With Grace

 I'm sure you've heard something like this before, "God helps those who help themselves." It sounds nice and encouraging - a motivation to action; the only problem - it's not biblical. That phrase is found nowhere in the Bible, and the very idea is actually diametrically opposed to the message of the Gospel.

From the beginning of our lives we're conditioned to understand that we need to perform in order to gain acceptance or to get what we want. We've been taught the direct relationship in life between how hard we work and how much we're rewarded. Now there's nothing wrong with working hard - and I strongly encourage it as there is a strong link between hard work and success in life. Learning to work hard is important and something extremely valuable.

The problem with this idea happens when we become so conditioned by it that we carry that idea into our spiritual lives; into our understanding of our relationship with God. Let's take a quick look at a passage from Ephesians 2:4-9 (NIV)...

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, (5) made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved. (6) And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, (7) in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

(8) For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - (9) not by works, so that no one can boast.

We can sometimes forget the meaning and worth of the grace of God when we're bombarded with the pressure to perform. There's one place where you and I can stop performing and that's in the unconditional love and acceptance of Jesus Christ. The same grace that saves us can also sustain us and enable us to grow. That grace can teach us how to live here and now - without having to perform to deserve God's love. We first need to fully understand...

I. Our need for grace

No matter where we are in our spiritual journey, we all need a growing understanding and reliance upon God's grace. Even the best of us, compared to the perfection of God, is absolutely flawed; and that's being generous. The Bible is very clear that 'all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.'

Grace is the unearned love of God shown to the unlovely, the imperfect, the flawed, the hopeless, the damaged... Grace is the peace of God given to the undeserving. Grace is "God's favor toward the unworthy". In His grace, God is willing to forgive us and even bless us, despite the fact that we have not obeyed His commands - we are unrighteous.

Max Lucado wrote, "Grace is God's best idea. His decision to ravage a people by love, to rescue passionately, and to restore justly - what rivals it? Of all his wondrous works, grace, in my estimation, is the magnum opus."

I love what one preacher wrote, "Grace is the key to everything. And I am not referring to week-kneed, limp, powerless, feeble grace... but the shocking, outrageous, scandalous, indiscriminate, senseless, irrational, irreligious, ridiculous, absurd, offensive, infinite grace which Jesus exhibited during His life."

It's the kind of grace that many 'religious people' struggle with because they're almost 'offended' when grace gives those they see as 'sinners' an equal standing with them before God. But that's what God's grace does! That's the grace that people need to hear! By grace - God can love all, forgive all, accept all, with no limits! We all need grace because...

A. People are hypocrites

I know that sounds harsh, but there are times when the only word I could use to describe some of my actions is 'hypocritical'. Have you ever been there? In spite of a sincere and genuine faith in Jesus, in a moment - have you ever suddenly found yourself acting hypocritical, as if you'd never even heard of the gospel message? All of us can forget who we are - whose we are - and what we truly believe in an unexpected moment of heated emotion.

The bigger issue - do we choose to be hypocrites? Meaning, besides these "unexpected moments of hypocritical actions" - are there times when we choose to live in a determined manner that's directly contrary to God's Word?

We all have areas of our lives where we face ongoing struggles with temptation and failure. Sometimes we wonder if we'll ever begin making progress in the Christian life. For the believer, it's not a matter of whether we will sin again - it will happen at some point. It's what you choose to do at that point.

Will you choose to admit your sin, reject it - repent, turn from it - and move on, and try your hardest to never do it again...? Or will you choose to rationalize it, or minimize it, and continue to live however you want despite what God says? There's a big difference between 'momentary hypocrisy' and a lifestyle of chosen hypocrisy - a lifestyle that goes directly against God's Word.

Both require grace, but only one response will help us grow closer to God and actually closer to who God wants us to be in Christ. Growing in grace begins by fully recognizing our need for grace. To give us a better picture, I want to look at something we've discussed before, the idea of...

B. Position vs. Condition

I think the reason we have such a hard time accepting grace and accepting the fact that God can love us 'just how we are' is related to this idea of our position versus our condition. To understand this, let's look at Romans 8:1-2 (NIV)...

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, (2) because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Notice - in Christ, that's our position - where we are. And there is no condemnation for those in Christ. And then in Colossians 3:3-4 (NIV)...

For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. (4) When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Somehow, spiritually speaking, when we give ourselves over to God, accept Jesus and are baptized - our position, our place, our location is in Christ. When our sins are covered by Christ's sacrifice, we are placed 'into Jesus'. So when God looks at us, somehow, He doesn't see the condition we happen to be in at the moment - based on our sins, He sees our position, based on Jesus, He sees us 'In Christ' - He sees us as perfect. The writer of Hebrews was talking about Jesus when he wrote...

Hebrews 10:12-14 (NIV)

But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. (13) Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, (14) because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

By grace, our position is in Christ, we are seen by God as perfect. What changes as we learn and grow is our condition - 'being made holy'. The condition that we are in changes as we grow and live our lives 'in Christ'.

Having received life by the grace of Jesus Christ, one goal as Christians is to seek Christ as our life - not just turning to him for "help" to live life or for some impersonal infusion of "power" or for some magic formula that will cause our lives to "click" and become all smooth sailing... No, Jesus Christ is our life!

2 Peter 1:3-4 (NIV)

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. (4) Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

But - 'How can a person who's been given everything they need for life and godliness continue to struggle? If our position is 'in Christ' why does our condition seem to change from day to day?'

Even though we're given everything we will ever need at our spiritual birth, we still have a whole lifetime of growing in our understanding of Christ and of the riches, power and life that He's already given us! That's what growing in grace is all about. How do we change our condition so that it actually matches our position? How do we 'become Holy' even as God 'sees us' as perfect? The answer lies in...

II. Living in Christ

You can only grow in grace through your ongoing personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It's not something you can learn just by attending Church services on a Sunday morning. You have to allow Jesus to personally teach you truth from His Word, by His Spirit, which you then take out into the rough-and-tumble of real life in the real world. It isn't a matter of you becoming bigger and stronger and more confident in and of yourself, but more about you getting yourself out of the way and allowing Christ to live His life in you, and through you, and for you.

A. Grace requires submission

God's grace is freely given, but it must be humbly accepted. And for some, that's hard. I want to go back to the first passage again in Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)...

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - (9) not by works, so that no one can boast.

- Notice that word 'saved'. That act of being saved is passive, something done to you or for you. While everyone desperately needs it, grace is not all about us. Grace is an expression of God, His un-coerced initiative and demonstration of love!

Learning to live in Christ, under His grace is not about learning "10 steps to spirituality". Growing in grace is not simply the mastering of certain 'principles'. Too often we approach the Christian life as a subject to be learned rather than as a life to be lived. You can't grow in grace solely in a Sunday school classroom, even as beneficial as that is. You can only grow in grace and knowledge through submitting daily in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and constantly giving yourself over to Him.

Through the sovereignty of a loving God, the path we each will follow in this fallen world will be unique for each of us. And the truth is, if growing in grace required perfect conditions, it'd never happen - because we grow in the midst of real life. If any of us is going to grow in grace, it will be through the situations of your everyday life. That's where you will have to grow in grace and accepting God's grace.

Grace requires submission, but...

B. Submission requires honesty

I want to let you in on a little theological secret - there's a big problem with 'grace'. 'You can't say that! Heresy!' No - the problem with 'grace' is that it's unfair. Grace gives you what you don't deserve. Grace is the opposite of the idea of 'karma', which is all about getting what you deserve.

We're called, as Christians, to be Holy, to become perfect. That calling isn't just hard - let's be honest here, it's impossible for us! If I am going to run my life as I see fit, I am well aware that I would end up with a mess. And that's not an exaggeration to make a point, it's the truth. I'm not just being self deprecating - if I would have made all the decisions in my life based solely on what I wanted - apart from my faith in Jesus, my life would have ended up very different from the life I have now; and I would be very empty.

God is well aware of that fact and loves me anyway. I cannot live a perfect Christian life, so God allowed me to put my life into Jesus' hands. I know that if my focus was on me leading my life, the result would not be pretty. If, however, I fix my eyes on Jesus and follow Him, I'll be blessed. But that's not fair! It's better than fair!

Jesus said, in John 15:5-9 (NIV)...

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (6) If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

(7) If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. (8) This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (9) "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love."

The branches role - our role, is to abide, to remain in the vine, our source of life. The branch simply follows the vine and thrives without being in control. We are to continue our very dependent relationship with Jesus and allow Him to live through us. On my own, I can do nothing of any eternal significance. With Christ, stand back and see the legacy, the mark that He will leave on this world, through me!

So What?

Most weeks I end up frustrated. It seems no matter how hard I work, no matter how much I do - it's not enough. I could have spent more time preparing my message, more time in prayer, more time in study. I should have used a different video or done a different song. There's always one more person I should have called, one more meeting I should have scheduled, one more thing in the office. And when I work to catch up there - I end up neglecting something I should have done with my kids. And then I have someone remind me - 'you need to spend more time with your wife'...

I think I'm preaching grace to myself. I'm glad God's grace is so much bigger than my assessment of who I am and what I do. You can't work your way to righteousness no matter how hard you try. Some of you are a lot better at it than me - but, You need God's grace.

Because of God's amazing love and grace, when we mess up, God isn't shocked and surprised. He may be disappointed or even sometimes angry, but it's okay to turn to Him for help. In fact, it's the only thing we can do that will work. Trying to live your life on your terms, trying to live life without grace will only leave you empty. God's grace is so much bigger than we understand!

Without God's grace - we have no salvation. With God's grace - we get eternal life! Stop trying to do things to earn God's grace and start doing things in response to God's grace! When you do that, you will become much more gracious with those around you. When you do that, you'll find it much easier to share God's grace with others. When you do that, your attitudes and actions will start looking a whole lot more like those of Jesus. That's when we start to become useful to God!