Cheap Grace vs Changing Grace
Notes
Transcript
INTRO
INTRO
Have you ever made the mistake of choosing the cheaper option over the more expensive option?
Sometimes cheaper is perfectly fine
Sometimes store brand tastes exactly like name brand
But there are certain things where you learn pretty quickly that cheaper was cheaper for a reason
Hotel room
Toilet paper
Trash bags
There are some things where you probably don't want the cheapest option
A tattoo
Probably not the time to ask, “Who can do this for the least amount of money?”
Gas-station lunch
It is not the right time to decided the sushi by the roller dogs is a good idea
We have all made the mistake of choosing the cheaper version of something
And normally, after experiencing the consequences, we learn:
The cheaper version wasn't worth it
But this morning I want to ask you a much more serious question
What if some of us have done that with the grace of God?
What if we have settled for a cheaper version of grace than the grace actually described in Scripture?
TENSION
TENSION
Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously called this idea “cheap grace.”
“Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
In other words:
I want forgiveness
but I don't really want repentance
I want Jesus to save me from hell
but I don't really want Jesus telling me how to live
I want Jesus on the cross dying for my sins…
but I don't want Jesus on the throne ruling my life
I want a Savior
I'm just not sure I want a Lord.
Cheap grace is a grace that supposedly saves, but never changes.
And if we're not careful, that version of Christianity becomes extremely common
Sunday-morning Christianity
Cultural Christianity
Instagram-bio Christianity
“I believe in God.”
“I grew up in church.”
“I prayed a prayer.”
“I got baptized.”
“I'm a Christian.”
But Monday through Saturday, Jesus has virtually no authority over the way I think, speak, date, spend, forgive, work, or live.
And Paul would say that isn't simply an immature understanding of grace
It is a misunderstanding of grace.
Because according to Titus 2:
The grace that saves you also changes you.
And this morning Paul is going to show us three things God’s changing grace:
The reality of God's changing grace
The cost of God's changing grace
The preaching of God's changing grace
TRUTH
TRUTH
1. The Reality of God's Changing Grace
1. The Reality of God's Changing Grace
Remember where we are
Paul has just spent the first ten verses telling
older men
older women
younger women
younger men
and servants
how followers of Jesus should live
Then continues this same thought saying…
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,
Again Paul starts with: “For…”
Why live like this?
Where does this kind of life come from?
Paul's answer is not:
“Because Christians need to try harder.”
His answer is: “For the grace of God has appeared…”
Grace has appeared
Grace is not merely an idea
Grace entered history
Grace appeared in Jesus
In His incarnation
His perfect life
His death
His resurrection
God did not look down at sinners and tell us to climb our way up to Him
God came down to us
Or as John would say:
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
And Paul says this grace brings salvation “for all people.”
That doesn't mean everyone is automatically saved
The context is all kinds of people:
old and young
men and women
servants and masters
No ethnicity
No social class
No generation
No kind of past
is beyond the reach of Jesus
But look at what grace does after it saves
Verse 12 says grace is
training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,
Grace trains us
Grace doesn’t forgive you and then leave you exactly where it found you
Grace goes to work
Paul says grace “trains us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions”
That means grace teaches us to say no to sinful actions
And grace teaches us to say no to sinful desires
And that is why Romans 6:14 says:
For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
Grace doesn’t make sin irrelevant
Grace breaks sin’s dominion
That’s what grace does
Grace changes not only what we do but also what we want to do
Sin may still tempt you
Sin may still trip you up
Sin may still be something you have to fight every single day
But if you are in Christ, sin is no longer your master
Grace is teaching you to say no
But Paul doesn’t stop there
Grace doesn’t only train us in what to renounce
Grace trains us in how to live
Paul says grace trains us “to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age”
So grace is not only pulling us away from something
Grace is forming us into something
Grace teaches us to live self-controlled lives
lives that are not ruled by every impulse, every craving, every emotion
Grace teaches us to live upright lives
lives that line up with what God has called right and good in His Word
And grace teaches us to live godly lives
lives that are shaped by reverence for God and a desire to please Him.
And notice when Paul says this happens: “in the present age.”
Not one day when you get to heaven
Not one day when life gets easier
Not one day when temptation goes away
Today
Grace changes how you live now
your sexuality
your marriage
your anger
your money
your phone
your thought life
your relationships
your habits.
Grace gets into everything
Because the grace of God does not just prepare us for eternity
It teaches us how to live faithfully in the present age
But we aren’t perfect, are we?
