849. What Makes Grace So Amazing? Part 1

Welcome to The Daily Platform, our program features sermons from Chapel services Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina, whether it's the general Chapel service for the whole student body or services for those in the ministerial class or seminary. Everyone at the school is blessed by the preaching of the word each day from the chapel platform today on The Daily Platform will hear an evangelistic message preached by BJ you president Steve Pettit, which was preached to the student body at the beginning of the 2020 fall semester. This is part one of the sermon from Romans 324 titled what makes Grace so amazing. Romans chapter 3 tonight we read verses 19 down to verse 24 and I'm going to actually focus our attention on one verse is sort of the conclusion of the whole passage of Scripture were poor. Paul is is talking about how person can be rightly related to God. Even though he's a sinner. How does God do this, how does this happen, how does he make it happen. And that's really what verse 24. In a nutshell is all about. So let me read it to you. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. I wonder how many of you have ever heard of a man named John Newton, Gov. John is a very well-known famous Christian throughout world history but a lot of people know his story. Otherwise, goofy haircut there but anyway that's what you slick light. When John was seven years old he went through a very heartbreaking trial where his godly mother who actually totting the Bible when he was little boy suddenly died 11 years old. He left school when he joined the ship and he began to live the life of the sailor back in his day course that was a very wicked lifestyle, a lifestyle of immorality rebellion so much sin he served on a number of ships that worked off the coast of west Africa and the slave trade, business, eventually became the captain of his own ship great capture transported he would sell slaves to the West Indies and to America. However, on 10 March 1748, as he was sailing back from Africa to England. He went to a very fierce and very frightening storm. It is we would say they put the fear of God in him. He got scared so he began to do a search, he didn't forget the words that his mother spoke into his heart when he was a little boy he began to read religious books of this day and through this process. God sowed in the heart of John Newton the seeds of eternal salvation to the word of God, and John was converted and accepted Jesus as his savior God radically transformed his life. He left slave trading and he actually became a crusader against it for an abolition of slavery in England.

He was part of supporting a young man named William Wilberforce who bled that he went on to tell his life story and he was most famous for the fact that he was a hymn writer. He wrote 282 him to be exact in his most famous hymn was entitled Faith's review and expectation. You probably have never heard bad, but you've heard of the name. It was changed to later own and is the song amazing Grace tonight. I want to speak to you as the Lord helps me on the theme. What is it that makes Grace so amazing because really we should be all we should be stunned. We should as they were in the Bible astonished and they marvel at the grace of God that is found in Jesus Christ his son said, and I don't want to see three very simple truth that we find here in Romans 324 about what it is that makes Grace so amazing a number one the first thing we see is that grace is amazing because of what it it's not you think about it. On the one hand, the word grace is it's a beautiful word is never viewed as an ugly word. I mean before a meal we say grace when somebody does something for us out of kindness. We are grateful we eat a meal and we leave it to a tip we call it gratuity when somebody does something for us.

They don't charge us. They call it gratis.

If a bill is overdue and you pay it late, but you don't get a penalty or fine. We call that a grace period when somebody gets in trouble, we say maybe we should show them a little grace we call our daughters grace we call our churches grace the word grace is definitely a beautiful word but when we understand that from a biblical perspective it's actually a shocking and the reason why why it's shocking is because of what it does.

What does it do it says in verse 24 being justified freely. What is grace do it justifies sinners now let me explain it in a way that I hope that you not only understand it, but you will feel it on 22 July 1992 police stumbled across a man standing on a street corner with handcuffs zone in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The man claimed that he had just escaped from another man you been trying to kill him. So the police were then led to an apartment where upon further investigation, the apartment turned out to be a chamber of horrors's for when they walked in they found the floor littered with skulls and bones when they opened up the freezer they found human body parts in the apartment belong to Manning Jeffrey Dahmer and the police had stumbled across they had uncovered one of the most gruesome killing sprees in American history where 17 men and boys over a period of 14 years had been sodomized and cannibalized.

Dahmer was convicted of his crime and he was sentenced to life in prison so question if the judge knowing Dahmer's guilt set him free by absolving him from his guilt and declaring him righteous. That is why with the wall. What would you say about the judge, you would say he is evil he is corrupt he is as guilty as Dahmer now here is the question of Romans three is the question of the ages. It is the question every one of you need to ask yourself, and it is this how can God who is righteous and just in perfect and holy part in somebody who is guilty without the penalty of their sin being paid for is it right for a judge to pardon a Dahmer who was guilty for his crimes.

What is that say for a judge. How can he do that and be righteous and that's what grace is all about, because it does something that defies logic. It goes against the natural way we think that God can pronounce an unrighteous person, righteous, and he can do it in a righteous way.

The grace of God is amazing because it can pardon us of our sins and God can legally declare us righteous and he can do it without any charge to us without us doing anything and this is not a trick. This is the truth of God. God's grace is amazing because of what God's.

And yet at the same time, he maintains his own righteousness. That leads me to the second point, and that is grace is amazing not only because what it does it justifies sinners grace is amazing because of how it is accomplished. How did God do this and we actually find the answer here in verse 24 when he says being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Number of years ago I was flying back from the country of Greece. My trip was from Athens to Frankfurt West Germany and then to the United States, and so on my leg from Frankfurt, from Athens to Frankfurt, I sat next to a Greek man who was from the island of Cyprus.

I began to witness to them and share with him the gospel.

I told the man that I'd actually study Greek when I was in seminary here at Bob Jones University and II actually talk to him about the Lord from Romans chapter 3, and in particular verse 24 and when we came to verse 24 him understanding knowing that the Bible was originally written, written in Greek and that I'd study Greek. He asked me about two words in verse 24. The first 40 said, what is the Greek word for for grace. I remember that as it is the word Carl Reese. He said that I know that means he says. That means that do somebody a favor by here I am talking to this guy about the Lord needs tell me what the Bible means God does you a favor and get ready to buy. Do your favor ever ask anybody hey would you do me a favor, would you please take me to.

So when God justifies you he declares you righteous he's doing it as a favor to you and a favor is not something you charge you don't charge people for fame for faint favors. It's done for you and it's free. And folks understand God whatever he does for us.

It is something he does for us freely and as a favor to us.

Then he asked me the word redemption, he said, what is the Greek word for redemption and I thought one is the Greek word for redemption and the Lord really help me to remember is amazing. I usually would not remember it. He said I sent is the word little neutron. He said all I said I know what that means. He says that means to pay the price to buy a slave and then the setting free and others thinking cool interpretation and so I took the verse being justified freely by his grace buys favor through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. And then I preached to him how it was that Jesus Christ was the cane was wanted came to set us free from the slavery of the bondage of our sin. Christ is the one who, prior to desire freedom from our sin, and probably the greatest illustration of this in the Bible is the story in the Old Testament that every Jewish boy and girl learns my heart.

It is the story of redemption of the Jewish people from the bondage of the king of Egypt named Pharaoh when God delivered them through a little lamb called the Passover. What's the story about God was going to deliver redeem the Jewish people. They were slaves living under the control of Pharaoh and God sent to deliver name Moses and God said to Pharaoh, let my people go. He said no I'm not going to do it is so God began to sin through Moses.

Various plagues to motivate him to turn and change his mind, but instead it hardened his heart and finally after nine plagues God said that their 10th win will come and he will let you go. He will release you from your slavery and that 10th plague was sending an angel of death in the home of everyone living in Egypt and taking the life of every firstborn son in every firstborn, firstborn, animal but God came to the Jewish people because they were God's people and he said there's going to be a way for you to be protected from the angel of death, and that is it is going to be through a lamb. Now that would defy logic. It did make sense.

But God said, take a lamb of the first year a little lamb one euro and bring it into your house for three days. Why three days number one for inspection to make sure that this lamb had no spot or blemish. It was a clean lamb but and secondly I want you to bring it in your house, not only for inspection but for affection you say you can't bring a little lamb and a home and the children not make it a pet and give it a name, and love it. There's a reason why God did that because he said after three days I want to take a lamb and I want to kill it and I believe God wanted that lamb killed after three days to break the heart of everyone in that family of knowing that that lamb's blood was being spilled for them, because God said take the blood put it in a base in a bowl and I want to take the blood smeared on the doorpost of the house and here's my promise to you that if you put the blood on the doorpost when I Passover that night. I'm going to see that that that blood instead of coming into your house and you experiencing death. I'm going to pass over you and you're going to live and every child and every parent in every and in every uncle and every grandparent was sitting in that house knowing that night that they were delivered from the powerful angel of death because of the blood of that land that was on the doorpost and while they were in that house.

What were they doing, they were taking that roasted lamb that cooked lamb and they were consuming the lamb and they were feeding upon the lamb and they were receiving the lamb because the lamb was there deliverance and the lamb became their life.

And when Jesus began his ministry was baptized by John the Baptist at the Jordan River and John saw Jesus what he calling the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world, who is the one that delivers us from God's judgment who has a big bet that is is the one who gives his blood to deliver us.

It is God's land is Jesus we are redeemed through the blood of the Lamb. We are not redeem with silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. And so Paul writes here. Romans three is explaining what defines human logic that we are saved by this lamb who went and died for us.

God is able to justify us, not because of what we do, but because of what Jesus did when he died is a spotless lamb on the crawl go back tonight in your mind if you will 2000 years ago to the city of Jerusalem is another hot day in April it's Friday morning and death is in the air.

Why because the Romans are planning on execution three men have been chosen to be put to death through crucifixion.

The crowd gathers outside the city walls of the place of execution called skull Hill or Golgotha's ride on a busy road a great place for people to see that you can't mess with the government of Caesar in get away with it word spreads like wildfire because one of the men being put to death was a rabbi named Jesus of Nazareth. Crucifixion begins at 9 o'clock sharp iron spikes are driven through the hands of the feet and the feet of the criminals and now they are nailed to a tree. When you look at those three crosses the one in the middle the center crosses where Jesus was hanging and it looks like he's not gonna make it is not gonna survive. He's Artie been beaten severely. The skin is hanging off his back and tatters.

His face is been beaten and bruised his body is covered in blood. It's it's just a horrible site to look at while he hangs on the cross he speaks some words he talks to the soldiers and he mutters he utters father forgive them for they know not what they do. He speaks to one of the thieves on the cross insisted that you'll be with me in paradise and then not far away was his mother and he says some words to his mother and then suddenly at noon after three hours.

The Bible says darkness falls upon the whole land become so quickly. At one moment the sun is right overhead and the next moment it looks like it goes on vacation in the darkness is as dark as pitch black night for three long hours, Jesus hung on that cross and you could hear him crying from the cross. I first my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me, and then suddenly is the darkness it descended. Now it disappears at 3 o'clock in the afternoon at the hour of sacrifice in the temple, and all eyes are focused on the center cross, Jesus is there at the point of death, his strength is almost gone.

His struggle is nearly over and then suddenly he shall a reverberating statement he cries out.

It is finished and then a few moments later he dies what did Jesus mean when he said it is finished with the means to complete something or to finish something successfully.

It's what the mountain climber says when it reaches the top of Mount Everest and he says it's finished is what you say when you turn in your final task your senior year of college and now your college careers concluded and you say it is finished is what you say when you make your last house payment and you say it's finished is the word that was used in Bible days when you paid your taxes is finished. It literally means paid in full.

Why did Jesus die. Why did he have to die because God is too holy to let you into heaven with your sins and God is too loving not to do something about it.

And so, through the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. God accepted his dad in his blood as the payment price for our sins. How can God justify a sinner. He does it through Jesus. He does it through his bloodshed through his sacrifice. And here is the favor of God in here is grace. No matter how many sins you have piled up in your lifetime.

No matter how guilty you think you are or how bad you have been. No matter what you would done in your past that still presently holds you in the present when you come to Jesus Christ by faith, not by works, not by anything.

You do what is a humble and broken center. What will he do with your sins he will stamp them pay and follow. It is furnished.

I remember the day I got saved. The age of 19 years old, is a freshman in college I didn't grow up in a Christian home letting go to. I did have a Christian education. I was a public school kid. I didn't know anything about salvation until I was 17 years old is a junior public high school and a friend of mine shared the gospel with me and I didn't get saved right then because I didn't want to get say went off to college in Charleston, South Carolina. The school called the Citadel and there my freshman year I tried out for the varsity soccer team and I made the team that year, nearly 2 of us on the team that were freshman myself with a wall calendar. My who became a best friend got a Maxie Birch who was a scholarship player little what I've known in the planning providence of God that he would broaden my life a born-again Bible believing Christian love the Lord and he would share the gospel with me would tell me over and over Pettit.

You need to get say that I knew I needed to get say I had all kinds of stuff going through my head.

One moment I thought is too bad to get saved another moment. I didn't know if I wanted to get say that I did not my why I want my life to change the problem I had is a problem that all sinners have and that is we love our sins. Men loved darkness more than they love the light you you love your sin if you don't get born again you cannot die and go to hell. I will say it again if you don't get born again you gonna die and go to hell you know why because you love your sin and you love your darkness and you love your way. And if God did not work in my heart, and the Holy Spirit is not begin to change something on the inside of me. I would've never come to the and on Easter Sunday 19 775 coming back from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Listen to a preacher over the radio, preach the gospel and he preached the simple message of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and in that message you clicked it dawned on me, God love me and Jesus died for me and that his grace will forgive me and God will forgive me of all of my sins. I'm quite confident that I was probably worse at my age than anybody in this room I I I I don't say that proudly I don't say that I'm not trying to boast but I'm quite confident that I was probably worse than any body in this room and what grace, what makes Grace so amazing is that God will freely justify any center that comes to him. God does not sell you salvation. He gives you salvation. He's not offering salvation at eye half price deal. He is offering salvation free of charge. He pays the full price.

And Jesus paid it all and you don't pay anything if you try to pay pay for your salvation.

It means that you don't think he paid it all. He left no unfinished business and went, what he came to do. He did, and when you come to Jesus no matter what your sins are, no matter what your life is been like he will forgive you. He will clinch you he will wash you. He will make you his child. He will adopt you into his family. He will deliver you from slavery and set you free.

He will take you who's in an enemy and make you his very best friend. He will take you who are condemn and he will declare you righteous. He will clean you up. He will make you suitable for the master and he will use your life for his glory.

Amazing grace. Unfortunately, that's all the time we have for today's sermon titled what makes Grace so amazing from Romans 324. Join us again tomorrow is will hear the conclusion of the sermon preached at an evangelistic service at Bob Jones University. I'm Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Thank you for listening to The Daily Platform.

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