church of Christ Gosford, Australia 22 February 2013 22 February, 2013
“His Grace Reaches Me” Grace is Received in Lavish Abundance on Us. 2
LAVISHED (Gk. Perisseuo) WHAT DOES IT MEAN? Super Abundance Overflow More than Enough Over and Above the Top Inundated Flooded Over Abound Totally Covered 3
Grace Received in Lavish Abundance On Us Through Jesus Christ (Eph. 1: 4 -8) For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 4
Our God is: The God of More than Enough. The God of Superlatives. The God of Lavish Abundance. The God who “so” loved He gave. The God of surpassing grace. The God of the indescribable GIFT. 5
Grace Lavished Upon Us in the Following Stories 1. Adam and Eve - Gen. 2 -3 2. Joseph in Egypt - Gen. 37 -50 3. Abraham - Gen. 12: 1 -4 4. King Solomon - 1 Kings 3: 4 -15 6
Grace Lavished Upon Us as Seen in the Following Stories, Cont’d. 5. Sinful woman - Luke 7: 36 -50 6. The Lost Son - Luke 15: 11 -32 7. The Adulteress - John 8: 3 -11 8. The Healed Demon Possessed Man - Mark 5: 1 -20. 7
What Was His Story? Did He Have a Story to Tell? Mark 5 • 18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. • 19 Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you. " • 20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. 8
“Oh my god!” The God I Know! • I hear most everyday… someone cries out, “Oh my god!” “So many talk of him without knowing him, but who is he really. Some call him the Christian God, some the Hebrew or Jewish God, others call him Creator, or Jehovah, or the Lord, or Yahweh. ” He calls himself “I AM, the God who was and is to come. ” (Ex. 3: 14) • I cannot describe God with my human vocabulary. I can read about him in the Bible. I can share how His Word and Jesus have changed my life. He promised He would live in me, if I would be a disciple of His son Jesus. Now I can sing with experienced conviction – “My God and I” 9
God’s Beautiful Creation Makes Known His Existence (Rom. 1: 20) 10
REMINDER OF GOD’S PROMISE Genesis 9: 12 -17 11
The God I Know • “For some incredible reason my God loves us all in spite of our callousness and forgetfulness and selfishness. He loves us and enjoys every detail of our lives… can you believe that? And in middle of the darkest hours he finds ways to inspire hope. And, through it all he has given me a story to tell. “ (Ron Rose) • “My God has invaded my heart. He has captured my attention and inspired my vision. He has helped me find my place in this world and the next. ” (Ron Rose) 12
The God I Know • Jesus came so we could know God, Jn. 1: 18. • DO I? • DO YOU? • To Know Him is Eternal Life, Jn. 17: 3 13
When should we quit praying “ “Lead me to some soul to day…” and start acting? • I shared with the Bible Class Sunday morning how my life has become so exiting by living daily in the presence of Jesus. Sharing His goodness and grace is a great joy. I don’t believe the meetings that I have with strangers out there are by chance or luck. I believe that God arranges those meetings when we ask Him and when we are ready to share our hope in Christ and speak words of grace seasoned with salt (I Pet. 3: 15; Col. 4: 2 -6). 14
12 Steps For the Recovering Pharisee Like Me (Finding Grace to Live Unmasked) by John Fischer We have a story Fischer says: “You don’t need training to learn how to be a forgiven sinner; you just tell your story. It’s not that hard. We don’t need the four laws, or the five steps, or the ten basic elements of Christian witnessing, we just need a real story – our story – and if we don’t have one we should pay attention to God in our lives until we do. ” 15
Fischer thoughts cont’d “The same things that will keep us from being pharisaical (humility, weakness, vulnerability, honesty) will make us better witnesses in the world. It’s all in God’s wacky economy. Less is more. Lower is higher. Worse is better. Weaker is stronger. Being saved is better than being better. The gospel is about being saved. ” 16
2 Cor. 12: 7 To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. " Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 17
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Your story and Mine illustrates the truthfulness of our topic. Preacher friend of mine was unfaithful to his wife again, again and again – he came to his senses, repented, and she forgave him and took him back. He wrote me and said, “My wife is the Grace of God in the Flesh. ” Pham Hen (Vietnamese as told by Ravi Zacharias) Brother Dong – Chinese Preacher during Mao Zedong Rule – (Song “All the Way My Savior Leads Me” by Fanny Crosby) 20
Listen to these Grace Lavishing Words of God • James 4: 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. “ • Acts 6: 8 Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. • Acts 20: 32 "Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 21
Listen to these Grace Lavishing Words of God • And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (NIV 2 Corinthians 9: 8 ) 22
Romans 5: 15 -17, 20 But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much morewill Those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so 21 that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reignthrough righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. 23
Listen to these Grace Lavishing Words of God • Ephesians 1: 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace • 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 24
GRACE ORIENTED… GRACE ORIENTED. 25
GRACE ORIENTED Larry Deason 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. John 1: 14, 16 -18 Romans 3: 21 -31 Romans 5: 1 -5, 20 -21 1 Peter 5: 5 -7, 10, 12 Ephesians 2: 1 -10 James 4: 6 -7 Galatians 1: 3; 6: 18 Grace “Came”. . . Grace “Reigns”…. Grace “Rules”… Grace is King!
GRACE DEFINED AND DESCRIBED: (charis) – “ favor, blessing, gift: unmerited, unearned. ” “Grace ceases to be grace if God is compelled to bestow it in the presence of human merit…grace ceases to be grace if God is compelled to withdraw it in the presence of human demerit… grace is treating a person without the slightest reference to desert whatsoever, but solely according to the infinite goodness and sovereign purpose of God” (C. Samuel Storms, The Grandeur of God (Grand rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1984, p. 124). 27
Grace Defined and Described Cont’d: (charis) – “ favor, blessing, gift: unmerited, unearned. • Grace is the influence of God upon the heart and its reflection in one’s life. ” • Grace is “God so loving the world that he gave his only begotten son…” – “Love that goes up is worship; love that goes out is affection; love that stoops is grace (Bible scholar Donald Barnhouse). ” • Grace, God’s grace, to grant his lovingis kindness, his favor to those who do not deserve it nor do they have the physical, psychological or moral power to earn it: God’s grace is given freely out of the goodness of his loving heart! 28
ORIENTED : DEFINED & DESCRIBED: “To align or position with respect to a point or system of reference… …to adjust in relation to facts and principles (e. g. a compass); knowing where you are and where you should be. ” 29
Defined And Described Cont’d. : Oriented : • To be “grace-oriented” to be focused on is Christ Jesus. • To be “grace-oriented” to have Jesus, the is Lord, as our point of reference. • To be “grace-oriented” basic and is fundamental to “the truth of the gospel”: without grace there is no Christianity • Galatians 1: 16, 5: 1 -4; Romans 3: 24, 4: 16, 11: 5 -6; 2 Timothy 1: 9 30
Defined And Described Cont’d. : Oriented : • To be “grace-oriented” to know that in is position and practice it is completely by God’s grace: Life is receivedby God’s grace. Livingis achievedby God’s grace ! • To be “grace-oriented” must realize that we God’s grace is needed by all – “there are none righteous, no not one…” We all “fall short” in: • Moralpurity lived flawlessly : • Doctrinal perfection all the right : answers 31
Defined And Described Cont’d. : Oriented : • To be “grace-oriented” God’s will is for fellowship; Grace received and grace extended the means of is our togetherness. • To be “grace-oriented” to know is the horrific nature of sin as well as the “amazing grace” of God. 32
Defined And Described Cont’d. : Oriented : • • “Guilty, vile and helpless we, Spotless Lamb of God was He; Full atonement! Can it be? Hallelujah, what a Savior!” (Phillip P. Bliss) ♥ • “Lord I crawled across the barrenness to You with my empty cup uncertain in asking any small drop of refreshment. • If only I had known You better I’d have come running with a bucket. ” (Nancy Spiegelberg) 33
Disorientation That Leads To. Legalistic Distortions God’s Grace Of • “Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity. ” • “God doesn’t do anything until you do all that you can do. ” • “God does his part but you have to do your part. ” 34
Disorientation That Leads To Legalistic Distortions Of God’s Grace Cont’d. • “The kind of materials you send up to heaven determines the kind of house you’ll have in heaven. ” • This is “row-boat theology” pure and simple; • one oar = God’s grace, • the other oar = man’s achievement. • This is an unscriptural perversion of the “truth of the gospel” ! (Read Galatians) 35
FALSE CONCEPTS OF GRACE • “God does the choosing; ignoring man’s freedom of moral choosing/response” (Calvinism). • “Salvation depends upon man’s will alone”; extreme to Calvinism (Pelagianism). • “Affirms that ‘commands’ and ‘obedience’ is unnecessary to be saved; God’s grace eliminated obedience to commands”– an extreme reaction to Legalism (Antinomianism –lit. ‘ ‘against law ’). 36
False Concepts Of Grace, Cont’d. • “One is saved, wholly or in part, by one’s own efforts; emphasis is upon ‘rulekeeping’ and human obligations to ‘laws’. “God’s part” and “man’s part” is equalized” (Legalism). • “All will be saved for God is a loving God and His grace covers all” (Universalism). 37
TRUE CONCEPTS OF GRACE. • Grace – God’s unmerited, free spontaneous love for lost, sinful humanity; this grace revealed and is made available and effective in Jesus Christ the Son of God. Hence we read in Scripture these expressions: “the God of all grace…” and “the grace of God. ” • Grace – “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. ” 38
True Concepts Of Grace Cont’d. • Grace – may only be received ‘by faith’ ; cannot buy or earn God’s grace, cannot pay back or perform or measure up for God’s grace. • Grace – is that which God lavishes lovingly upon man, who is undeserving. • Grace – is based upon ‘believing not , achieving’ ‘atonement not attainment ; , ’; ‘propitiation , not payment’. 39
True Concepts Of Grace Cont’d. • Grace – is determined by Divine Meritnot , ‘human accomplishment’. (Boy Scout Merit) • Grace – is the gift of the true and living God who loves, and the basis of that gift is the meritorious blood of His Son Jesus Christ. • Grace – is unmerited, unearned, undeserved, unachieved; it can only be received by and through trust. (Romans 1: 16 -17; 4: 16, 11: 6). 40
True Concepts Of Grace Cont’d. • Grace – God’s undeserved loving-kindness, is the underlying principle of true biblical Christianity: all of its effects and functions are governed by this principle; redemption, justification, sanctification and glorification. • Grace – is not ‘cheap grace’; cheapened by man’s extreme conclusions regarding justification, Antinomianism or Legalism. • God’s graceis “true grace”. Peter 5: 12) (1. 41
GOD’S AMAZING GRACE! “The God Of All Grace” & The “True Grace” of God. • God’s amazing grace is Soul Redeeming Grace (Ephesians 2: 1 -5; Romans 3: 24). • God’s amazing grace is Sin Removing Grace (Romans 5: 20 -21; Romans 6: 1 -14). • not ‘once saved always saved. ’ • nor ‘once saved never saved. ’ • nor ‘once saved not sure saved. ’ • Note: Misconceptions and doubt are spawned by not being acutelyknowledgeable of sin and appropriately ‘grace oriented. ’ 42
GOD’S AMAZING GRACE! “The God Of All Grace” & The “True Grace” of God Cont’d. • God’s amazing grace is Sufficiently Reliable Grace (2 Corinthians 12: 9). • God’s amazing grace is Satan Resisting Grace (James 4: 4 -10; 1 Peter 5: 5 -9). • God’s amazing grace is Service Rendering Grace (1 Corinthians 15: 10; Hebrews 12: 28). 43
The Point of Reference Life of Orientation Living? for and John 14: 6 • This Truthis Realized Solely and Completely By The Grace of God. • This Grace Lavished Upon Us In He Jesus Christ, The Savior and Lord of All. 44
God, The True, Living And Loving God Not Only Gives Grace, He “Gives More Grace. ” (Hebrews 4: 14 -16). • To multiplied trials, his multiplied peace. • When we have exhausted our store of endurance, • When our strength has failed ere the day is half done; 45
He “Gives More Grace. ” Cont’d. • He gives more grace when the burdens grow greater; • He sends more grace when the labors increase; • To added afflictions he adds his mercy. 46
He “Gives More Grace. ” Cont’d. • When we reach the end of our hoarded resources, • Our Father’s full giving is only begun • His love has no limits, his grace has no measure, 47
He “Gives More Grace. ” Cont’d. • His power has no boundary known to men; • For out of his infinite riches in Jesus, • He gives, and gives again. Annie Johnson Flint’s (1862 -1931) 48
“Grace means… …that there is nothing that we can do to make God love us more… and grace means that there is nothing we can do to make God love us less. ” (Philip Yancey). 49
“Where the grace of God is missed, … …bitterness is born. But where the grace of God is embraced, forgiveness flourishes. The longer we walk in the garden, the mor likely we are to smell like flowers. The more we immerse ourselves in grace, the more likely we are to give grace. ” (Max Lucado) 50
Grace humbly received says… • If you could know what I once was, • If you could go with me, back to the place I started from. • Then you would know the miracle of God's love that took me in it's sweet embrace and made me what I am today…. just a sinner saved by grace. • How could I boast of one thing that I have seen or done, 51
Grace humbly received says cont’d. … • How dare I claim as mine the victories Christ has won? • When I was condemned to death, He took my place. • I breathe freedom, with every breath I take, • For I am just a sinner saved by God's grace ! Unknown Author) 52
PEOPLE WHO ARE “GRACE ORIENTED”… …will Be Joyfully Confident That God, By His Grace Frees Us, , Assures Us, Accepts Us, Affirms Us, Values Us and Enables Us. His Grace Causes Us To Be Like Him , Full Of Grace: Being Graceful, Gracious And Grateful. 53
It Logically And Biblically Follows That We Are To Be “Grace Oriented” People. • I “commend” you to the word of God’s amazing grace(Acts 20: 32). • I “admonish” you to humble yourselves and draw near to God’s amazing grace (1 Peter 5: 5 -6). 54
It Logically And Biblically Follows That We Are To Be “Grace Oriented” Cont’d. • I “beg” you to stand in God’s amazing grace (Romans 5: 2). • I “exhort” you to continue in God’s amazing grace(Acts 13: 43). • I “encourage” you to grow in God’s amazing grace(2 Peter 3: 18). 55
Eucharisteo = Thank You: • For Sharing Your Time, Love And Encouragement With Me During This Series Of Studies. • It Is My Sincere Prayer That You Have Been As Blessed As I Have In Preparing And Sharing God’s Message Of Grace. • His Grace Has Reached Me And I Hope It Has Reached You Too. • See To It That No One Misses The Grace of God, Heb. 12: 15. 56
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POST SCRIPT The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • Bill Moyer’s TV Documentary On “Amazing Grace” Affirms The Awesome Power Of God’s Amazing Grace. • Bill Moyers' documentary film on the hymn "Amazing Grace" includes a scene filmed in Wembley Stadium in London. Various musical groups, mostly rock bands, had gathered together in celebration of the changes in South Africa, and for some reason the promoters scheduled an opera singer, Jessye Norman, as the closing act. 59
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • The film cuts back and forth between scenes of the unruly crowd in the stadium and Jessye Norman being interviewed. For twelve hours groups like Guns 'n' Roses have blasted the crowd through banks of speakers, riling up fans already high on booze and dope. The crowd yells for more curtain calls, and the rock groups oblige. Meanwhile, Jessye Norman sits in her dressing room discussing "Amazing Grace" with Moyers. 60
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • The hymn was written, of course, by John Newton, a coarse, cruel slave trader. He first called out to God in the midst of a storm that nearly threw him overboard. Newton came to see the light only gradually, continuing to ply his trade even after his conversion. He wrote the song “How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds" while waiting in an African harbor for a shipment of slaves. 61
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • Later, though, he renounced his profession, became a minister, and joined William Wilberforce in the fight against slavery. John Newton never lost sight of the depths from which he had been lifted. He never lost sight of grace. When he wrote ". . . That saved a wretch like me, " he meant those words with all his heart. 62
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • In the film, Jessye Norman tells Bill Moyers that Newton may have borrowed an old tune sung by the slaves themselves, redeeming the song, just as he had been redeemed. • Finally, the time comes for her to sing 63
