SAVED BY GRACE
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV)
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
Defining the Power of Grace
The power of God’s grace is the undeserved favor that God gives, which enables people to do and be what they otherwise cannot. Grace is a divine disposition that can bestow gifts, bless, or act favorably towards people. It is an essential part of God’s being and is embedded in His love for people.
1 Peter 5:10 refers to God as the God of all grace, meaning that all grace comes from Him and nowhere else.
Grace allows people to return to the celestial kingdom and live with God after following Jesus’s example and keeping God’s commandments. Grace is what empowers people to do things like forgive those who don’t deserve it, and make wrong things right. Grace also provides things like:
- Forgiveness of sins
- Lifted burdens
- Strength, courage, and endurance
- Protection, not rejection
Grace is also a divinely offered gift that perfects freedom by helping people overcome the restricting power of sin. The grace of the Holy Spirit that people receive through faith in Jesus Christ
I. Personal Reflection: How has an understanding of God’s grace impacted your faith journey?
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II. CASE STUDY: JESUS’ RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SCRIBES OF THE LAW
Matthew 23:1-3 (NKJV)
Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.
A. The Pharisees
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- Believe there would be a resurrection
- Known for following legal traditions
- Considered expert and accurate expositors.
- In modern terms is someone who follows the impulse to be seen as righteous by obeying certain laws, while ignoring more important matters of the heart.
- What did Jesus have to say about them? (Matthew 23:27-28)
B. The Sadducees
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- Believed that there was no resurrection of the dead, no afterlife, no spirit realm, no angels
- Had much wealth
- Good relations with Roman rulers
- In modern terms someone who seeks identification with Christian Believers as a corporate entity, culture, and tradition but without necessarily accepting the authority of the faith.
- What did Jesus have to say about them? (Mark 12:24)
III. JESUS’ REBUKES
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Matthew 23:23 (NKJV)
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
IV. HOW NOT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF GRACE
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Romans 6:1-2 (NKJV)
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?
V. HOW GRACE IS EXTENDED
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Matthew 5:38-42 (NKJV)
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.
VI. What Are the Conditions by Which Grace Does Not Apply?
- Question on The Floor….What Happens When Someone Outright Rejects God’s forgiveness or refuses to turn away from their wrongdoing? In simpler terms, does grace cover situations where a person refuses to accept it or continues to do wrong without seeking forgiveness?
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- Answer: God’s Grace is still God’s grace whether we accept it or not. Its presence in our lives doesn’t depend on whether we recognize it or not, or even whether we accept it or not.
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B. Question on The Floor…Is God’s Grace Endless?
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Romans 6:1-4 (NKJV)
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
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b. Answer: God is infinite, and God is gracious. We experience the grace of an infinite God, but grace is not infinite. God sets limits to His patience and forbearance. He applies mercy to continue to give us time to receive grace. He warns us over and over again that someday the ax will fall and His judgment will be poured out.
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C. After Death Comes the Judgment
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Hebrews 9:26-28 (NKJV)
26 He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
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