Sermon for 3/22/2009
1st Sermon on Ephesians 2:1-9
Introduction:
A. As a bachelor one of my least favorite activities was to sit down and write checks to pay bills. I would spend 1 day every two weeks paying bills. Then Crystal came along…
B. Many companies will extend grace. They give a 30 day grace period. Do I deserve the grace period? No. They really give me what I do not deserve.
WBTU:
A. Grace is one of the key terms in the bible. The Hebrew word involved the idea of bending or stooping down. Eventually, it came to include the thought of “condescending favor,” or showing favor to someone unexpectedly. Think of a king who goes out of his way to do something kind for a servant, out of the generosity of his heart.
B. Grace is unmerited favor, the undeserved nature of the action. Grace is something God freely chooses to offer, not something He is obligated to give to us.
C. Jesus never specifically used the word “grace.” His actions indicate that He knew the meaning of grace. Grace flowed freely from Jesus. His whole life was full of grace.
D. Grace abounded especially at the cross.
1. (Luke 23:34 NIV) Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."
2. (Luke 23:42 NIV) Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."(Luke 23:43 NIV) Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."
3. (John 19:30 NIV) When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
E. From this section of Scripture we are going to start at the end in vs. 8 and 9 and in a few weeks we are going to end at the beginning with vs. 1.
Thesis: God alone deserves the glory for the grace which makes our salvation possible.
For instances:
I. Our salvation exalts the greatness of God’s grace
Vs. 8- Three words here.
1. Grace.
A. Grace is God’s doing good for someone who does not deserve it. Nothing in us merits salvation. What we are and what we do could never put God in the position of somehow owing us eternal life with Him.
B. We have sinned against Him but he loves us, seeks by His grace to save us, and desires to give us eternal life with Him in heaven.
C. The Yadkinville Church of Christ had a yard sale. Well, it was actually a storage room giveaway. Dennis Conner said, “We didn’t really sell anything. We had so much stuff that it took up too much space. Also, we wanted to reach out to the community. As people came up we told them, “Everything is free! Take as much home as you can. We want you to have it.” People responded in curious ways. Many were noticeably uncomfortable. Some didn’t come thinking there was a catch. Others refused to leave without paying. Others, after much convincing, finally took the stuff to their cars, not believing their good fortune. And I thought to myself, “That’s pretty much the way people are about God’s grace.” We insist on paying or working for it.
2. Saved
A. This verb is passive. It stresses what has been done to us. We do not save ourselves. Sinners come up here and save yourselves. No!
B. God saves us. Our salvation testifies to the action of God in our lives.
C. Saved means being rescued, being delivered.
3. Faith
A. Salvation comes to us by grace through faith at baptism for good works.
B. God expects us to trust in and act on the words and promises of God, but our active faith must in no way be seen as earning our salvation.
C. In several courses I took in college I made a contract with the professor. To receive an “A” I had to do this, this, this and this. At the end of the semester, if I had contracted for an “A” and had done all that was required to get that “A”, I deserved an “A.” The professor did not do me a favor by giving me an “A.” He did not show grace by giving me an “A.” If I did the work, he was obligated to give me that grade. That was the contract.
D. When it comes to salvation, the situation is different. Please do not confuse what we sometimes call the “plan of salvation”- hear, believe, repent, confess, and be baptized- with a contract made with God. Do not think, “If I do these things, I deserve salvation.”
E. What do we deserve?
F. Yes, but I earned it. Earned it?
G. I am saved because I believe. I am saved because I repented. I am saved because I confessed. I am saved because I was baptized. No! We are saved by God’s grace. None of these actions can earn salvation for anyone. Sinners cannot earn salvation.
H. A long time leader in the church was diagnosed with a terminal illness. He came to me and asked, "I was baptized at a young age, I have been faithful in attendance, I have been a leader and servant for the church. Is that enough?" No, it is not enough. It will never be enough! Only through God’s grace are any of us going to heaven!
II. Our salvation reveals the Gift of God’s grace
A. Vs. 9
B. Paul emphasizes the fact that our salvation is not based on works. It is not a prize which we receive for some outstanding accomplishment on our part. No one will ever be saved by works designed to earn God’s approval.
C. Kent Hughes told an old Middle Eastern story that shows the futility of salvation by works. A man was traveling on his donkey when he came upon a small fuzzy object lying in the road. He dismounted to look more closely and found a sparrow lying on its back with its scrawny legs thrust skyward. At first he thought the bird was dead, but close investigation proved it to be very much alive. The man asked the sparrow if he was all right. The sparrow replied, “Yes.” The man said, “What are you doing lying on your back with your legs pointed toward the sky?” The sparrow responded that he had heard a rumor that the sky was falling. The man replied, “You surely don’t think you’re going to hold the sky up with those two scrawny legs, do you?” The sparrow replied, “One does the best he can.” The little bird’s futile works were obvious. In the same way man’s condition is so desperate that his works are no more effective than a bird’s legs in the air trying to hold up the sky. No one will ever be saved by works.
D. This explains why it is ludicrous for a saved person to be puffed up with pride and look at another person and think, “I’m more righteous. I’m a better person than she is. I’m a better parent. I have better morals. I’m a better Christian.”
E. This is what we think from time to time. This demonstrates a gross misunderstanding about God’s grace. We all stand on equal ground at the cross of Christ. Our hope is not our righteousness, not how good we are, not how wonderful we are as parents or children, not our morals. Our only hope is God’s gracious gift- Jesus Christ.
F. Go back to the grade situation. Those who get a "B" or "C" or even a "D" only fulfill part of the contract with the teacher. Therefore, they get a less than satisfactory grade. Some feel this way about others. I got an "A" but you only got a "C" when it comes to salvation. Or worse, you get an "F" because you have done nothing. Look down our noses at those not fulfilling the contract. Terrible misunderstanding about grace.
G. None of us have reason to boast or set ourselves up as more spiritual than others. None of us have the right to withdraw from those who might seem weaker. We need to help others with their weaknesses and seek help for our own weaknesses.
H. We must love the brethren, as imperfect as they are, because we all share in the same gift of grace.
Conclusion and invitation:
A. Brennan Manning- I stand by the bed where a young woman lays, her face postoperative, and her mouth twisted in palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of the facial nerve, the one to the muscles of her mouth, has been severed. She will be thus from now on. The surgeon had followed with religious fervor the curve of her flesh; I promise you that. Nevertheless, to remove the tumor in her cheek, I had to cut the little nerve. Her young husband is in the room. He stands on the opposite side of the bed and together they seem to dwell in the evening lamplight, isolated from me, private. Who are they, I ask myself, he and this wry mouth I have made, who gaze at and touch each other so generously, greedily? The young woman speaks. “Will my mouth always be like this?” She asks. “Yes,” I say, “it will. It is because the nerve was cut.” She nods and is silent. But the young man smiles. “I like it,” he says. “It is kind of cute.” Unmindful, he bends to kiss her crooked mouth and I am so close I can see how he twists his own lips to accommodate to hers, to show her that their kiss still works.
B. Remember the cross. God, in Jesus, was twisting His lips to accommodate us, dealing with us on the basis of His grace, rather than our shabby good deeds.
C. Have you been baptized, not to earn salvation, but to express your strong belief that Jesus is your only hope?
D. Does the thought of God’s grace convict you of pride?
