The Grace of God

We increase our ability to say no to Dr. Tony Evans is God's offer to surround it with his grace is not really that was probably celebrating faithfulness. This is the alternative Dr. Tony Evans authored speaker, senior pastor of Oakland Bible Fellowship in Dallas Texas and president of the urban alternative. A lot of people think heaven is populated by those who somehow managed to be good enough to make the cut. But today Dr. Evans helps us understand how upside down that thinking is, as he explores the aspect of God's heart that saves us. Let's join today I want to talk to us remind us about the grace of God the grace of God. What makes Christianity unique among all the religions of the world can be summarized by the word grace many weaknesses, but that word is a summary word of the uniqueness. Why, because all other religions tell you what you must do to make yourself acceptable to God, what things you must perform what action must accomplish what deed you must do Christianity however is centered on what God has done to make us acceptable to him. Grace is the short definition would be merited on merited Favor. Granting kindness to an inferior, for which the theory cannot man does not deserve and would never be able to repay.

When you go to work and you get a check that's not grace you earned it and could faucet baiting if you're in a contest of competition and you win. That's not grace. You earned that through your performance that's earned. Grace is on merited favor a bigger definition is grace is the inexhaustible supply of God's goodness whereby he does for us what we could never do for us.

It is what God does for us independent of us, that's grace. If you look at Romans 11 six we read this phrase, but it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works otherwise grace is no longer grace as inscriptions want to keep in mind if you can earn it. If you deserve. It is not grace back as you see in a moment.

You can literally cancel the operation of grace by trying to earn the new look at Romans three verse 24 being justified as a gift by his grace. Grace is called a gift. You don't pay for gift so it cannot be earned if separate from works now. The first thing you need to understand is you are saying by grace.

Ephesians 2 is the premier chapter on salvation by grace. He starts off by telling us why we need to be saved by grace when you are dead in your trespasses and in your sin. Sin has separated us from God and that is the price were unable to page because God demands perfection. God is perfect. He demands perfection that is a price. Nobody can pay because nobody is perfect.

We've all seen event goes in the verse four but God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved verse eight for by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God not as a result of works, so that no one should boast. So he says that you are saved by grace, not by works. This is very twisting. In other words, you cannot earn your salvation. Many people who talk to are trying to earn their salvation.

So we'll talk about how good they are with 10 Commandments they keep, they will they will try to make themselves acceptable to a God who only accepts perfection and is not possible. You can't work your way to perfection when you've already sinned, so them in order for perfection to be met. It has to be given to grace because you can earn it, and of course sacrilegious.

521 says he who knew no sin became sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

When Romans says we are justified by the free gift of grace that means to be declared righteous. The legal term to be declared righteous. So in our salvation. When you accept Jesus Christ as your personal substitute.

God credits you with the righteousness of Christ which is perfect righteousness.

So you literally have a perfect credit score in heaven. Once you accept Christ. Could you get his credit score on your account and he's perfect so you stand before God as though you've never sinned, even though we sin because of a credit by the amount of credit on your account get is a perfect credit, but it's given to you by Christ is not earned by you, so you cannot earn heaven. I want to spend the majority of my time on grace and sanctification that is our spiritual development of spiritual growth. The same grace that saves you is the grace that grows same grace that saves you is the grace that grows you. This is why second Peter 318 says grow in grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ that is growing in your understanding of grace.

So grace is not merely an event that saves you instant atmosphere that you operated.

Here is where we get into a problem because what many people do is they use grace to get to heaven.

But the law to live the Christian life, and so they flip they flip back to a earning mentality when he says in second Peter I want you to grow in grace.

The Bible is clear that grace is different than long look at Romans 614 for sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace now under another way of operating.

So this force environment called grace is the way that you have grow in spiritual victory really should not be. Grace is first Corinthians 9 verse eight and God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything you may have an abundance for every good deed notice he can make all grace abound for everything. So grace is huge because it affects everything he says. So grace is an environment in which we live.

While grace period is now cannot be. We've already established it can't be earned. It must be accessed to you can earn it, but you must access when you become a Christian you access grace to accept Christ. But now, to live the Christian life you must still access this grace that applies everything Romans chapter 5 verse two through. We also have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace. So how how do you access grace, access grace by faith. So you place faith in Christ access it for salvation, but now you place faith to access it for spiritual development spiritual growth spiritual victory so you access grace. You don't earn is a different way of thinking. There's a major difference between the Old Testament and New Testament somethings carryover but some things do not carry over because a completely different under the Old Testament law summarized by the 10 Commandments 613 statutes and ordinances. It was performance driven. Paul makes it clear that the whole book of Galatians Galatians 5 it was for freedom that Christ set us free. Therefore keep standing firm and do not subject again subject again to the yoke of slavery.

