Ephesians 2:8-10, All Of Grace

we're gonna continue our study in the book of Ephesians we're gonna be looking tonight at Ephesians chapter 2 verses 8 and through 10 and a message I'm entitle all of grace let's pray Heavenly Father Lord we know that you came up with the plan of salvation and Lord we're so grateful for Jesus for his love Lord no wonder Paul begins this book with a song of praise and adoration to you and prayers of Thanksgiving Lord we know that if salvation were a suit that every stitch in our outfit would come from you that there's nothing there's nothing absolutely nothing that we can bring to our salvation other than our sin for it to be forgiven and so Heavenly Father I pray that is we make our way up this mountaintop that Lord we would pause and reflect and see how wonderful our salvation really is Lord I pray that you'll speak to hearts tonight and encourage them and so Heavenly Father we in obedience to what the scriptures say we want to draw near to you knowing that if we draw near to you you will draw near to us so wash us cleanse us from our sin Lord we commit this time to you and we pray these things in Jesus name Amen Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8 most of you know it by heart for by grace you've been saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works lest anyone should bow for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them Paul began the book of Ephesians with a song of praise in chapter 1 verses 3 through 14 and then he continued with this powerful prayer in verses 17 through 22 and then and he launches into preaching the gospel in chapter 2 you'll remember that Paul began his sermon with this vivid description of the human condition in verses 1 through 3 that the sinner is dead and trespass and sin we found ourselves deluded disobedient defiled doomed Paul then continues with a historical analysis of what God did in chapter 2 verses 4 through 6 an explanation of why God did it in Chapter 7 we were rescued from death in verses 1 through 3 rescued by love and verses with verse 4 rescued for life and verse 5 rescued for a reason in verses 6 and 7 and you'll remember the last time we were together I said this 7 verses is a singular sentence as Paul takes us from the pit all the way to the pinnacle the reason you'll recall was so that God could display His grace and His mercy in the ages to come we are like spiritual hikers and we are going to come to this highest peak probably the three most important verses in all of the Bible Genesis chapter 1 verse 1 in the beginning God created the heavens in the earth John 3:16 for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him wouldn't perish but have everlasting life and this verse invert in verses 1 through 7 we make our way to the top we stand on the top of the mountain and Paul declares for by grace you've been saved through faith he gives us permission to pause for just a moment I don't know if you've ever hiked a great big mountain but it takes a lot of time and effort and once you get up there you want to take in the view in verse 8 and verse 9 and verse 10 Paul is going to invite you to look north and to look west and to look south and to look east so that you can see as far as you will allow the panorama to take you like a theological compass we are going to make a complete turn we see grace and faith the absence of any man-made or human effort but then we get this clear vision that we were made for Christ other rarefied pinnacles in the scripture tell us where we came from and where we're going there's a reason why this passage might be one of the most quoted passages in all of the Bible this single scripture proves false and untrue every man-made religion every works-based system of righteousness every worldview that entertains the notion that human beings can be saved apart from grace apart from faith apart from the gospel apart from Christ in a single sentence paul cuts down every religion that teaches a works based righteousness that you can have a right relationship with god based on what you could possibly do and since this single scripture proves false and untrue every religion every fault every philosophy that teaches humanity isn't really lost that sin isn't really a problem that you can merit or earn salvation that you're not really damned and you're not really doomed and that you never ever have to ask the question how can I be saved every man-made cult whether Christian or non-christian unite in a single chorus to deny this text however else you're saved it can't be that you're saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone it can't be that simple there has to be some sort of human effort involved there's something in our broken and bent condition that wants to contribute to our salvation and I believe this is why so many false religions and false philosophies and false cults grow and proliferate so Paul says when we come to the top for by grace you've been saved do you remember the first time anyone ever said to you it can I ask you a question are you saved I remember when I got asked that question I thought what are you nuts what are you talking about safe from what prior to my conversion to Christ I had no idea what Christians were talking about when they talked about being saved hey are you saved from what well the right answer of course is from God's wrath and God's judgment saved from what you mean my sin is a real problem and I might have to deal with that very real problem yes there's a place called hell and people are quite content to talk about spiritual matters they'll talk about anything they'll talk about the Broncos they'll talk about anything other than this subject of eternal life and eternal punishment Paul has already brought up the painful subject remember at the beginning of chapter 2 and verses 1 through 3 when he said you he's made alive you were dead in trespasses and sin we