Divine Grace

Good News for Sinners and Saints – Part 1

Romans 11:6

But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works,

otherwise grace is no longer grace. NASB

I want to highlight 3 matters about Divine Grace.

1.     The Nature of Divine Grace

2.     Good News for Sinners

3.     Good News for Saints

Some of the material for this sermon was taken from or inspired by the book “Transforming Grace” by Jerry Bridges.

The grace of God is one of the most important subjects in all of Scripture. The fact that God shows favor to rebellious sinners, is the central message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is what we preach, that God saves sinners by His marvelous grace, displayed to us through the life, death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus the Christ. Jesus died in the place of believing sinners, taking the full wrath of God for all their sins, thus paying the penalty in full for their sins. And God has proven how effective this payment is in canceling sin by raising Christ from the dead, showing that He has power over death…. Now this is Good News!  

Good News – The Nature of Grace

We sinners who are hopelessly and desperately lost under weight and guilt of sin, can be rescued by God’s grace to us, and this grace is free! Through no payment of our own, God graciously pardons us on the basis of what Christ has done to earn favor with God, and pay the penalty of death, in our place. This is what we mean when we say we are saved by grace alone, that is, that we did not and can not earn or merit this favor from God, but it is given to us as a gift by His grace.

Romans 3:22-24 – 22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; NASB

Grace is a gift…. It is unmerited, unearned. It doesn’t come to us on the basis of any works that we can do, if it did, it would no longer be grace.

Romans 11:6 – 6 But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. NASB

Grace is the antonym to works. Not only can we not work for God’s favor, but we have incurred His wrath by countless sins. What we deserve is utter and eternal banishment from His presence because of our rebellious and treasonous actions against His authority. We have shaken our fist in His face and told Him we will do as we please, and this we have done 1000 times. Yet God is filled with grace. This is how the scripture portrays our plight, helplessly under the God’s wrath, but pardoned by His grace. Turn with me to…..

Ephesians 2:1-3 – 2 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. NASB

We are all guilty before God-condemned, vile, helpless. He could with total justice have pronounced us all guilty, for that is what we were, and consigned us all to eternal damnation. That is what He did to the angels that sinned….(2 Pet 2:4), and He could have with perfect justice done the same to us. He owed us nothing, we owed Him everything. But because of His grace, God did not consign us all to hell, instead, He acted in His grace to save us.

Ephesians 2:4-5 – 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), NASB

Grace is one of the key attributes of God. The Lord God is “merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abounding in goodness and truth” (Ex 34:6). In His grace God has reached downward toward people who are rebellious against Him, and saved them out of their sin. He has freely chosen to pardon those who will trust in His Son. Grace is God’s free and unmerited favor shown to those who deserve only judgment.

Now this is Good News! But it doesn’t stop there. Grace doesn’t just rescue us from the penalty of our sins, furnish us with some new spiritual abilities, and then leave us on our own to grow in spiritual maturity. No, grace is in fact the ever continuing state of favor that we live in before God having all our sins forgiven. God is only disposed toward our good now, and never to our ruin. Is this not His emphatic promise in Romans 8:28?

Romans 8:28 – 28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. NASB

This is because God’s wrath because of our sins has been fully exhausted on the person of Christ. He bore ALL of our sins in His body on the tree. Christ’s sacrifice of atonement is utterly sufficient to cancel the debt of our sins, past, present and future. In His grace God has so completely discharged and forgiven our sins, He has told us in many different ways how complete and final this forgiveness is. This is such amazing Good News, we can hardly believe it.

Consider some of the passages from Scripture which describe the extent of His forgiveness of the sins of His people.

Into the depths of the sea

Have you ever wondered how deep the sea is? The average depth of the ocean is about 4,267 meters (14,000 feet). The deepest part of the ocean is located in the western Pacific Ocean in the southern end of the Mariana Trench, which is approximately 36,200 feet deep. Well here is what God says in regard to the sins of His people, “I will cast them into the depths of the sea.”