Go back to the locks. Behold, I pulsate to you that if you receive circumcision, which was go back to lots Christ will be of no benefit to you and I testify again every man receive circumcision's that he is under obligation to keep the whole law.

You have been severed from Christ, you are seeking to be justified by law. You have fallen from grace. So he equates being severed from Christ not to lose your salvation is about losing your fellowship you severed from Christ and he calls it fallen from grace. You're no longer operating in the grace environment is changed and going back to the event. All of us have electricity in our homes. But how do we access it with access it through the vehicles set up through which it flows for electrical outlets, the wiring grace has wiring that is accessed by faith. One of the points of contact that access this huge environment called grace. Now this is where work or obedience comes in. We express our faith and our obedience are obedience that expresses faith accesses grace. We don't work to earn grace. We work to show faith. Faith accesses grace in Ephesians 2 says, by grace you say verse eight through faith that not of yourselves is the gift of God not of works, so that no one should boast.

But notice verse 10 for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God has prepared beforehand so that we should walk in them.

Please notice the works we are to walk and he's already prepared to recreating anything we are connecting with something grace is access by faith. Faith is demonstrated by obedience but the obedience is not earn grace.

The obedience is to demonstrate we trust God. Dr. Evans will continue our study of the grace of God, just a moment but first I want to tell you about prayers for knowing God is Tony's newest book is designed to help you develop a healthy and ongoing communication with God leading you to experience greater grace and peace. If you visit us right away and make a contribution will send you the prayers for knowing God book as well as all 12 full-length lessons from Tony's current teaching series God's heart revealed will be better able to recognize and appreciate God's motives, desires, and will for your life as you gain an understanding of his heart and move closer to him. This package is her way of showing appreciation for your faithful support of Tony's ministry get all the details and make your request online. Had Tony Evans.org or give us a call at one 800 832, 22 before the special offer runs out. I would keep that information for you after part two of today's message and this racial tension. I mentioned spreading like wildfire. Dr. Tony Evans talks about his book oneness embrace. I wanted to keep God's view on race and racism is not started on the seven wonders of grace explains why unity isn't just about getting along with getting things done exceptional reconciliation to serve together when we get to know each other along the way. Oneness embrace. Get yours today@tonyevans.org. One of the great passages on grace is Titus two person would be sick intimately. Titus verse 11 for the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, so with the coming of Christ comes.

This atmosphere of grace case. He brought it with him.

He brought this new environment like when a person with a new person is elected, they bring in the new administration Old Testament administration was law the reset board about law law. The laws were good.

The laws were not bad.

The laws showed you God righteous standard. The problem was the ability to keep Paul says in Romans chapter 7 he said I was fine until I saw the law was also law that is show me how bad I was with less than a policeman pulled you over for driving the speed limit above the pulled over and congratulated this assembly you are going six that is pulled you over to say thanks you know what it laws up there to pull you over and condemn when you go on 80s. They pull you over, could you break the speed limits the law is good, but it condemns it doesn't congratulate stay of works.

The law doesn't make you better. A continuing role giving your standard to be measured by but with Christ. This administration this covenant of grace was introduced and what does Grace do when it's being operated properly instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously, and godly in the present age. So guess what he deals with the deals with what we might call the pedagogy of grace. Pedagogy is teaching or instruction. So this is the instruction of grace. He says grace instructs us grace is the administration tied to a person's time to the Lord Jesus Christ. So you can have grace and not have the person who brings in the administration of grace. You'll see that moment but this grace is a teacher.

It instructs us when grace is being properly understood and lived out and lived under it teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires. It says and to live sensibly, righteously, and godly in this present me. So when were operating properly in grace, we increase our ability to say no to sin.

And yes to righteousness. That is something the law does not offer the law will continue, but it won't help you if it's good because it gives a righteous condemnation, but the Lord is not designed to help you be better is to give you the standard of what is better, but it can help you get there you can all of us of doneness New Year's lies called resolutions. We will create a law start working out of their summer. You know you don't and for a while we can gerrymander our minds and our bodies to fulfill the law, but after a while our humanity catches up with the law and the law gets broken and what we do we create a new law was a will and will start again next month, starting next year that we create a new law and the law does not work because of our flesh, our humanity. Romans seven.

