Basildon Healing Mission
(Eastside World Outreach Ministries)
Reg Charity 1115487
What is Grace
Grace what is it just a word, a phrase people use. It is said that someone walks gracefully, or they acted gracefully or they sang gracefully maybe in the world the concept of grace is totally different to grace in the Kingdom of God.
When you ask a Christian what grace is they quite often in a parrot fashion say
“it’s the undeserved favour of God”. Then they think no more about it, the truth is that grace is everything, it is more than just a word it is the whole meaning of salvation. You cannot earn it and you have done nothing to deserve it. You cannot buy it, there is not enough money in the universe to purchase salvation form one individual. Why? Because all our righteousness is but filthy rags to the Lord, no one is good but the Father in heaven.
M't:19:17: And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God
Christians so often get caught in a trap, they get saved by grace in the New Testament and then turn into Pharisees and start trying to live under the law and discount the work of the cross. You have all heard them, now you are saved you cannot live like that any more. You have to change, dress a certain way, pray 10 hours a day, get down on your knees every night and beg God’s forgiveness.
What’s wrong with this picture, did Jesus paint it? Did Paul paint it?
No who did? religion that’s who, religious people who no sooner is someone saved then they try to drag them into bondage. They pile so many rules upon them that before they no it the burden of sin has gone, but now they are placing a new burden upon them which is crushing there spirit and they are in a worse state than before they were saved.
Matt 23:13 But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, pretenders (hypocrites)! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces; for you neither enter yourselves, nor do you allow those who are about to go in to do so.
The truth is that God is the one who will change the person God is the one who will do the work of change in there lives and He doesn’t need you to do it. He is more than able to bring the transformation. Who are we to decide how a person should grow, how they should change. How do we know what is best for that person?
Neither can we bring about the greatest blasphemy, ever and like the Pharisees, make them think they have to work out there own salvation.
Eph 2:8 For it is by free grace (God's unmerited favour) that you are saved (delivered from judgment {and} made partakers of Christ's salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God;
Eph 2:9 Not because of works [not the fulfillment of the Law's demands], lest any man should boast. [It is not the result of what anyone can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself.]
But what is Grace then, grace is Jesus Christ himself the lamb given to us, the sacrifice
He chose to give, He has not asked anything of you only that you do the work God has given you, and that is to believe on His son, that He is your saviour your deliverer.
It’s only when you stop and look you feel inferior you think no I must need to do something else, I must change become this person God would want me to be.
But you are that person, He made you He created you , you are beautiful
in His eyes you are perfect.
Surely something is required of me? That’s flesh trying to bring you into bondage again. All that is required of you is to believe. He will do the rest. Frightening isn’t it to feel you have no control over it, that’s faith, You have to let go, Stop trying so hard and just believe Jesus He has done it all for you, so you do not have to.
Now lets look deeper at grace we have seen that it is God’s unmerited favour for our salvation but is that it, no this is just the tip of a very large ice berg.
Rom 12:6 Having gifts (faculties, talents, qualities) that differ according to the grace given us, let us use them: [He whose gift is] prophecy, [let him prophesy] according to the proportion of his faith;
God has gifts to give us, we cannot earn them these talents, skills, spiritual gifts all come from who? God who is able, now we have been adopted God want’s to clothe you in righteousness, yes there is only one way to come into the kingdom and that is by being righteous with God. Its Jesus righteousness you are clothed with, not yours remember all our righteousness is as filthy rags to him.
Jesus is the only man who is righteous before the Father because of what He did on the cross and when God looks at you He sees His son. For as it says in the word He is transforming us into the likeness of His Son, why? Grace that’s why.
But we are all different neither two of us are the same, we have different gifts
because God’s has given to each of us according to the measure of His – Grace.
John 1:16 For out of His fullness (abundance) we have all received [all had a share and we were all supplied with] one grace after another {and} spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing {and} even favour upon favour {and} gift [heaped] upon gift.
His fullness wow you mean all of His grace, yes all of it as much as you will ever need.