walked according to the course of this world we walked according to the Prince of the power of the air we were sons of disobedience we were by nature children of Wrath this is why Jesus began his ministry in mark chapter 1 verse 15 when he said the time is up the time is fulfilled the kingdom of God is at hand repent and believe the gospel this is the opening sentence of our Savior Jesus called on people to repent of their sin one of the hardest things to admit is that I was once a part of Satan's great rebellion so when a person came up to me said are you saved it never even once occurred to me to say yeah I'm a part of Satan's rebellion in rebellion and disobedience I'm walking away for it from anything and everything that smacks of Christians or Christianity the Bible says that hell is a place prepared for Satan and his and his angels in a future time of judgment Jesus condemns those who side with Satan and his rebellion in Matthew 25:41 it says then he will also say to those on the left depart from me you cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels most of what we know about Hell comes from the lips of Jesus he describes it as a place of everlasting an unquenchable fire in Matthew 3:12 in mark 943 it's presented as a place of memory and Morse Luke 16 verses 19 through 31 it's a place of thirst and misery and pain in Revelation chapter 14 verse 10 it's a place of anger and frustration and separation in Matthew 24 51 and Revelation chapter 2 verse 11 it's a place that's described in the Bible as a place of undiluted that means not mixed with any grace with any mercy it's undiluted wrath in Revelation chapter 14 verse 10 and some people wonder if Jesus is using symbolic language or or metaphorical language when he speaks of a gnashing of teeth and and gnawing at your tongue and an absolute darkness let's just for purposes of discussion entertain the thought that maybe it is metaphorical language and maybe it is symbolic language but it's been my experience that if it's metaphor and it's simple symbolic it's it's it's because it can't begin to describe this horrible and terrible place of horror and torment some people reject the notion of Hell all togethers others trivialize it some suggest it's right here and right now and when you ask your family and friends about it they'll pop open another beer and just say I can't wait to meet my friends and party with them down there a real battle they'll say is with ignorance our real problem is we don't have the right information the Gnostic Gospels popularize the notion that we are in fact divine beings and that were just simply unaware of our own divinity the false teacher says really our problem is ignorance or illusion but Paul doesn't buy it not even for a moment Paul says that the ultimate calamity the ultimate terrifying thing is God's wrath and God's judgement against sin and he spells it out in first Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 9 when he writes of the Thessalonians conversion from idolatry to the true and living God he says you Thessalonians you are pagans and and you used to walk around and do all kinds of strange things and worship all kinds of strange gods and then in verse 10 he says but you came and to wait for it his son from heaven whom he raised from the dead even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come he says writing of their conversion to the true and living God you converted to the true and living God and you waited and are waiting for Jesus to come from heaven that this Jesus he raised from the dead and that it's the same Jesus who's going to deliver us from the wrath to come were saved were saved from God's wrath we're saved by grace and the word grace by the way translates the Greek word caris in the ancient world this word meant so much depending on the context abbot Smith's manual of the Greek lexicon gives an excellent summary it says that this word Kerris means number one objectively that which causes a favorable regard grace it's the thing that instills immediately the perception of favor subjectively number two on the part of the giver grace is graciousness kindness goodwill favor it says especially in the New Testament of the divine favor grace with emphasis on its freeness and universality on the part of the receiver a sense of favor received it is thanks it is gratitude people have used all kinds of words to try and describe it God's riches at Christ's expense God's favor unmerited favor it is that but it's way more than that Cramer writes quote Karras has been distinctly appropriated in the New Testament to designate the relation and conduct of God towards sinful man as it's revealed in and through Christ let me give you another picture in the ancient world they would use this word Karras grace this is the kind of favor that parents gave to their children this is the preferential treatment that family gave to family and tribes gave to tribe but in the ancient world it was not something that you would ever give to a complete stranger for no reason Paul is going to appropriate it and use it in the sense that there is a great God in Christ who in spontaneous favor is willing to save people who don't deserve it so it's more than the unmerited favor that results in pardon and forgiveness it's more than mere acceptance as children in the ancient world it was the kind of grace that was given that made you gracious that flooded your heart with a sense of gratitude and Thanksgiving that such generosity was lavished upon you it's the kind of grace that makes you gracious crema writes quote remember when Jesus spoke and they marveled at his gracious words that came from his mouth same word it's the kind of favor that makes you want to do favors for everyone else in the book of Galatians Paul laments quote I'm marble that you're so turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel Paul says that this grace comes from