Micah 7:18-19 – 18 Who is a God like Thee, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love. 19 He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, Thou wilt cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea. NASB

But what does God mean by this expression, or what does He want us to think it means. Well, if you are on a boat, and you toss something overboard into the depths of the sea, guess what? You never see it again. There is a song by Audio Adrenaline called Ocean Floor…. The lyrics read…

Your sins are forgotten, They’re on the bottom, Of the ocean floor
Your sins are erased, And they are no more, They’re out on the ocean floor

This what God says about the sins of His people, “I will cast them into the depths of the sea.” Let me tell you, this is Good News!

I will not remember your sins

Consider the words of Isaiah 43:25 concerning the sins of His people,

Isaiah 43:25 – 25 “I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins. NASB

Listen dear friends… “I am the One who wipes out your transgressions”…. Who wipes them out? God does. Now just how well of a job at wiping out transgressions do you suppose God can do when He sets out to do such? You guessed it, totally, perfectly and completely. But He goes on…. “I will not remember your sins.” This statement is a conscious deliberate act on God’s part when He says, “I will not.” He is willfully choosing to forget about our sins. What do you suppose God wants us to glean from this kind of promise in Scripture? I would suggest He means for us to think… “I will not remember your sins.” Now let me tell you… this is Good News!

As far as the East from the West

Turn with me also then to the words of Psalm 103:10-12…

Psalm 103:10-12 – 10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. NASB

Consider when traveling from South to North, you eventually reach the North pole and start traveling South from there. But this is not true when traveling East to West. If you start East and continue in that direction, you will always be going East. North and South meet at the poles, but East and West never meet. In a sense, they are infinitely apart. So when God says He has removed our transgressions as far as the East is from the West, He is saying they have been removed an infinite distance from us. Jerry Bridges writes, “When God uses this metaphorical expression describing the extent of the forgiveness of our sins, He is saying His forgiveness is total, complete, and unconditional. He is saying, He is not keeping a record of our sins. Yes God actually says that! I know it seems to good to be true. But those gracious words are right in the Bible and they are God’s words. How can God possibly do this? How can He so completely disregard our transgressions as to say He removes them an infinite distance from us? The answer is by His grace through Jesus Christ. God laid our sins on Christ and He bore the penalty we should have borne. Because of Christ’s death in our place, God’s justice is now completely satisfied. God can now, without violating His justice or His moral Law, forgive us freely, completely and absolutely. He can now extend His grace to us. He can show favor to those who, deserve only wrath.”

And I add … this is Good News!

An Infallible Word

The Infallibility and Sufficiency of Scripture

Psalm 19:7-9 – 7 The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. NASB

PART 2 – The Bible….. “is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him”

Notice here, the Bible is the ONLY rule…… This is to say that God has not given us any other directives about how we may glorify and enjoy Him other than from the Bible. Therefore, the Bible is sufficient to address the problems we face in life and properly directs us concerning our origin, purposes and destiny in life, and how we are to properly relate to our creator God. It is a complete resource from God about our lives.

The Bible is sufficient as a guide to direct us how we may glorify God and enjoy Him.

The Bible is sufficient to address every matter in life. If it has not spoken explicitly to every matter, it has addressed it in principle. In fact God has met the deepest needs of mankind in His Word, for His Word brings about the most necessary changes which are needed for mankind’s fulfillment. The Word of God is sufficient because it has transforming power to change us into the likeness of God.

Consider how the Bible itself describes its sufficiency to address our life and relationship to God.

Turn with me to 2 Peter 1:2-4….

This passage explains that as we come to know God and Jesus through the Word, we become like Him and have everything we need for life and everything we need to be like Him.

2 Peter 1:2-4 – 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. NASB

2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord

–          We have grace and peace overflowing IN the knowledge of God, that is, coming to truly know Him

3 His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness

            – He has given us EVERYTHING that we need for life and to be LIKE HIM!