In fact because God lives in eternity (out of time) He is able to see you from
the beginning of time to the moment you die, do you think you could do anything to surprise God. He knows everything about you, your comings and goings, your thoughts, your actions. He knows what you will do next. Or do you think God will suddenly look at you in anger and say, “ I did not think you would do that” .
If we were to go to a friend and ask them for there forgiveness and tell them all things we had done wrong in our life and that friend forgave us. What would happen when someone told your friend something else about you that you failed to mention?
Would that friend still forgive you? Well you cannot surprise God. For when He looks at you He sees everything and yes I mean everything. Its embarrassing isn’t it you cannot hide anything from Him. But still even with all your faults, He still forgives you now that is Grace.
John 1:17 For while the Law was given through Moses, grace (unearned, undeserved favor and spiritual blessing) and truth came through Jesus Christ.
So cast off that spirit of the law, remember those who try to live under the law will be judged by the law. Jesus does not want sacrifice, people say Lord I am going to sacrifice my life for you, Jesus does not want you to sacrifice your life, He sacrificed His so you could have life and have it in all of its fullness. I mean Jesus wants you to give Him your life willingly by allowing Him to become Lord of your life.
But don’t I need to be baptized, give up everything take up my cross etc?
Luke 23:39 One of the criminals who was suspended kept up a railing at Him, saying, Are You not the Christ (the Messiah)? Rescue Yourself and us [from death]!
Luke 23:40 But the other one reproved him, saying, Do you not even fear God, seeing you yourself are under the same sentence of condemnation {and} suffering the same penalty?
Luke 23:41 And we indeed suffer it justly, receiving the due reward of our actions; but this Man has done nothing out of the way [nothing strange or eccentric or perverse or unreasonable].
Luke 23:42 Then he said to Jesus, {Lord,} remember me when You come in Your kingly glory!
Luke 23:43 And He answered him, Truly I tell you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.
There is Jesus being crucified between two criminals, one of them mocks Him, but the other realizes who Jesus is and asks Jesus to remember him when He comes into His Kingdom.
Both men are deserving of death, Jesus is in agony upon the cross and yet He turns to the man and says “to day you will be with me in paradise”. What did the man do to deserve this, he believed! He could not get baptized, or get down on His hands and knees and cry out to God I am a sinner. Jesus did not ask him to mend His ways; He just looked into His heart.
That was grace. You mean I can be saved just by believing yes – that’s grace.
Lets take the word faith, to rely upon to trust completely, faith is trust, believing, not doubting. This is what Jesus is saying, if you believe in your heart, and proclaim with your mouth you will be saved.
Lets look at Abraham, the father of the old covenant, do you think He was perfect?
Is 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has made to light upon Him the guilt {and} iniquity of us all.
No he was an Idolater, He and His family worshiped idols yet-
Rom 4:3 For what does the Scripture say? Abraham believed in (trusted in) God, and it was credited to his account as righteousness (right living and right standing with God).
He believed, he trusted God, and God accounted to him righteousness – Wow
That sounds familiar Abraham believed on God, and we believe on Jesus and God accounts it to our account as righteousness of His son Jesus – Grace.
Rom 5:1 THEREFORE, SINCE we are justified (acquitted, declared righteous, and given a right standing with God) through faith, let us [grasp the fact that we] have [the peace of reconciliation to hold and to enjoy] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
Rom 5:2 Through Him also we have [our] access (entrance, introduction) by faith into this grace (state of God's favor) in which we [firmly and safely] stand. And let us rejoice {and} exult in our hope of experiencing {and} enjoying the glory of God.
We are justified, Jesus has stood for us before His Father and justified you and said you are worthy, to belong in the Kingdom of God and not just that. He has broken the chains of death and Hell of you and set you free
John 8:32 And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.
Not only has Jesus set you free, you are free indeed. Free from the domination that Satan had over you, when he would manipulate you for his own amusement.
Eph 2:1 AND YOU [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins
We were not just asleep, we were dead, for the wages of sin is death.
Eph 2:2 In which at one time you walked [habitually]. You were following the course {and} fashion of this world [were under the sway of the tendency of this present age], following the prince of the power of the air. [You were obedient to and under the control of] the [demon] spirit that still constantly works in the sons of disobedience [the careless, the rebellious, and the unbelieving, who go against the purposes of God].
