Bookmark Sermon

Grasping Grace

April 7, 2002

How many different ways can the word “grace” be used? In the dictionary, I found 16 definitions for grace.

*    A person who moves smoothly is graceful.

*    A credit card offers a grace period.

*    We say grace before our meal – keeping an eye open for the waiter.

Grace is a central idea in Christianity. As pastor John noted, C.S. Lewis said that grace is the one thing that sets Christianity apart from any other religion.

*    The word that we translate as grace occurs 147x in the NT.

*    That’s more than peace, hope, mercy, or even righteousness.

*    While we all have a general sense of its meaning, what does it mean exactly?

This is a “bookmark sermon.” I’ll explain how it works as we go along. If you’re sitting on the inside aisles, look under you seat and you will find a stack of little stickers.

*    Take one and pass them to them down.

*    Grab your Bible, pen, and highlighter, (which you put in your car last Sunday right?).

*    If you forgot them, you can use your bulletin or grab a tape and do it at home.

*    Put the sticker on a blank page of your Bible, under the “Steps of Salvation” sticker, if you have one.

Grace cannot be earned

In the broadest sense, grace is God’s favor and goodwill. The first thing about grace is that it cannot be earned. Turn to Romans 11:6 as the little sticker says.

[Highlight 6] And since it is by grace, it cannot now be by good actions, or grace would not be grace at all! Romans 11:6 – NJB

Most of your translations say “works” instead of “good actions.” It’s the same idea, the “works” are good deeds. Simply put, we cannot do anything to deserve grace.

*    First and last, grace is a gift.

*    By its nature, grace can never be earned by our good deeds.

*    In the margin write, “Grace is a gift” and under that write Ephesians 2:3 and then turn there.

WE DON’T GET WHAT WE HAVE COMING

[Highlight 2:3-5] All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 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. Ephesians 2:3-5 – NIV

To say that we were objects of wrath means that we deserved punishment.

*    We have all rebelled against God and gone our own way.

*    We have made God our enemy because we don’t like having to obey anyone but ourselves.

*    We know that we deserve God’s judgment.

*    But because he loved us so much, he gives his grace to us, through the death of Jesus.

If you got pulled over for doing 60 down Burlington Blvd,

*    with expired tabs,

*    and there’s no insurance on the car,

*    and you’re driving with a revoked license,

*    and you’re not wearing a seat belt,

*    and you changed lanes in the intersection while running a red light and you didn’t use your turn signal,

*    AND you swore at the officer,

BUT he didn’t give you a ticket, then we can safely say that you didn’t get the punishment you so richly deserved – either that or your dad is the police chief.

*    In the margin write “Grace is not getting the punishment we deserve,” and under that write Romans 6:15 and then turn there.

DON’T GET SICK AGAIN

Highlight 15-16

Paul, the author of Romans, was preaching the gospel of grace – the good news that salvation is a gift, not something that can be earned by being good enough.

*    And that’s good news because we will never be able to be good enough to earn salvation.

*    But some people said that grace could be a license to sin.

*    Here’s Paul’s responses:

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey-- whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? Romans 6:15-16 – NIV

The expression in the original Greek that is behind “By no means!” is the strongest way of saying “no” in Greek. Paul reacts with anger to the suggestion that grace is a license to sin.

*    Sin kills, it is destructive.

*    It’s a cancer that destroys us and the ones we love.

*    The idea that we should view the cure as an offer to become sick again is sheer lunacy.

*    You might as well view a blood transfusion as an offer to try to bleed to death.

In the margin write “Grace is not a license to sin,” and under that write Ephesians 2:6 and then turn there.

GRACE IS GETTING BETTER THAT WE DESERVE

[Highlight 6-7] And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 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. Ephesians 2:6-7 – NIV

Grace is far more than not getting the punishment that we deserve. Grace is also getting the riches we don’t deserve.

*    The word that is translated “incomparable” is a very strong word meaning “a degree beyond any comparison.”

*    Paul cannot find anything that compares to the greatness of the riches of God’s grace.

God didn’t think it was enough to forgive our sins and not punish us as we deserve. Cleansing our sins was just a means to his end goal.

*    His goal was to establish intimate relationship with us.

*    To adopt us as his children. Accept us as his own.

He gives us many other gifts as well:

*    His Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us.

*    Joy and peace in our hearts, even in trails.

*    The privilege of partnering with him in his work.

*    And the abiding hope of heaven, eternity with him.

