The Grace of God 

I. Introduction
   A. Grace- not discussed much
      1. much confusion
      2. how far it extends
   B. The word
      1. Grace= charis (caris)
         a. means graciousness of manner or act; acceptable; benefit; gift
   C. Three points to discuss
      1. The Old Law vs. the New Law
      2. Precepts of Grace
      3. How grace works in the scheme of salvation

II. The Old Law vs. the New Law
   A. Nature of man
      1. When sin entered the world (Genesis 3:15), redemption became necessary
      2. Hence, the Law was necessary (Galatians 3:19)
   B. Atonement for sin
      1. OL: offerings were given to the Lord to atone for sin (Ex. 29:14, 
      Lev. 4), yet could not completely take away sin (Hebrews 10:4)
      2. NL: Jesus Christ is the Lamb, the supreme sin offering, atoning for 
      all sin for all time (Heb. 9:11-15)
   C. The One who Offers
      1. OL: Aaron and his sons are the High Priests, making sacrifices (Exodus
      28:1)
      2. NL: Jesus Christ is our High Priest, having sacrificed Himself for our
      sins (Hebrews 7:26-28)
   D. Permanence
      1. OL: Superceded by Christ (Hebrews 8:7-9; cf. Jeremiah 31:31)
      2. NL: Established by Christ (Hebrews 9:15), atoning for the sins of all,
      past, present, and future
   E. Ability to Perform
      1. OL: Must hold to the whole Law perfectly (Deuteronomy 27:26, James 2:10)
      2. NL: All can come to repentance, and be forgiven (Ephesians 1:7)
   F. Remembrance of Sin
      1. OL: The sins of the father would fall upon the sons 
      (1 Kings 14:10-11/15:28-30, 1 Kings 16:2-4/16:9-12)
      2. NL: Our sins are forgotten (Jeremiah 31:34, qtd. Hebrews 10:17)

III. Precepts of Grace
   A. What is Grace?
      1. Unmerited favor, yes, but how?
      2. Romans 3:24-25: God demonstrated His grace by giving His Son as a 
      sacrifice for our sins  
   B. Precept I: Man has fallen short 
      1. Romans 3:23: all men have fallen short of the glory of God
   C. Precept II: Man cannot, by himself, gain salvation
      1. Romans 3:19-20: nothing done by man will be justified in His sight
   D. Precept III: The grace of God covers for our inadequacy
      1. through faith in His Son, our sins are covered (Ephesians 2:7-8; 
      Hebrews 2:9, Romans 5:10-11)
   E. Precept IV: With our sins covered by Christ's death, we can have 
   fellowship with God
      1. Romans 3:24, Ephesians 2:5

IV. Grace in the Scheme of Salvation
   A. Foundational
      1. The death of Jesus Christ for our sins opens the conduit to God
   B. Must be accepted
      1. Faith in the Lord Jesus=acceptance of His grace (Romans 3:25-27)
      2. Faith comes by hearing the Word and believing in it (Romans 10:17)
   C. Duties with Faith
      1. Obey God's Word: Romans 6:17
      2. Repent of sin: Acts 2:38
      3. Confess Jesus: Matthew 10:32
      4. Be baptized: Acts 22:16
   D. Faith and Works
      1. Romans 3 says we are not justified by works
      2. faith needs works
         a. no such thing as "passive faith"
         b. James 2:14-26
         c. faith must be active; unconscious, perhaps, but still active
   E. Permanence of Salvation
      1. It is possible to fall from grace
         a. Galatians 5:4
      2. Rejection of Jesus=Rejection of Salvation
         a. 2 Peter 2:20-22

V. Conclusion
   A. Old Law
      1. Sons of Aaron presented sacrifices to atone for sins- animals
      2. Animal sacrifices are not good enough to atone for sins
      3. Better sacrifice needed
   B. Now
      1. Jesus Christ died for the sins of mankind
         a. past, present, and future
      2. He and He alone is the atonement for sin
      3. His sacrifice is the manifestation of God's grace toward mankind
      4. He is the High Priest forever
   C. Why?
      1. We have all sinned
      2. We cannot approach God on our own merit
      3. His grace through His Son redeems us
         a. allows us to have fellowship with Him
   D. Its place
   E. Summary of its role: Analogy
      1. At least in the state of Illinois, you have to be 16 or older to be 
      able to have a driver's license. You are not given a license merely by 
      virtue of being 16, however; you must also have gone through an approved 
      driver's education course and have passed a driver's test. At that point,
      you are given a driver's license.
      2. Salvation works in a similar manner. The only qualification for 
      receiving salvation is to be a human being. You are not saved, however,
      by virtue of being human: you must hear the gospel, you must believe in 
      Jesus Christ, and you must be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins.
      At that point, you are considered saved.
      3. Once you have your driver's license, however, your work is not done. 
      You still are obligated to observe all laws concerning driving. If you 
      violate these laws, and are caught doing them, you will have negative 
      consequences. If you violate the laws often enough or egregiously enough,
      your driver's license will be revoked, and you will no longer have the 
      privilege of driving. You can only gain the privilege back if you are 
      later found worthy enough for the privilege.
      4. Again, salvation works the same way. You must continue to observe the 
      commandments of the Lord to keep your salvation (1 John 2). If you violate
      His commandments often enough or egregiously enough without repenting for
      the deeds, He will have no choice but to revoke your salvation until you 
      come back to Him and ask for forgiveness. At that point, your salvation 
      will be restored.
      5. A one-line summary of this analogy: salvation is a privilege, not a
      right.
   F. You need God's grace to be saved, but you are responsible for accepting it
   G. Make good on Jesus' sacrifice for you and bask in God's grace
      1. if you have never accepted Him, the waters for baptism are ready
      2. if you have accepted Him, but have sinned and feel like you have fallen
      away, please come up and repent of it
      3. if you need encouragement, please come up now as we stand & sing