Our faithfulness still falls short in this present age
We still struggle
We still fail
Which is why verse 13 gives us hope.
waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
Biblical hope is not wishful thinking
It is confident expectation in what God has promised
And there are two appearings in this passage
Grace has appeared
Glory will appear
Jesus came once in humility
Jesus is coming again in glory.
So we live between those two realities:
Christ’s first coming
Christ’s second coming
We look back at what He has done
and we look forward to what He has promised.
And that hope keeps us going when change feels slow and obedience feels hard
But if this grace really
saves us
changes us
and gives us hope for what is coming
what did that grace cost?
Paul answers that in verse 14
2. The Cost of God's Changing Grace
2. The Cost of God's Changing Grace
who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.
Jesus Christ: “gave himself for us…”
Grace is free to us
But grace was not free to Him
Jesus gave Himself
Jesus says in Mark 10:45
For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Paul says He gave Himself: “to redeem us from all lawlessness…”
That word redeem means to set someone free by paying a price
It was language of slavery
Someone was in bondage
A price was paid
And freedom was purchased.
Paul says that was us
We were enslaved to sin
and Jesus purchased our freedom with His own life
And notice what Paul says He redeems us “from all lawlessness.”
Jesus didn’t die only so that one day you could escape the penalty of sin
He died to break the power of sin over your life right now
That’s why Romans 6:6 says:
We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.
Jesus doesn’t just forgive the slave; He sets the slave free.
Sin may still tempt you
You may still struggle with it
You may still fall
But if you belong to Christ, sin is no longer your master
That is redemption.
And then Paul says Jesus gave Himself: “to purify for himself a people for his own possession…”
There are really two beautiful ideas here
He purifies us
He is cleansing and sanctifying the people He has redeemed
He makes us His own possession
That second phrase reaches back into the Old Testament
After God delivered Israel out of Egypt, He said at Mount Sinai:
Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine;
Paul is deliberately picking up that covenant language
God was forming a people who uniquely belonged to Him
And now Paul says Jesus is redeeming and purifying a people for His own possession.
Paul is placing Christ’s redeemed people within the unfolding biblical story of God creating a people who belong to Him
So salvation is more than:
“My sins are forgiven.”
It is:
“I have been redeemed from sin
I am being cleansed by Christ
and now I belong to Him.”
And what happens when grace does that?
Paul says we become: “zealous for good works.”
Not good works to earn grace
Good works because we have received grace.
Jesus redeemed us
Jesus made us His
So now we want to live like we’re His
That’s changing grace
3. The Preaching of God's Changing Grace
3. The Preaching of God's Changing Grace
Finally Paul says:
Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.
Titus do three things
Declare
Tell people what is true
Exhort
Encourage people who need strength to keep going
Rebuke
Confront people who are going the wrong direction
So this morning I simply want to do exactly what Paul told Titus to do
I want to declare
I want to rebuke
And I want to exhort
APPLICATION
APPLICATION
First, I want to DECLARE grace to somebody in this room.
First, I want to DECLARE grace to somebody in this room.
Maybe you walked in here this morning carrying more shame than anybody knows
Maybe you almost didn't come
Maybe church this morning felt like your last shot at hope
Maybe you've wrecked relationships
Maybe addiction has you
Maybe sexual sin owns you
Maybe your family has given up on you
Maybe you've spent years running from God
Maybe you're sitting there thinking:
“If everybody in this room actually knew me, they wouldn't want me here.”
Hear Titus 2:11
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,
Friend:
Jesus saves sinners of all kinds
Not cleaned-up sinners
Not impressive sinners
Not religious sinners
Sinners
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Not once you fixed yourself
While you were still a sinner
Maybe you walked in covered in shame
There is a Savior who bore shame.
Maybe you feel filthy
There is a Savior who purifies.
Maybe you feel enslaved
There is a Savior who redeems.
Maybe you think you've gone too far
You have not outrun the grace of Jesus.
And maybe you're on the opposite side
Maybe you aren't desperate
Maybe you're adamantly against Christianity
Maybe you don't think you need Christ
Then hear this:
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Sin isn't merely doing a few bad things
It is rebellion against the God who made us
who is holy and perfect
And Scripture says:
For the wages of sin is death,
The price for our sin is death…
But that's not the whole verse:
but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Your sin is serious enough that Jesus had to die
And God's love is great enough that Jesus willingly did
He lived the life you could not live
He died the death your sin deserved
He rose from the grave.
