Dallas Burdette |
June 4, 1999 |
Thrust Statement: God’s
grace teaches us how to live.
Scripture Reading: Matthew
1:18-25; Titus 2:11-15; John 1:14-18.
The grace of God should thrill every soul that is
here. Without God’s grace there is not
one person that is here that could be saved.
I am wondering if you have responded to the grace of God. Have you turned from or to God’s grace? If you have turned from God’s grace, then I
encourage you to repent of your sins and once more accept that which God has
offered to you through His Son Jesus Christ—eternal life. Do you not remember reading from the Gospel
of John the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus in which our Lord Jesus
told him: “For God so loved the world that he gave
his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have
eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17).[1]
Do
you think that your sins are too vile, too base, too wretched, too low, too
bad, and too vicious for God to forgive?
There is not one who is present who cannot cry out as Paul did in his
first letter to the Christians at Corinth: “by the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Corinthians
15:10). If you are saved, I
pray that you will always remember that you are what you are by the grace of
God. But Paul did not stop with his
acknowledgement of his rebirth; he continued his thoughts by saying, “his grace
to me was not without effect” (1 Corinthians 15:10). I ask you the question: Is
God’s grace without effect in your life?
Has God’s grace made a difference in how you live? Has God’s grace made a difference in how you
treat others? Has God’s grace made a
difference in how you treat your wife or husband? Has God’s grace made a difference in how you treat your
children? Has God’s grace made a
difference in how you treat yours brothers and sisters in Christ?
Paul
became a Christian as a result of God’s grace.
And as a result of that grace, God’s grace saturates Paul’s
letters. Does God’s grace saturate your
conversation? Listen to Paul as he
exclaims, “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by
Christ Jesus” (Romans
3:24). Again, he extols the
grace of God to demonstrate the greatness of God’s grace even in the face of
sin: “where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Romans 5:20). Once more, Paul brings us face to face with
the savior, saying, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that
though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his
poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Again, he tells us that “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).
GRACE LIBERATES MEN AND WOMEN
Our Lord
Jesus Christ redeems us and acquits us through grace. God’s grace has appeared to all men. God extends an invitation.
Jesus extends an invitation. The
Spirit extends an invitation. The ekklesia of God extends an
invitation. John the apostle says, “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him
who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes,
let him take the free gift of the water of life” (Revelation 22:17). God’s grace is for all. It is in this vein that Paul writes: “For
the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men” (Titus 2:11). Not only did God redeem us through our Lord
Jesus, but He also ordained that His people should be involved in good
works.
Listen again to Paul as he reminds Titus of this
truth: “It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to
live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we
wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior,
Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to
purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good (Titus 2:12-14). This is the same truth that Paul writes to
the Christians of Ephesus: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ
Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we
will also live with him. For
we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death
no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin
once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count
yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your
mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments
of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been
brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments
of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under
law, but under grace (Romans 6:8-10).
You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
and with your blood you purchased men for God
from every tribe and language and people and
nation.
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to
serve our God,
and they will reign on the earth.”
Then
I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon
thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and
the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang:
“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and
strength
and honor and glory and praise!”
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!”
ILLUSTRATION OF GOD’S REDEMPTION FROM SIN: JOHN NEWTON
On March 10, 1748, John Newton (1725-1807), while returning
to England from Africa during a storm turned to Thomas a Kempis’s book, Imitation of Christ. God used the message of this book by Kempis
(1380-1471) to plant the seed that eventually led to his conversion and
repudiation of slavery. At the age of
thirty-nine, John Newton was ordained by the Anglican Church. His work for the next fifteen years
(1764-1779) was a very successful ministry.
He repeatedly told of his early life and conversion. During this time he introduced the singing
of hymns that expressed the simple, heartfelt faith of his preaching rather
than the singing of the Psalms. Until
the time of his death at the age of eighty-two, John Newton never ceased to
marvel at God’s mercy and grace that had so changed his life.[2]
One of the most beloved songs—even to this day—is the hymn
that he wrote about his redemption, “Amazing Grace.” Listen to the words of Newton as he poured out his heart in
amazement:
Amazing grace! how sweet the sound,
That
saved a wretch like me!
I
once was lost, but now am found.
Was
blind but now I see.
‘Twas
grace that taught my heart to fear,
And
grace my fears relieved;
How
precious did that grace appear
The
hour I first believed!
The
Lord has promised good to me,
His
word my hope secures;
He
will my shield and portion be
As
long as life endures.
Through
many dangers, toils and snares,
I
have already come;
‘Tis
grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And
grace will lead me home.
When
we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright
shining as the Sun,
We’ve
no less days to sing God’s praise
Than
when we’d first begun.
Do you
stand in awe of God’s matchless grace?
Do you want to be free from the condemnation of sin? Do you want eternal life? Then, remember the words of Jesus: “If the Son sets you free, you will be
free indeed” (John 8:36).
On an earlier
occasion, Jesus tells a crowd: “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him
shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40).
Jesus paid the price of redemption.
In order for God to demonstrate His justice and, at the same time,
justify sinful man, He had to give His Son.
Paul paints a picture of man’s redemption with these words:
But now a righteousness from God, apart from law,
has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes
through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 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.
God presented him as a
sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate
his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed
beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time,
so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus (Romans 3:21-26).
This salvation is so great that even the heavenly host broke out in praise. Prior to this rapture of praise, Luke records the visit of an angel to some shepherds in a field:
And there were shepherds living out in the fields
nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared
to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great
joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has
been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will
find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:8-12).
Luke then informs Theophilus (Book written to
Theophilus—Luke
1:3) that “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared
with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on
earth peace to men on whom his favor rests’” (Luke 2:14-15).
Prior to the birth of Jesus, Matthew gives his
readers additional information concerning the prophecy of this birth. Since Joseph, future husband of Mary, did
not know about this miraculous involvement on the part of God, he sought to
divorce her quietly. But following
Joseph’s contemplation of divorce from Mary, after he was informed that Mary
was pregnant, then an angel of God intervened.
Listen as Matthew reports an angel’s admonition concerning this
pregnancy:
“Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take
Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy
Spirit. She will give birth
to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his
people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said
through the prophet: “The
virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him
Immanuel”—which means, “God with us” (Matthew 1:20-23).
John
calls attention to the wonder of it all when he says,
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among
us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the
Father, full of grace and truth. John testifies concerning him. He cries out,
saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me
because he was before me.’” From
the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came
through Jesus Christ. No
one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side,
has made him known (John 1:14-18).
CONCLUSION
What does all this mean to you? Does God’s grace affect your life? Are you zealous for good works? Are you denying ungodliness and worldly
lust? Are you kind and gentle? Do you love the people of God? In concluding this message on “The Grace of
God,” it is appropriate that I leave with you the words of one who understood
the wonder of it all. In Paul’s letter
to Titus, he reminds him of this grace and how it should affect his life and
those who have been redeemed:
For the grace of God that brings salvation has
appeared to all men. It
teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live
self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for
the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus
Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify
for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. These, then, are the things you should
teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you (Titus 2:11-15).
Oakwood Hills Church
DeFuniak Springs, FL
Date: June 18, 1999
Time: 7 p.m.
Occasion: Gospel Meeting
Present: