09 Jan Grace upon grace
2 PETER 1:2:
[2] May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
ZECHARIAH 4:6-7:
[6] Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.
[7] Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’”
ROMANS 5:17:
[17] For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
JOHN 1:16-17:
[16] For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.
[17] For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
1 PETER 1:2:
[2] according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:
May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
Many kinds of Grace
- SAVING GRACE
EPHESIANS 2:8-9:
[8] For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
[9] not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Grace is the one word that separates Christianity from every other religion.
Grace is unmerited. It means that we cannot earn grace.
We cannot deserve grace.
We cannot demand grace.
Grace is only given according to God’s pleasure.
Grace by definition must be free. If it is not free, it is not grace. Which means that what prompted God to act for us was not something of us but of himself. That is why we find that God alone is the active agent of our salvation.
God is the one who does all the work from beginning to the end.
It is God who made us alive.
It is God who seated us with Christ.
It is God who will show us kindness.
We are passive recipients.
God does all the work from beginning to the end.
That is why Paul continues to say, “And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” (V. 8)
The word “this” refers to the whole process of salvation.
Grace and faith are the gifts of God for us.
A gift is something we receive, not something we earn.
We cannot work for our salvation. We can only receive. Why?
So that no one may boast.
So that God receives all the glory. If we have even the slightest part to contribute to our salvation, even if it is only 0.01%, then we can boast about it. But God would have none of that.
God is the one who does the work of salvation from beginning to the end and that is why God receives all the glory.
All of Christian life from beginning to the end is the work of God’s grace.
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
EPHESIANS 1:3-10:
[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
[4] even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love
[5] he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,
[6] to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.
[7] In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
[8] which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight
[9] making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ
[10] as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
The Saving Grace also come with lavishes Wisdom and insight that makes us know the mystery of His will, according to His purpose. Which HE set forth in Christ
- JUSTIFYING GRACE.
ROMANS 3:23-25:
[23] for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
[24] and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
[25] whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.
We are justified by his grace as a gift, and not because our doing!
Justified is past tent : it’s already done By Jesus on the cross.
Justice is a legal word = standing in rightheousnes before the judge.
MATTHEW 6:33:
[33] But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
We seek the rightheousnes through FAITH in Jesus Christ, after we have been save, HE will give us His Righteousness, and By His Righteousness we will have His Right to lives on earth as an Ambassador of Christ’s kingdom
- TEACHING GRACE
TITUS 2:11-14:
[11] For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,
[12] training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,
[13] waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
[14] who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.
EPHESIANS 1:11-14:
[11] In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,
[12] so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.
[13] In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,
[14] who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
- ENABLING GRACE
ROMANS 8:28:
[28] And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
HEBREW 4:16:
[16] Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Grace is we Receive the great blessing that we do not deserve!
Mercy is we do not Receive the great punishment that we should have!
2 CORINTHIANS 12:8-10:
[8] Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave 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 of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
[10] For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
GALATIANS 1:15 : But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace.
Paul says that God had set him apart before he was born. It means that before there was anything but God, God already loved Paul. And God called Paul by God’s grace. It means that what sets Christians apart from others has nothing to do with how awesome we are, how smart we are, where we were born or what we have achieved.
Paul tells us that before we do anything good or bad, God had already set his affection on us. And God’s decision is definite. No one can undo it. So when our eyes finally see the beauty of God, when we confess with our mouth and believe with our heart that Jesus Christ is Lord, we find that God in his grace has orchestrated our salvation from the very beginning. And God did not set us apart because he saw something good in us.
He chose us based on his sovereign grace and sovereign purpose alone.
God’s condition in choosing us is based on God alone. That is why no one can be proud that they are chosen.
The Lord Will Come to Our Help
PSALM 44:1-8:
[1] O God, we have heard with our ears, our fathers have told us, what deeds you performed in their days, in the days of old:
[2] you with your own hand drove out the nations, but them you planted; you afflicted the peoples, but them you set free;
[3] for not by their own sword did they win the land, nor did their own arm save them, but your right hand and your arm, and the light of your face, for you delighted in them.
[4] You are my King, O God; ordain salvation for Jacob!
[5] Through you we push down our foes; through your name we tread down those who rise up against us.
[6] For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me.
[7] But you have saved us from our foes and have put to shame those who hate us.
[8] In God we have boasted continually, and we will give thanks to your name forever. Selah
LAMENTATIONS 3:22-24:
[22] The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
[23] they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
[24] “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” Amen
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