We were enemy’s of God we lived only for ourselves, and we had no control over what we did.
Eph 2:3 Among these we as well as you once lived {and} conducted ourselves in the passions of our flesh [our behavior governed by our corrupt and sensual nature], obeying the impulses of the flesh and the thoughts of the mind [our cravings dictated by our senses and our dark imaginings]. We were then by nature children of [God's] wrath {and} heirs of [His] indignation, like the rest of mankind.
God’s back was turned to us all and we were all given over to the power of Satan.
Eph 2:4 But God--so rich is He in His mercy! Because of {and} in order to satisfy the great {and} wonderful {and} intense love with which He loved us.
God’s love, we cannot even imagine that though we were a rebellious and evil child, our thoughts were to murder and hate of everything that was His. We lived as the unfaithful bride, prostituting ourselves with wickedness, full of all corruption and all things vile.
But He heard our cry.
Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings {and} trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship {and} in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him, for] it is by grace (His favor and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation).
He lifted us out of the darkness and bought us into the light He laid our sin upon His own Son and gave us His son’s Righteousness.
Eph 2:6 And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together [giving us joint seating with Him] in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
He made us brothers to Jesus, sharing His inheritance, Jesus gave His life to earn that, and we got it by God’s grace.
Eph 2:7 He did this that He might clearly demonstrate through the ages to come the immeasurable (limitless, surpassing) riches of His free grace (His unmerited favor) in [His] kindness {and} goodness of heart toward us in Christ Jesus.
Because we who were once lost in the world are now free in Christ.
Eph 2:8 For it is by free grace (God's unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment {and} made partakers of Christ's salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God;
Eph 2:9 Not because of works [not the fulfillment of the Law's demands], lest any man should boast. [It is not the result of what anyone can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself.]
You have done nothing to deserve salvation, for how could you save yourself?
So now everyone is getting scared, we are truly free truly saved, by just believing and I don’t need to do anything else, well isn’t grace dangerous I mean with no control?
Rom 6:1 WHAT SHALL we say [to all this]? Are we to remain in sin in order that God's grace (favor and mercy) may multiply {and} overflow?
Rom 6:2 Certainly not! How can we who died to sin live in it any longer?
No Because now we have a new master Jesus Christ He is our Lord therefore we no longer follow sin, lusts perversions, but we seek our Lord, you cannot serve two masters.
The power that sin had over you is broken, you no longer have to follow it.
Rom 6:5 For if we have become one with Him by sharing a death like His, we shall also be [one with Him in sharing] His resurrection [by a new life lived for God].
Rom 6:6 We know that our old (unrenewed) self was nailed to the cross with Him in order that [our] body [which is the instrument] of sin might be made ineffective {and} inactive for evil, that we might no longer be the slaves of sin.
Rom 6:7 For when a man dies, he is freed (loosed, delivered) from [the power of] sin [among men].
Jesus put our old self to death on the cross, which means that our covenant with sin has been broken annulled. Like in marriage when a partner dies the other is free, so in our death with Jesus we died to sin, and we have been born again to new life.
In fact death no longer has any hold on you for we are now living for eternity.
Rom 6:12 Let not sin therefore rule as king in your mortal (short-lived, perishable) bodies, to make you yield to its cravings {and} be subject to its lusts {and} evil passions.
Rom 6:13 Do not continue offering or yielding your bodily members [and faculties] to sin as instruments (tools) of wickedness. But offer {and} yield yourselves to God as though you have been raised from the dead to [perpetual] life, and your bodily members [and faculties] to God, presenting them as implements of righteousness.
God has given us power over sin, yes we all fall short sometimes but He is free to forgive.
1 John 1:9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned {and} confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action].
when you get saved you do not stop being a sinner God knows that, but we no longer have to offer our selves over to it.
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not [any longer] exert dominion over you, since now you are not under Law [as slaves], but under grace [as subjects of God's favor and mercy].
We don’t need to live our lives any more away from God. For God now is our Father He has adopted us as sons and heirs – We are living in Grace Amen