In the margin write “Grace is getting the riches we don’t deserve,” and under that write Colossians 4:5 and then turn there.

WE ARE AGENTS OF GRACE

[Highlight 5-6] Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Colossians 4:5-6 – NIV

Receiving God’s grace, which has saved us from the punishment we deserve and gives us riches we don’t deserve, receiving this unfathomable grace will change us to the core.

*    But it must not stop there.

*    And we must let it overflow into the world around us.

*    God wants the entire world to know this rich grace.

*    And so, we are now called to be agents of grace.

*    It is our job to freely give the grace that we have freely received.

And how do we give grace away? There are many ways, but Colossians gives us a very important one: Let that grace permeate our conversations with those who don’t share our faith. This happens in two ways:

1)   We must be gracious in how we speak.

*    Since we have been forgiven great debts, there is no room for passing judgment.

*    Our words reflect the joy and love that has been richly poured out on us.

2)   We must tell about the grace God has given us.

     *    Not haphazardly, but with good timing.

     *    Also, be prepared, know how to answer when you’re

asked.

Now write in the margin, “We are agents of grace.” And that is my challenge to you: Be agents of grace to your community.

*    Be gracious those around you, especially in their mistakes, since God has been so gracious to you.

*    Give away the love and joy that God has given to you.

*    And in this, you will make Christianity attractive to non-Christians.

PREPARE FOR COMMUNION

Today is communion Sunday, and Ken will be leading us in communion shortly.

*    The purpose of communion is to remind us of Christ’s death. * As we have talked about grace, it is very appropriate that

we remember the sacrifice that Jesus made so that we could

receive that grace.

Leftover & discarded stuff:

·        What do you think is the most popular hymn? I think that it would have to be “Amazing Grace.” PBS even devoted a one-hour documentary, hosted by Bill Moyer, to that one song. It is heard at most funerals, especially when played on bagpipes for a fireman or policeman.

·        Now in Romans 3:23-24 we read:

…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:23-24 – NIV

There is a lot of very important stuff in this passage that deserve a close look. First, in verse 23 we are told that all of us have sinned and have fallen short of God’s standard. You don’t have to turn there, but in Matthew 5:48 Jesus tells us that we have to be perfect, just like God. Jesus wasn’t saying that he thought we could do that – he knows we can’t – but rather he was making a point: we cannot reach the standard God’s glorious standards. So what are we to do? Verse 24 gives the solution: we are justified by God’s grace. “Justification” is another one of those theological words that we hear all the time but aren’t quite sure what it means. In Greek “justified” and “righteous” are the same word and that clues us into what “justified” means; it simply means to be made righteous, or put another way, we are raised up to God’s glorious standard.  And we are justified, made righteous, by God’s grace. Write down: Grace is not getting what we deserve and turn to_____

·        Grace is basically the undeserved goodness and mercy that God gives us.

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. Ephesians 2:8-9 – NIV

·        The musical group U2 has a song on their most recent album called “Grace.” The band’s Christian perspective is very clear in this song. My favorite line in the song states that “Grace travels outside of karma.” Karma is the idea in Eastern religion that every bad thing that we do will result in us having bad happen to us, a kind of eternal cause-and-effect.  U2 is right in saying that grace overrides karma – grace means that we don’t get what we deserve. Turn to Ephesians 2:3-5:

·        But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 – NIV

Because grace is a gift, Not only can grace not be earned, but the more capable that we think that we are, the grace we will be able to receive. The more we recognize our weakness, the more we are capable of receiving God’s grace. As C. S. Lewis noted, “A man whose hands are full of parcels cannot receive a gift.” You have to know that your hands are empty. To receive grace, we must know that we need grace. But if we think that we don’t need grace, we cannot receive it. We are only deceiving ourselves if we think that don’t need grace (1 John 1:8). Now write down “You need empty hands” and then write down Ephesians 2:3-5 and turn there.

Gifts from God

     Giving as a gift

Enabling (Acts 4:33)

More than a gift, it is the specific gift of salvation

From God

From Christ, as He suffered for it (Acts 15:11)

Common and special grace

Not an excuse to continue sinning

The position of believers

…and that is why grace is indeed “good news,” as Acts 20:24 says:

But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus-- the work of telling others the Good News about God's wonderful kindness and love.

Elwell’s: “Undeserved blessing freely bestowed on man by God.”

From God, unearned:

“Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.” Romans 4:4 – NKJV