3 through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence

–          We have everything pertaining to godliness THROUGH the true knowledge of Him,

that is, coming to know Him truly

4 He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature

–          through the promises(that is the Word of God), we become partakers of the divine

nature….God is revealed and we see Him, by the revelation of the Spirit, and therefore know Him, and become like Him because He becomes our delight, and we seek to become what we delight in….this all happens by the transforming power of the Word and the Spirit

4 having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. NASB

             – becoming like God we escape the corruption of sin

Turn with me to Psalm 19:7-11….

This passage explains to us many facets of the sufficiency of Scripture to address our needs in life and our relationship to God.

Psalm 19:7-11 – 7 The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether. 10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. 11 Moreover, by them Thy servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward. NASB

7 The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul;

            – God’s Word is perfect…it is flawless, it is complete.

– The Word of God is sufficient to restore our soul, that is in our hearts and minds….it is

            able to heal us

7 The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.

            – The Word of God is sure, it is settled, not wavering or moving, it is certain…it can be

relied on, as sure as it is God’s own Word

– it makes the simple wise….God’s Word is pure wisdom and gives us clear and practical instruction about how to live and make decisions…

– it makes the simple wise….it instructs us how we are to fear God and relate to him….

8 The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;

– The Word of God sets for the standard for Right and wrong….it explains what righteousness is, and what true moral principles are….it tells us what is GOOD!

– and knowledge of what is true and right and noble and good causes our hearts to rejoice….not in what is fickle and unsure, but in what is truly righteous and Good…

8 The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.

– The words of the Lord are pure words…they are holy and undefiled from the beginning to the end, they do not savor anything that is earthly and impure, rather they are holy and command everything that is holy, and they forbid everything that is impure and unholy. It is evident that the Scriptures are the words of the Holy God, and that the holy men that wrote them were obviously move by the Holy Spirit!

– The Bible gives light to the eyes of our hearts so that we can know, see, and relate to God in such a way as to please Him in every respect….

9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;

– Here the scripture referred to as “the fear of the Lord”….that is what reverences and respects the Lord….the Scriptures teaches us to fear God and hold Him in proper regard, lest we displease Him and be destroyed!

            – The Word of God is fixed in the heavens and will never pass away…..

Matthew 24:35 – 35 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away.

NASB

9 The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether.

– The judgments that God pronounces in His Word will surely come to pass. Every assessment that God makes about anything at all is most certainly according to fact and God’s Word is itself the very standard of Truth! God’s Word teaches us about Justice (which is the very character of God), what it means and its importance to life. When we see how God judges and make responses to situations and ethical matters, we learn the true standard of righteousness and justice.

10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.

– God’s Word is more valuable than anything we can own. It is to be the thing we delight above all other things, because in delighting in God’s Word, we delight in God.

Psalm 119:24 – 24 Thy testimonies also are my delight; They are my counselors. NASB

Psalm 119:111 – 111 I have inherited Thy testimonies forever, For they are the joy of my heart. NASB

Job 23:12 – 12 “I have not departed from the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food. NASB

11 Moreover, by them Thy servant is warned;

            – God’s Word is filled with wise warnings about how to conduct our lives in a manner that pleases God. The Bible warns that when we fail to please God we sin and the Bible warns us that God is the avenger of sin. The most stern and strict warnings that can be pronounced, are proclaimed in the Bible.

Proverbs 8:32-36 – 32 “Now therefore, O sons, listen to me, For blessed are they who keep my ways. 33 “Heed instruction and be wise, And do not neglect it. 34 “Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at my doorposts. 35 “For he who finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the Lord. 36 “But he who sins against me injures himself; All those who hate me love death.” NASB

11 In keeping them there is great reward.

– God promises over and over again in His Word to reward those who seek Him and obey Him. The Bible lays out a great contrast of the two kinds of people in the world. Those who glorify and enjoy God, and those who sin against Him and displease Him and ignore Him. The Lord is indeed a rewarder of those who fear Him and love Him, but those who ignore Him He will destroy.

Psalm 145:18-20 – 18 The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth. 19 He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He will also hear their cry and will save them. 20 The Lord keeps all who love Him; But all the wicked, He will destroy. NASB

Joshua 1:8 – 8 This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. NASB

Dear church family, let it be known today and take it to your heart…..“the word of God which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him”