Saved By Grace

This gets into the essence of Paul’s point, it’s God’s Grace that saves us. From beginning to end, our salvation is God’s grace.

Grace is unmerited favor to those who deserve ill-favor.

We are not in a position to barter with God or to work with him. Grace means you get a handout. Your salvation was a handout that you neither earned or deserved. You are a beggar. This should humble us!

The State of Being Saved

-Not something that’s gradual or a growth, you are either in or out.

You are either saved or you are not. Salvation is a state you enter into. It’s a quality of being.

By Saved: we understand that we are delivered from the penalty of sin. Sin is transgression on God’s law, and we were guilty debtors. We were under God’s wrath.

When God saves us, we go from being under God’s wrath to having peace with God. We go from being in the kingdom of darkness to being translated into the kingdom of light. That’s entering into the state of salvation.

You are either in one or the other.

Proof

2 Timothy 1:9 ESV

who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,

John 5:24 ESV

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

John

Saved Through Faith

He didn’t say we were saved by faith, but through faith. If we were saved by faith, we’d have reason to be worried. We are often like the man who said I believe help my unbelief. Our faith is week. If faith was our savior we’d be sunk. Our faith is imperfect and faulty.

Grace is unmerited favor to those who deserve ill-favor.

Faith: is a confidence and reliance upon Christ and his works.

“Faith is the capacity to understand, feel, and act on the message of Jesus Christ. This capacity is a gift produced by the new birth.” JN

-Faith is a Gift:

Our text specifically doesn’t emphasize this but listen to these verses

Acts 3:16 ESV

And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.

Philippians 1:29 ESV

For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake,

2 Peter 1:1 ESV

Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

Acts 13:48 ESV

And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.

1 Corinthians 1:26–31 ESV

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

So we see that the entirety of our salvation is of God even our faith. From dead to alive!

In case we haven’t got it yet, he goes further.

-Without Works

Without any effort or help on your part, God saves.

Our flesh resists this with all its might. We don’t see ourselves as God see us, beggars. We try and turn salvation into something we did.

Catholics have the sacraments.

Baptism, communion, holy matrimony, confirmation, penance, anointing of the sick, holy orders.

Many Protestants have followed suit

Caras

It’s baptism that saves.

The Hutterites are the same

The common problem with them all is the same. It’s the belief that there is something I can do to save myself.

-Baptists have followed suit as well.

Listen to a many Baptists speak of their conversion and they say, “ I did that.”

“If you did anything to get salvation, you are not saved.”

2. I prayed that prayer (from the very beginning you muddy the very definition of faith.)

3. I went to the pastor.

4. I walked down the aisle.

5. I came to the altar.

6. I went to the mourner’s bench.

7. I went to the enquirer’s room.

8. I filled out the card.

JN “This is all sacramentalism!”

The result is that we cannot boast. We have nothing to gloat about. We have no ground of finding satisfaction in ourselves. We find our satisfaction in Him.

To the Credit and Glory of God

To the Credit and Glory of God

“His workmanship”

Salvation is about God getting the credit, him getting the Glory.

m getting the Glory.

CPA’s

1) We live in humble assurance!

1 Corinthians 4:7 ESV

For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?

2) We have hope in our evangelism/prayers/future of our Church

3) This is why we counsel people for Baptism. We are ascertaining has God done a work on you?

4) This is why we don’t order our Church to please men.