Paul goes in the use of his own struggle with his own flesh. He says the law is good, but it's what some wrong with me. Not able to live up to the things I know delivered to. That's because he had not yet. This covered life in grace and if you keep reading in chapter 8 he goes into that the work of the spirit to empower keeping the law is illustration of the distinction between the washing board and the washing machine. The washing board and the washing machine had the same goal is to closely our grandmothers great-grandmother there that was important then and whatever the cloth was they were trying to clean each grub script growth is a lot of work. That's a lot of human effort to clean the close with a washing board, but in the new administration of technology washing machines were created Dragon in a mental washing machine that the impact of the washing machine still does not mean you do nothing you got together.

The close with the closing machine put the detergent in you put the bleaching and you know you and you do something, but you're doing something with faith, not in your pal. To do this, but in the power that comes with the object that was created so you participate but you participating by faith in that power, not by faith in your pal by faith in your power is law driven by flesh by faith in the water machines, I'm going to exercise my faith that I believe you can clean it by bringing Michael Stewart to do it so you look into the machine. In this case, you look grace. He says in verse 13. Looking to the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ is noted. Jesus is called what God NC as part of the Trinity is Windows verses with Jesus is called God grace is not merely a theory or any theology. It is a person when you're in trouble with the law, you will need a law book you need the Lord your somebody is trying to rob you will needed Penal Code book.

You need a policeman if you're sick, you don't need a medical book. You need a back door now. The doctor in the book should agree the policeman of the Penal Code should agree the law and the lawyer should agree, but you leave the personification of what's written in the book. So while we want the word we want the word personified. So what's this, remember I quoted second Peter 318 grow in grace and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.

How do you grow in grace by getting closer to Jesus. So the administration and the person are connected intimately. That's why John 15 talks about abiding that is intimacy with Christ will grow your experience of grace in your experience of grace will grow your your experience of spiritual victory rather than spiritual defeat. So many people try to cost and fuss and fight their way to victory and not grace their way there. So you look at the challenge you have the life of the arch of the light of the challenges of you like them that are wrong, wrong things and bad temper. You know, addictions will build the thing that is for because you want victory you want to get what is to be made right so you may promises you may resolutions whenever for a while but didn't stick when you have dirty dishes that have been there for a while you soak them you can come scrub up but the easier thing to do is to soak them what you just did by soaking them is changed in environment soap and hot water with swords. If you soak it long enough. What you would try to scrub off you know can slide off the same dirt, but being handled in a different environment out of his grace and final point will make should come service first Peter chapter 4 first 10 as one has received a special gift employed in serving one another as a good steward of the manifold grace of God you know are so hard to get people to serve because they either do not understand or do not appreciate grace.

If you really knew what God was offering and really were taking advantage of it. You would have to be big to serve baked again begged to do this to. That's it would be an overflow of gratitude because you seen with grace. If you been listening to our broadcast and you have not personally trusted Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins so that he can give you the gift of eternal life right now I want you to go to God and transfer your trust from any and everything else except the son of God, who died on the cross for your sins and rose from the dead impeccable say little prayer you can repeat after me just have to meet it for yourself. Heavenly father, I know I'm a sinner and that I can't save myself. I believe Jesus Christ your son died on the cross in my place four months in and I now am trusting him alone to forgive me and to give me the gift of eternal life that he promised to give to anyone who came to him for it. Thank you for saving me and help me from this day forward to live a life pleasing to you. Congratulations welcome to the family. God bless you and that goes for all of us here at the alternative, we encourage you to connect with a good Bible teaching church so you can grow. We also invite you to visit us at Tony Avenue and start Lord and click on the link that says Jesus there. Dr. Evans has further words of encouragement to share and plenty of downloadable resources to help you learn more now. Today's message was all about the grace of God and if you'd like to get a copy of this lesson to review again share with a friend. It's available in its entirety on both CD and digital download. Better yet, get it is a part of that special, limited time package I mentioned earlier, including all 12 full-length messages in the God's heart revealed series along with Tony's brand-new book prayers for knowing God. All these are our gift to you our way of saying thanks when you make a contribution to help support Tony's ministry. Just contact us at 1-800-800-3222 to make the arrangements resource team members are standing by to assist you again the number 1-800-800-3222, or make a request online@tonyevans.org again that's Tony.org sometimes life gets so stormy that we wonder if are going to make it through the next time Dr. Evans will explain that even when things are at their worst. There's something bigger at work than the storm. I hope you'll join us. The alternative with Dr. Tony advances back to fighting an alternative celebrating 40 years of faithfulness.

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