Jesus Scofield's note says quote the test of the gospel is Grace if the message excludes grace or mingles law with grace as it as a means either of justification or sanctification or denies the fact or the guilt of sin which alone gives grace its occasion and opportunity it's a different gospel and the preacher is under the curse of God unquote this is why it's so important that you understand both the fact and the guilt of sin because if you don't understand the fact in the guilt of sin you can't understand the magnificence of the grace that's been given to you you're saved by grace in a wonderful commentary in the book of Romans William Newell has a section entitled quote a few words about grace he writes number one grace is God acting freely according to his own nature as love with no promises or obligations to fulfill and acting righteously in view of the cross this is God's favor according to Newell acting freely according to his own nature in love newald writes number two grace therefore is uncaused in the recipient its cause lies wholly in the giver as God in other words there's nothing you could say or do to prompt this grace it isn't that you start looking pitiful or complaining horribly or that there's something that happens you're having a bad hair day or whatever it is no matter how good you are or bad dad you are there's nothing that prompts this number three Newell writes grace is sovereign not having any debts to pay or fulfilled conditions on man's part to wait for it can act toward whom and however it pleases it can and does often place the worst deserver in the highest favor it would be us saying you don't deserve to be saved exactly out of all of the evil and horrible people I know you are the worst i right yes Newell writes to believe and consent to be loved while unworthy is the secret to receive grace and then he writes these condemning words to hope to be better is to fail to see yourself in Christ if I could only be better if I was just if I could just be a better person if I could just be better once I get to be good enough and then I can become a Christian and then here's what Newell writes to be disappointed in myself is to believe in myself do you understand what he's saying I'm so disappointed in what I've done I know that's because you still believe in yourself it's because for whatever reason you're holding out hope that somehow someway there's something good inside of you that God will identify with and go you know maybe the best thing I ever did was save you but that's exactly the opposite of grace he says you're saved by grace and then you're safe through faith look at the end of the verse for by grace you've been saved look what it says through faith salvation is always by grace and not' it's always preceded by faith Paul writes in Romans chapter 5 verse 1 therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ Hebrews 11:6 but without faith it's impossible to please him for he who comes to God must believe that he is that he's a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him we use this word faith in a number of different ways we we will sometimes say hey what faith are you thinking about Catholicism or Protestantism or agnosticism or some faith or no faith or any faith at all but when the Bible is using the term here faith it's not talking about a religious preference it isn't even about a religious identification here in the Bible faith has at least two different elements it's the belief in what is true and then it's the confidence to trust Jesus the word is pista s' it means to trust in to rely on to cling to it isn't just simply an intellectual assent it's that which you offer and you place your full confidence in and your total trust in the 1900's there was a guy named Jean Francois Rabelais he was better known as the amazing blonde in and I've used this illustration in the past he was known for his death-defying high wire routines he was traveling through Europe and America and he would perform on a high wire that was a hundred and seventy feet high he once balanced a stove on this wire and he fried an egg on the high wire and so he would basically tell people that he would carry a man across a rope suspended on his back in Niagara Falls and he would he would once he completed the demonstration he would say to the crowd do you believe that I can do it and they would scream yes yes and then he would point to a person and he would say will you let me carry you across the rope and they would say no you laughs you would say no - I would the Rope could break I know what would happen if I got on that guy's back I would panic it would be like a person drowning and the guy would go please stop look I can do this you're gonna kill us both and I go that's why I knew it was a bad idea to try it in the first place but see that's the difference with Jesus you don't have to worry he leaves nothing to chance it isn't like you trust Jesus and you go okay I'm gonna trust Jesus I just really hope that what the Bible says about him is true but that's the confidence and the trust it's the realization that you open up your Bible it's that day you remember that day it's the day you you thought to yourself what if everything that the Bible says about Jesus is true what if it's true that he loves me what if it's true that he can save me what if it's true that he came back to life what if it's true that he can wash me and cleanse me what if it's true that the promises that are made in the in the in the Bible are true and you trust him and look what Paul writes and that not of yourself it is the gift of God the contrast is stark not yourself Paul will have nothing to do with the person who offers himself or herself in pledge as part of the terms of salvation Paul says no it's the gift of God what's he talking about what is the gift of God here is the grace a gift is the faith a gift is the salvation a gift he may mean all