The Doctrine of Grace 2020 11 01

Ephesians 2:1 – 9

Many of us have heard the term, “Saying grace,” before a meal, but have you ever thought about what that means? How do you “say grace?” Hint: it comes from the same Latin root as the Spanish word, “gracias,” and the Italian word, “grazie,” which mean, “thank you.” So saying grace before a meal refers to giving thanks. The verb form means to favour or honour. As a noun, it means favour or goodwill, or a manifestation of favour, especially by a superior. “Favour” means “something done or granted out of goodwill, rather than from justice or for remuneration; a kind act.” This is the meaning of the grace that God bestows on us. It is not of ourselves, but it is the gift of God.

Ephesians 2:1 – 9

The word, “grace” appears 159 times in the KJV. Not every occurrence means the same thing, but the vast majority do. In the New Testament, alone, it occurs 122 times in the KJV. But the word translated grace actually appears 156 times in the Greek, 13o instances as grace or a synonym, 6 instances, as favour, and the rest as such things as thanks and thankfulness. Grace is a very important topic!

In fact, as our passage tells us, today, it is only by grace that we are saved. If we can only be saved by grace, we ought to be fully aware of what it means in the face of eternity. You have an eternal soul that cannot be destroyed, because God has spoken it. It is part of being created in the image of God. Yet few consider what happens after this body of flesh dies and we enter eternity.

How sad it is to hear someone talking about being good enough to get into heaven!

I The Quickening

The words, “hath he quickened” have been correctly supplied by the translators. In other words, those specific words in verse 1 were not found in the original Greek. However, as is the case so often in translation work, they are implied and later, in verse 5, right in the Greek. By using those words in the English translation, they gave greater clarity to the entire phrase. I often do this kind of thing when translating another language into English!
1. Beware anyone who tells you that the translators made a mistake! They did not.
“You hath he quickened.” This is speaking only to true Christians, those who have truly been born again. This is your present condition, if you have put your faith in Jesus Christ.
1. You were dead. That is past tense! You have been made alive by Almighty God!

II How Low We Were

You were dead in your trespasses and sins. These are spiritual things. You were spiritually dead, unable to have any kind of a relationship with God who, the Bible tells us, “…is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24
1. The dead cannot do anything about their condition. Before you were born again by the power of God, you could do nothing to help yourself.
2. Before you were saved, you lived in sin like the rest of the world, being led by the devil, doing everything you could to please yourself.

1. 1. That is the nature of man without God.
  2. You were by nature the children of wrath, just like everyone around you.
  3. You were under a curse of death. “The wages of sin is death” Romans 6:23

III God’s Love

1. 1. The Bible says that God is love (1 John 4:8, 16). He is rich in mercy, because of the great love He has for man.
    1. Even when we were still dead in our sins, still haters of God by nature, He made us alive together with Christ.

1. 1. How can this be? How could we be raised to eternal life while we were still lost sinners, by nature, haters of God?

IV Grace

1. 1. Grace! “…by grace ye are saved”
    1. Grace means you did not deserve to be saved. You did not deserve to have your spirit restored to life.
    2. What you and I deserve is death and there is nothing we can do about that!

But God gives His grace, His totally undeserved, unearned merit to us as a gift. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
We earned death in this life, but God offers us life by His grace.

V How High He Raises Us

Not only has God cleansed us from all our sins and given us everlasting life in Christ by His grace; He has raised us up to share together in the glory of Christ in heaven!
1. Barnes so beautifully wrote, “Heaven, the home of the redeemed, will exhibit the most impressive proof of the goodness of God that the universe furnishes. There will be a countless host who were once polluted and lost; who were dead in sins; who were under the power of Satan, and who have been saved by the riches of Divine grace — a host now happy and pure, and free from sin, sorrow, and death — the living and eternal monuments of the grace of God.”

VI Amazing Grace

God’s grace is truly amazing. When John Newton wrote the hymn, “Amazing Grace,” he saw himself as the most wretched of men, a former slave trader, and one of the most foul-mouthed men ever to sail the seas. He saw himself as the worst of the worst of sinners, hopelessly lost, yet miraculously cleansed of his sins and given eternal life by God’s grace.
1. God’s grace truly is amazing. We often see ourselves as “not as bad as that one,” but before God, we are truly the worst of the worst.
  1. Paul called himself the chief of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15). It is only when we realize our sorry, hopeless, and helpless estate that we turn to God by faith, when we finally believe God. This is repentance!
  2. But the moment we turn to God by faith, He does the impossible by grace – He saves a wretch like me! It is the greatest of all miracles, turning someone who is hopelessly dead and separated from God to someone who will live forever in His presence! That is God’s grace.

VII Not of Yourselves

Neither grace nor faith comes from within you. “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Romans 12:3
1. Grace is the gift of God that comes through this measure of faith.
2. Our salvation is not of works; there is nothing you or I or anyone can do to win our salvation.
3. Grace comes through faith, but it is God’s grace that saves us, not us putting our faith Jesus Christ.
4. When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, God pours out His grace upon you; that is what saves you.

VIII Resistance

Unfortunately, most reject God’s free gift of grace. What a tragedy! What a terrifying thing, to willingly reject grace in favor of wrath! But most do.
1. We were created in the image of God, with an immortal soul and a free will. But then we chose to sin, from Adam down to today.
2. God paid the price for our sins, Himself, offering us salvation and eternal life in Jesus Christ. He gave us the measure of faith that we needed to have access to His grace. He lifted us up from the depths of our depravity and gave us the ability to choose life.
3. The only requirement that God has for lost sinners to receive everlasting life by His grace is to put that measure of faith He has given us in Jesus Christ. Then He pours out His abundant grace, washing us clean forever!
The only sinner who cannot be saved is the one who will not be saved. God has done everything to make it possible for anyone to be saved.
1. But choosing to put your faith in Jesus Christ or to reject Him is an act of the will. If you will not repent and believe the Gospel, you cannot access God’s grace.

Conclusion

God has “leveled the playing field” for you, out of His great love, giving you that measure of faith and lifting you up to where you can, for a finite moment in time, choose between God and the devil. Jesus said, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” John 12:32 The time to believe God and trust Jesus Christ is while He is drawing you to Himself. Do not resist the love of God, but accept His gift by faith alone and be saved by His amazing grace! No matter how great your sin, God’s abundant grace is greater!

The Doctrine of Grace 2020 11 01

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