Sermon Tone Analysis

*INTRO:*  Grace is central to the Christian Faith – most Christians kinow that, but get us to try and explain it????

 

We say things like:

 

*/What grace she has/*/!/  (Do a ballerina move)

*/There but the grace of God go I/*/!/ (What does that really mean)

*We say /“Grace”/* – kiwis especially before the coming BLEDISLOE CUP – /“For what we are about to receive may the Lord make us truly thankful”!/

As we move into our second message in our series of 40 Days of Vision over the campus’ – I want to bring to you an understanding of Grace as it relates to ELIM CHRISTIAN CENTRE.

ELIM NZ was well known in Pentecostal circles in NZ for it’s message on Grace.

Where many Pentecostal churches and movements have heavily leaned on HOLINESS to the point of inventing new rules and regulations(that the Bible doesn’t even address) – ELIM focused strongly on the message of GRACE – (as you have seen in the drama today – receiving God’s blessing and favour on our lives – not through attaining a standard of worthiness – but through understanding the power of God’s unconditional love towards us).

*What is Grace?*

These are some common phrases:

 

/If it sounds too good to be true... it is./

/We make money the old fashion way, we ... earn it./

/There's no such thing as a free ... lunch./

/There is no gain without ... pain./

/God helps those who ... help themselves./

Everything about our way of life teaches us that you get what you earn in life, that there is no free lunch.

We are very aware of the values of competition and winning and we know what it means to work hard and use elbow grease.

We value effort and sweat.

We tell people, /"You get what you deserve in life" /and "/If you want to make something of your life it's up *to you."*

/

 

This is called */work ethic./*

The only problem with this work ethic is that in God’s dealings with us, */He doesn't operate on our work ethic/*.

And it makes it difficult many times for us to relate to God because we're in this *driven* work mentality.

*Psalm 145 v 8.**  /"God is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love."/

Circle "gracious".

*

* *

| */God loves to bless people who don't deserve it./*

That's His nature.

Aren't you glad for that?

I'm glad that God blesses people who don't deserve it.

|

 

The Bible says God is a gracious God.

That means /He loves/ to be /gracious/ to you, /KIND/ to you.

*Ephesians 1:5-6 (NIV) *5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will-- 6 to the praise of his */glorious grace/*, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

*Ephesians 1:7 (NIV) *In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with */the riches of God's grace/*

 

You can't understand the Christian life at all unless you understand grace.

*/It is the heart of our faith./*

It is the heart of our relationship to God.

The more you understand grace the more you're going to be drawn to God, the more you're going to love God, the more you're going to be grateful to God.

 

Unfortunatley, many of us as Christians meet God through His matchless GRACE - then /too often/ we try and live out our Christianity based on our */performance/* and feeling like we are constantly falling short of the mark!

 

*/Grace Definitions/*

Definition:  "God giving me what I need, not what I deserve."

Another definition:    “God’s favour and kindness freely given to me”

One of my favorite definitions is, "Grace is the face God wears when He looks at my failures."

To */‘show grace’/* is to /extend favour/ or /kindness/ to one who doesn’t deserve it and can never earn it.

*WE need to understand the difference between grace and mercy**.

*

* *

*Mercy *is when God doesn't give us what we do deserve --* punishment.

*

*Grace *is when God gives us what we don't deserve* – blessing & favour.*

*/When Jesus came He brought a WHOLE NEW Dimension with Him/*

 

John Ch. 1

/14  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth./

/ /

/16    //From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another./

/17    //For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ./

*The Jewish religion* (Pharisees & Saducees) became a harsh, judgmental religion, when Jesus came he brought *a revolution.*

I know many of us probably think we understand grace.

We are saved by grace.

We've known that for many years.

But I've discovered that many Christians, although they know they're saved by grace sure don't act like it.

/In fact, they spend most of their life thinking and *acting like we're saved by works*/*.

\\ \\ *

·         For many of you, even though you know you're saved by grace and you don't get into heaven by doing good, your entire life is built on pleasing God by /trying to be perfect/.

And you think God is some /unpleasable parent/ up there in the sky with a clipboard and pen watching your every move -- */"That was good... that was bad"/* -- and you think you have to earn God's approval.

·         You think if you do a certain number of good works God's going to say, *"Good girl... good guy!

You got it."*

And if you don't do those things, God says, */"Forget it!

You're worthless."/*

You're saved by grace but you're actually living by works.

Too many Christians believe that God's love for them is */conditional/* upon their own *performance*.

We get back to salvation */by/* works not salvation */that/* works.

3 Keys to Understanding Grace

 

*1.

The Power of Saving Grace*

 

Romans 3 v 24

/"All of us need to be made right with God by His grace, which is a free gift through Jesus Christ."

/

*It's a free gift *

If you were to ask a hundred people along the sidewalk */"How do you get to heaven?/*" you'd get a lot of /different answers/.

But basically they would all be summarized in, "You've got to */earn/* your way to heaven.”

You'd hear things like, /"The way you get to heaven is you try to be good and do your best/" *or* "/Work real hard at being good and just try to be a good, moral person"/ *or* "/Do more good things in life than you do bad things in life and if your good pile is higher than you bad pile, God's going to say, `You're a good guy.

Come on in./'"  *It's all based on *works*, not grace*.

You need to understand that God says here that salvation is absolutely free.

You don't work for a gift.

It's a free gift.

God says salvation is absolutely free.

*You can't earn it, you can't earn it, you can't buy it, you can't work for it.

*

 

*This is the fundamental difference between Christianity and every other religion.*

I don't care if it's Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, etc. 

* *

*You can summarize every religion in one word.

**“Do.”*

There are certain things you do in order to gain God's approval.

Rules, regulations, rituals, etc. 

·         Of all the other religions, Christianity is the only religion that's built on grace.

That says God just /gives/ you salvation.

You don't do anything to earn it  gain God's approval.

\\ \\

*If you were to summarize Christianity in one word, it's the word **"Done"**.

*

It's already been done for you.

It was done on the cross by Jesus Christ.

He paid for your salvation.

He paid for your sins.

It's already been done.

\\ \\

Of all the other religions, Christianity is the only religion that's built on grace.

That says God just gives you salvation.

You don't do anything to earn it.

To gain God's approval.

There is one and only *one password* for entering heaven, and that is* “Grace.”*