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • A single circle of light follows Norman, a majestic African-American woman wearing a flowing African dashiki, as she strolls onstage. No backup band, no musical instruments, just Jessye. The crowd stirs, restless. Few recognize the opera diva. • A voice yells for more Guns 'n' Roses. Others take up the cry. The scene is getting ugly. Alone, a cappella, Jessye Norman begins to sing, very slowly: 64
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace Amazing grace, how sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me! I once was lost but now I’m found Was blind, but now I see. A remarkable thing happens in Wembley Stadium that night. Seventy thousand raucous fans fall silent before her aria of grace. 65
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace • By the time Norman reaches the second verse, "'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved. . ” the soprano has the crowd in her hands. • By the time she reaches the third verse, "'Tis grace has brought me safe this far, and grace will lead me home, " several thousand fans are singing along, digging far back in nearly lost memories for words they heard long ago. 66
POST SCRIPTCont’d. The Unexpected Power Of Amazing Grace 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 first begun. • Jessye Norman later confessed she had no idea what powerdescended on Wembley Stadium that night. 67
GOD’S LAVISH GRACE IS AMAZING “I think I know. The world thirsts for grace. When grac descends, the world falls silent before it. ” (Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace? , pp. 281 -282, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids Michigan, 1997) 68
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The God I Know, by Ron Rose, cont’d. • Others may follow a god who accepts them only if they get good enough or strong enough, my God takes me “as is, ” in spite of flaws and failures. He punched a hole in the sky so we could get to know him. • He is totally and eternally unique. Before the big bang, he was. He invented life in all its forms and everything he created comes with his distinctive seal of approval. 72
The God I Know, by Ron Rose cont’d. • You can see him in the dignity of the mountaintops, in the beauty of the sunsets, in the allure of the seashore, in the wonder of the universe, in the pages of his book, and in the eyes of the people who call this planet home. Think of it this way, He interrupted eternity to create a time and place for people. • My God has produced the ultimate reality show and endowed all of us with a mysterious part of himself, the ability to know right from wrong, good from evil. Then, he put everything on the line. It’s his show, but he lets us choose our parts, our roles. How daring is that? 73
The God I Know, by Ron Rose cont’d. • He has gone to great links to inject my life into his story. In his reality, I get to start over, to change the future, and to become a better version of myself. He demands justice, loves mercy and honors the humble, but He detests hatred and dishonesty and pretension. And I am learning to do the same. • Think of him, like a timeless river constantly refreshing and reforming and replenishing, but never ending, always streaming. We are his work in progress—yet to be completed. • Oh, and he is the premier secret keeper who never breaks a promise, never! 74
The God I Know, by Ron Rose cont’d. • He gifted us with free-will, passion and promise and wants us to live without a smidgen of fear. He knows about life with the WOW factor, because he put it there. And if we will follow his lead he will show us how to live beyond ourselves. • We may fear him, or deny him, or fight him, but we cannot ignore him. • In times of trouble, he doesn’t reach down from heaven to respond to my needs because he is already at my side. He catches all my tears and listens to my heart before I know the words to speak. 75
The God I Know, by Ron Rose cont’d. • My God has shown me how to love the unlovable, to forgive without retribution, and accept people right where they are. • He is the ultimate source of truth and wisdom; he knows what I need before I do. Even when I’m not aware of it, he is guiding my steps, challenging my values, and refining my motives. His holy touch still takes me to my knees. • He has taught me how to live forward and understand backward, while learning to be generous and thankful along the way. He is my helper, my hero, and my healer. It was his idea to give me intuition and instinct and imagination for a lifetime. 76
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