of those things grace is a gift faith is a gift but I think that he's talking about salvation and everything that entails each person according to the Bible is given a measure of faith in Romans chapter 12 verse 3 since it's a gift it has to be received and it has to be received with gratitude but people people are reluctant to receive something so free so willingly given so available to everyone they go this can't possibly be true but it is true it is true the contrast is stark you can't save yourself and then he says saved not by works look what it says in in verse 9 not of works lest anyone should boast some have suggested well isn't belief a work I mean you said you have to believe the gospel right you have to believe that it's true isn't that a work Paul begs to differ in Romans chapter 4 verse 5 we read but to him who does not work but believes on him who justifies the ungodly his faith is accounted for righteousness Paul in Romans chapter 4 is contrasting people worked with belief belief is isn't a work Paul says that wages have nothing to do with grace people who work receive wages Paul then points out that Abraham didn't experience justification by faith plus circumcision in chapter 4 verses 9 through 12 or by keeping the law in verses 13 through 17 but rather by faith alone in verses 18 through 25 many people believe that God in heaven keeps some sort of cosmic scale if your good deeds outweigh your bad deeds then God has to accept you many years ago in life there was a life magazine cover and it featured the title the power of prayer how Americans talk to God one person a prostitute in a Nevada brothel is shown preying on her brass bed she says quote a lot of people think working girls don't have any morals any religion but I do I don't steal I don't lie the way I look at it I'm not sinning he's not going to judge me I don't think God judges anybody unquote you know it's you're all looking astonished but these are the same exact words that some of you muttered sometime in the past or people that you know have muttered God God doesn't care God won't judge me it doesn't really matter it is true that Jesus said in John chapter 5 verse 22 for the father judges no one but he has committed all judgment to the son unquote and the next time a person says to you I don't think God will judge me you could say well technically you're right the father judges no one but he's committed all judgment to the son on what basis will the son judge you in Revelation chapter 19 verse 15 were given a picture of that judgment it says quote now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword but with it he should strike the nation's and he himself will rule them with a rod of iron he himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God and then you can tell them the bad news did God judge Adam and Eve in the garden did God judge the world and destroy it in a flood in Genesis 6 did God judge the people of sodom and gomorrah did God judge the Egyptians did God judge the Assyrians did God judge the Philistines who stood against his people Israel oh wait a minute did God even judge Israel does Jesus judge the church in Revelation chapter 2 in chapter 3 and so here's this God who with all of your heart you hope won't judge but has a track record of judging in the beginning of the Bible in the middle of the Bible at the end of the Bible Paul's point you cannot you will not you will never be able to earn your salvation the Jehovah's Witnesses think that you can earn your salvation by doing good works by going door to door for them salvation for heaven is limited to 144,000 but they they believe that all the rest of the Jehovah's Witnesses have some sort of chance at some sort of life here on a reconstituted planet in their way of thinking heaven has already full the Mormons believe you're resurrected by grace and saved that is when they use the term saved they mean exalted to godhood by doing good works by being faithful to the church leaders by by participating in Mormon baptism and tithing and ordination and marriage and and secret temple rituals there's no eternal life without Mormon membership the unification Church teaches that you have to obey and accept the True Parents that's Reverend moon and his wife there's a modern Korean cult that believes much the same but there is this father God and Mother God the unification Church believed that you can eliminate sin from your life which results in perfection those married by moon and his wife drink a special holy wine containing twenty-one ingredients including The True Parents blood according to Christian Scientists you're already saved because you were never lost to begin with sin evil sickness death none of it is real I remember talking to a woman who was involved with Christian Science and she said that that sin wasn't real and death wasn't real none of it was real she happened to be a mature woman and I pointed to a mirror and I said look in the mirror I go do you look different than you did when you were 18 years old and she started to cry you shouldn't that's I don't recommend it as a witnessing tool to make them cry that's not effective but when she looked into the mirror all of reality seemed to argue again her position that this world really is real in the Unity Church you have to recognize that each person is as much a son of God as Jesus there's no such thing as evil there's no such thing as the devil there's no sin there's no poverty there's no old age a person is reincarnated until he learns these truths and becomes perfect or complete in Scientology there's no such thing as sin there's no need to repent salvation is freedom from reincarnation like Hinduism in Scientology you work with an auditor to adjust what they call your engrams or hangups to achieve a state of clear and then you progress to this bridge of total freedom in their view hell is a myth in Wicca or witchcraft human beings