March 8, 2009: 2 Lent

Rev Ken Wratten= at St. Stephen’s, San Jose

The Grace of Go= d

Part 1: Grace S= aves

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The goal of Lent is all about appreciating GodR= 17;s gift of grace.

2 Cor 13:14,= “The grace of our Lord Jesus Chr= ist, the love of God, and the fellowship of the HS be with you all.” =

1 Thess 5:28= , “The grace of our Lord Jesus Chr= ist be with you.”

Gal 6:18, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Chr= ist be with your spirit.”

Rev 22:21, The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.”

So what is t= his thing called ‘grace’? American culture teaches us;

You get what= you pay for; There is no free lunch; You make the bed you lie in.

The one prob= lem with this American work ethic is that God doesn’t operate that way. <= o:p>

Psalm 145:8 = tell us, God is gracious and compassiona= te, slow to anger and rich in love.

God is so gr= acious that he loves people who don’t deserve it. That is good news for me.<= o:p>

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The Christia= n life doesn’t make sense at all unless you understand grace. It is the hear= t of our relationship with God. By understanding grace, you feel closer to God, = you understand God’s love better, and you are grateful to God.

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There is no = one single definition for ‘grace’, even though people have tried for thousands of years. ‘Grace’ is much more than ‘unconditio= nal love’. Officially:=

Habitual grace – empowers people to do righteo= us acts. It is conveyed to us through= the sacraments.

Actual grace – bestowed by God for producing some good act. It can exist in the unbaptized.

Prevenient grace – a free, unmerited gift from God, leading to a holy life.

Efficacious grace – a form of actual grace; grace to which free consent is given (free will) so it always produces its effect.

Sufficient grace – another form of actual grace; graces does not get cooperation by the recipient, and therefore fail= s to achieve God’s desired result. Grace requires the consent of free will= to become efficacious.

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Here are som= e more down to earth definitions of grace:

Grace is div= ine help and empowerment;

Grace is God’s saving, free gift in Christ;

Grace is the supernatural assistance of God bestowed on people with a view toward their sanctification.

Grace is not= the same thing as mercy; Mercy is when God doesn’t give us what we deserv= e; Grace is when God gives us what we don’t deserve. <= /p>

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We have all learned from our days in Sunday School that we are ‘saved by grace= 217;. But many of us live our lives as if we were saved by works. We know we don’t get into heaven by doing good, but we spend our lives trying to please God by trying to be perfect. This is living by works; but we should = live by grace. What God offers to us in the life of grace is contentment and joy – in this life on earth. So we will spend the next few Sundays looking at different was that God’s grace is expressed in our lives;

How grace su= stains us;

How grace he= als us;

How grace transforms us;

And how God&= #8217;s grace is shared

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Today I want= to build the foundation for this discussion by reviewing the basics of why God’s grace is so important.

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1. Grace is God’s gift to you.

“All have sinned and fall short of the g= lory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23,24 (NASB)

Getting to heaven is NOT about doing good deeds, or doing your best, or working hard. Paul says that salva= tion is absolutely free; you can’t earn it, and you can’t buy it. Ch= rist already paid for our gift. He paid the price by coming to earth in human fo= rm, and by living as one of us, and for dying for us. When Jesus was hanging on the cross, one of the things He said was, "It = is finished." He didn't say, "I am finished" because He was= n't. He is still alive today. He said, "It is finished."= "It" is your salvat= ion: The plan to provide grace for every person who needs it.

We don’= ;t get to heaven based on what we do. We get to heaven based on what has already b= een done for us by Jesus Christ. That’s a pretty awesome gift.

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2. Grace is received through faith.

“For it is by grace you have been saved,= through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—<= u>not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9 (NIV)

Imagine what heaven would be li= ke if we worked our way there. Everybody would be bragging about how they got there. There is to bragging; only accepting and being grateful for the free gift.

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In the story= of the prodigal son; he came home because he had faith that his father wou= ld take him in. The son knew he = deserved to be judged, rejected, or at least given a stern lecture from his dad. Instead, he received unconditional love. That is a form of the grace of God; and it is received through faith.

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3. Grace is made available to everyone.= <= /span>

“Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that= it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring—n= ot only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith= of Abraham.” <= /span>Romans 4:16 (NIV)

= Have you ever thought about why the Jews were called God's chosen people? Does G= od love them more than He loves the rest of us? No. They were chosen to fulfill a purpose. They were chosen to spread the message to everybody else, to tell = the world that there is one true God. They were to be the missionaries to the r= est of us.

And now that job has been given to the whole church; the church that consists of everyone who will put their faith= in Jesus Christ. Regardless of background, status, sin, religious or not= .<= o:p>

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4. Grace comes through Christ.<= /span>

“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Chri= st.”
John 1:17 (NIV)

Jesus is the way to heaven because Jes= us is the one who paid the price for anyone to be allowed in. Grace is free, b= ut it wasn’t cheap. It cost Jesus his life.

We know that= if we have faith in this life, that’s all it takes. We know where we are go= ing when we die. So what happens if someone never expressed this faith in Jesus= in their lifetime? We don’t know.

But if that statement of faith was never made, I believe there will be a long private t= alk between that person and God when they= die. All their questions get answered. Everything is laid out plainly. And then there is a final time to choose Christ. So for the person who doesn’t claim faith in Jesus, it’s up to God and that person, with Jesus ther= e as their counselor, to figure it out.

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5. Grace continues for eternity. <= /span>

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Ch= rist Jesus our Lord.” Romans= 6:23 (NIV)

When we receive God’s gra= ce, and we choose to let that grace be active in our lives (this is about our free will), God’s grace begets= our eternal life.

The Bible te= lls us four things about what heaven is like:

1. It is a place to be reunited with loved ones who have accepted God’s grace.

2. It is a place we receive a reward for the character we developed and the way we served other people here on earth.

3. It is a place where we get assigned new work to do, bas= ed on the gifts God has given us, and based on what we love to do. =

4. It is a place of release from pain, all suffering, all sadness, all sorrow, all grief, all depression, and all loneliness.

So it’s a place well worth our a= nxiously awaiting, and not fearing. There is just one catch. You have to accept this gift from God. You have to realize that Jesus makes this gift of grace available.

God’s grace is available to every one of you, right here and right now.

God’s = grace saves you for God, saves you for heaven, and saves you for eternity. <= /o:p>

Commit yours= elf this coming week to prayer, and reflecting on God’s free gift of grace. Am= en.