at that kitchen table, when you’re stumbling home awash in shame from going too far physically with your boyfriend or girlfriend, when you’re looking at that computer screen tempted to look at pornography or swimming in guilt because you just did—who is Christ to you?

What is on the face of the Savior? Do you see the disappointed taskmaster? Or do you see grace alone?

Paul writes in Romans 2:4 that it is God’s kindness that leads us to repentance and in Titus 2:11–12 that it is grace that trains us to renounce unrighteousness. We can expect the holy Lord may discipline us. There may be serious consequences for our sin in this life. But in Christ:

There. Is. No. Condemnation (Rom. 8:1).

Duesing, Jason G. . Sola: How the Five Solas Are Still Reforming the Church (pp. 49-50).

The cross has practical application for our lives today…

it reminds us that we can trust God's timing.

In our darkest times, God’s plan, though hidden, is at work.

Good Friday offers us an eternal perspective, celebrating the eternal reign of the crucified Christ.

This means we can live in the assurance of Christ’s unshakeable kingdom, finding peace even in turmoil.

On Good Friday, reflect on your life story as part of God’s restoration narrative.

Let this produce the good fruit of gratitude for the grace that sees potential in you, not just flaws.

Grace makes use of the potential and makes up for the flaws so that God alone receives the glory for our lives.

COMMUNION

BREAD: Amazing grace! how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!' Today, we remember the cost of grace — the body broken and the blood poured out. This is not cheap grace; it was purchased at Calvary. As we take the bread, let us reflect on the staggering reality that Christ died for us while we were still sinners — lost, rebellious, unworthy. Truly, the sound of grace is sweet because it reminds us we were saved when we could not save ourselves. 'I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see.' As we hold the cup, consider the transformation that the cross makes possible. On this day, we remember not only Christ’s suffering but also the redemption it accomplished. In His wounds, our blindness is healed. In His death, our wandering finds a new direction. Each sip calls us to marvel again at the love that found us and brought us home. 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved.' The cross teaches us the weight of our sin, the justice of God, and the holiness we could never attain. But that same grace also relieves our fear — because Jesus bore what we could not. As we share in communion, let us humble ourselves before the cross, grateful that grace not only convicts us but also comforts us. On this Good Friday, may these elements preach again to our hearts:

grace is costly to the one who purchased it

that redemption is real for those who receive of it

and love has triumphed through the cross.