And today Jesus’ invitation to you
is not:
Try harder
It is:
Come to Me
Jesus said:
All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.
Bring the sin
Bring the shame
Bring the addiction
Bring the doubt
Bring the anger
Bring the past
Come to Christ
Repent
Believe
There is grace for you this morning
Second, I want to REBUKE some of us
Second, I want to REBUKE some of us
And this is not legalism
Legalism says:
Obey so God will save you.
The gospel says:
Jesus saves you, and the grace that saves you changes you
I am not asking:
Did you sin this week?
Of course you did
I am not asking:
Are you perfect?
No Christian is.
I'm asking:
Has the grace you claim to have received actually changed the direction of your life?
Some of us have trusted in
a prayer we prayed
an aisle we walked
a baptism we experienced
or the fact that we grew up in church
But our lives say:
I do not want Jesus ruling me
We want forgiveness without repentance
Heaven without holiness
A cross without a throne
But Jesus says:
And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Daily
Following Jesus costs you something
Not because you are purchasing salvation
Jesus purchased salvation
But when He saves you, He claims your life
You belong to Him
Your sexuality belongs to Him
Your dating life belongs to Him
Your marriage belongs to Him
Your money belongs to Him
Your private life belongs to Him
Your ambitions belong to Him.
So ask yourself:
Am I fighting sin?
Or have I made peace with it?
When I fall, do I repent?
Or do I plan my sin and then use grace as an excuse?
Because maybe the most gracious thing God could do for you this morning is wake you up form this facade
Bonhoeffer said: “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
You know where he got that?
Jesus…
For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
Have you lost you life to the one who gave up his for you?
Do not settle for cheap grace
Run to the real thing this morning
Finally, I want to EXHORT the Christian who is tired
Finally, I want to EXHORT the Christian who is tired
Most of you do not need to be awakened this morning
You're fighting
You're trying to follow Jesus
And you're exhausted
You hear: “take up your cross daily…”
And you're thinking:
“I know. And some days it sucks.”
Why?
Dying to yourself hurts
Saying no to sin hurts
Forgiving people hurts
Remaining faithful when temptation is screaming hurts
Walking away from what everybody else celebrates hurts
Taking up a cross was never supposed to sound comfortable
But Christian, hear Titus 2 again
Grace is training us
You are not changing yourself through sheer willpower.
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
You work because God is working in you
So every once in a while stop looking only at how far you still have to go and look at how far grace has already brought you
There were sins that once owned you that don't own you like they used to
Things that never bothered you now grieve you
You love things you didn't used to love
You hate things you once celebrated
You repent more quickly
You desire Christ more deeply.
Christian
that's grace
It might feel slow
It might feel messy
But God is working
and God will see His work through
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
He began it
He is doing it
He will finish it
And when you fail, your hope is not:
“I was really good this week.”
Your hope is Titus 2:13
waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
Your hope is Jesus
Look backward
He came
He died
He rose
Look at today
And see that His grace is changing you and has changed you
Then look forward
Knowing that He's coming back
Christian…
There is coming a day when the sin you've fought for years will never tempt you again
Lust gone
Pride gone
Bitterness gone
Shame gone
Death gone
There is coming a day when you will not wake up and have to pick up your cross again
Faith will become sight
Sanctification will become glorification
And you will see Jesus
So keep going
Pick up the cross again tomorrow
Say no to sin again
Repent again
Forgive again
Get back up again
Follow again.
Not because following Jesus is easy
Because Jesus is worth it
And never forget this:
Before Jesus ever told you to carry your cross
He carried His
Before He asked for your life
He gave His life for you
Before He called you to suffer
He suffered for you
Before He called you to die to yourself
He died for you
But He did not stay dead
He rose
He reigns
And He is coming again
So when following Jesus feels costly
when obedience hurts
when saying no to sin feels like death
remember:
this is not the end of the story
One day you will see Him
One day the fight with sin will be over
One day you will lay the cross down
One day faith will become sight
And on that day,
you will not wish you had followed Jesus less
You will not wish you had held onto more of your old life
You will see the One who gave Himself for you,
and you will know
He was worth every no
He was worth every sacrifice
He was worth every cross
Church, the grace that appeared in Jesus
is the grace changing you now
And the Jesus who came once
is coming again
So until He does:
Keep following
Keep fighting
Keep looking to Christ
The cost is real but Jesus is worth it