are neither sinful or in need of saving it's important for Wiccans to honor and work for the preservation of nature which they equate with the goddess and so for them you work with the goddess in New Age or metaphysical mindsets the person works off bad karma and exercises good works in order to generate good karma you can tap into the supernatural through meditation self-awareness and spirit guides I used to believe this this is what I believed I believed that you could alter your state of consciousness and you could tap into an invisible and paranormal world where you could access understanding you could submerge yourself in the divine cosmic consciousness people in the metaphysical mind movement use the term reborn as a euphemism of self-awareness what they mean by that is you begin to understand that you are divine the one thing the one thing that can't possibly be true the one thing that can't possibly be true is what the Bible says about the human condition that you're a sinner in need of a savior in Hinduism salvation is release from the endless cycles of reincarnation but in biblical Christianity it says it's appointed once for a person to die and then the judgment you see in biblical Christianity it's not reincarnation that brings you to a sense of self-awareness but rather it is the resurrection from the dead and you stand before God in Roman Catholicism Christ died as a substitute sacrifice for sin and then God by His grace infused as a supernatural gift of faith in Christ to those who are baptized in the Roman Catholic Church which is then sustained by doing good works of love receiving penance experiencing the Eucharist participating in the sacraments the Judaizers those were the people living in the time when Paul was writing this book these were people who said that Christians had to believe in Jesus accept Jesus and then embrace the Jewish laws of circumcision and keeping the law and observing the festivals in order to secure salvation so what's at stake what is Paul trying to communicate if I can make this as simple as I possibly can you will always always trust one of two things yourself or Christ you will trust yourself or you'll trust Christ and so Paul says you're saved for good works look what it says in verse 10 for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk and then remember there's a group of people who believe that you have to be good in order to be saved the Bible teaches because you're saved you'll want to do good do you understand the difference you're not saved by being good or doing good things or doing good works you're saved in order to do good works when it says in verse 10 for we are as workmanship that word workmanship translates a Greek word poema you probably already recognize that word from its English cognate poem it means in the ancient world and in the Greek language it meant that which is crafted or that which is made in the ancient world it was the product of an artist in Romans chapter 1 verse 20 it's translated very literally the things that are made same word the old Scottish word for poet means word maker in the Greek language the word could describe anything made FF Bruce translates this for we are his work to Paul we are made by God and then we are made new by Christ so someone might argue well didn't God make everybody yeah the Creator God created everyone but for everyone who's made new in Christ Jesus who are saved by grace through faith you become something that was never that never existed before no wonder Paul would later write in second Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17 that we are new creations in Christ the word new creation and in Corinthians is the word that we get our word species from it means something brand new that's never been seen before we're created for a purpose in 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 16 and 17 it says now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and our God and Father who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace comfort your heart and establish you in every good word and work god did this in advance for we're his workmanship created in Christ which God prepared beforehand that's what it means God did this in advance each one of us if I were to put it bluntly are eternally prepared let me put it differently each and every one of you have an eternally prepared Job Description each and every one of us has an eternally prepared job description which includes our task which includes our ability which includes our place of service let me put it in another way we're not simply like paintings or statues we're more like a song that was meant to be sung that was designed for action in other words you're not something or someone who is meant to be in a closet or sit on a shelf or be collected over time for for the future you were destined for action to do good things Chuck Swindoll puts it this way in his book becoming a people of grace he writes quote from his sovereign seat God foresaw us resting in his protection and boldly taking a stand against evil compassionately extending a hand to the needy lovingly sharing the gospel every time he gives us a chance his plan for our lives extend beyond salvation to sanctification beyond standing and grace to walking in good deeds the work God has in mind for us may be sometimes bigger than we can handle his word issues some mighty tall orders how can we live up to them unquote you are created by God in Christ you have an eternal job description welling up inside of you uniquely called and gifted for the assignment that only you can accomplish James writes that faith without works is dead a living faith will produce a faith worth living RC sprawl writes quote though our good works do not merit salvation they are the basis upon which God promises to distribute rewards in heaven our entrance into the kingdom of God is by faith alone our reward in the kingdom will be according to our good works which as Augustine noted a case of God's gracious crowning of his own gifts unquote in other words this was a gustin's way of saying you're going to get everything that God designed you to get because he designed you to get what he designed you to get I know that's all very confusing for some of you let me put it another way everyone in heaven will realize that everything they have had its origin in the mind of God and in the heart of God no wonder in the book of Revelation we see the Saints taking the crowns that they receive and placing them back at Jesus's feet salvation is always by blood it says and almost all things are by law purged with blood and without the shedding of blood there's no remission of sin that's what it says in Hebrews 9:22 but I want to draw your attention back to Ephesians chapter 1 verse 7 remember how the chapter began it says in him we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace we've been bought with blood in the Bible salvation is always by blood but not just any blood it's innocent blood how much more the Bible says shall the blood of Christ who through the Eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God purge your conscience from dead works to serve the Living God it says in Hebrews chapter 9 verse 14 was it possible that prior to you coming to Christ you said something nice you did something kind you actually did something decent but the Bible makes it abundantly clear that everything that you ever did apart from Christ not only has little value it has no value for this is my blood of the New Testament which is shed for many for the remission of sentences in Matthew 26:28 innocent blood shed blood applied blood and from Jesus Christ who is the faithful witness it says in Revelation 1:5 the first begotten of the Dead the Prince of the kings of the earth unto him who loved us and washed us from our sin in his own [Music] blood salvation is always by blood salvation is always by a person in Jonah chapter 2 verse 9 it says but I will sacrifice to you with the voice of Thanksgiving I will pay what I have vowed salvation is of the Lord in acts 4:12 Paul says neither is there salvation any other for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved actually it's Peter there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved first Thessalonians 5:9 for God hath not appointed us to wrath but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus salvation is always by blood salvation is always by a person salvation is always always always by grace for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men it says in Titus chapter 2 verse 11 and hopefully by now the one that you should know by heart for by grace you've been saved through faith and that not of yourself salvation is always by blood salvation as always by a person salvation is always by grace and this grace this grace is always followed without exception by the Savior's peace Paul writes at the beginning of Romans chapter 1 verse 7 for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men this grace he says to all that are in Rome beloved of God called to be Saints grace to you and peace at the beginning of the chapter remember when he begins the chapter in Ephesians chapter 1 verse 2 grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ salvation is always by blood it's always by a person it's always by grace it's always by faith and then according to Paul grace alone never remains alone grace alone changes the heart so that you must of necessity because of what God has done in your heart and given you grace you must of necessity become gracious and so we mold you and he shapes you and Paul reveals to the Ephesians that everything that you are and everything that you have and every gift that you've been given every talent that you've been deceased owed everything that makes you uniquely you so that you can express your love for commitment to believe men trust in Christ salvation always by blood always by a person always by grace always followed by peace we're about communion and what I want you to do is just take a moment and reflect on that and then we're gonna partake together so as Lindsay makes her way back up let me pray for you Heavenly Father Lord on this rarefied Mountain and we see Grace an ocean of grace that goes beyond our sight and every sight and then we look and we see faith Lord we're reminded what Spurgeon said so long ago that this garment called salvation does not have a single stitch that we placed in it and so Heavenly Father again Lord I pray for that person who finds himself or herself in a place of darkness or emptiness Lord I pray for the person who is so severely severely disappointed in what he or she has done lord I pray that you would fill their hearts with comfort and joy knowing that they're saved by grace through faith and that not of themselves that there's nothing that they can do or have failed to do that will take them away from your love that will take them away from your mercy that will take them away from your grace because blood has been shed by the person of Jesus and that this gift of salvation has been given generously unconditionally by grace through faith that we can with the simple act of appropriation whisper the words I believe and that you counted his righteousness and so Lord again we are reminded of the sacrifice of Jesus but it's his blood that has purchased our Redemption it's his sacrifice that's made reconciliation it's his death that provides complete satisfaction for all the crimes that we've committed against you and so in taking this cup and drinking its content by taking this bread we once again declare our love and our loyalty to you as we acknowledge that it's the sacrifice of Jesus that saves us in Jesus name

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Length: 56min 21sec (3381 seconds)

Published: Thu Sep 07 2017