“Grace Be with You All”

What is it look like for someone to be saved because it involved perfect church attendance or moral living or going to a Bible study may be leading a Bible study.

All of these are good things, but they're completely useless.

If we fail to understand the crucial element behind salvation. Find out what that is why we needed today on Truth for Life as Alister read concluding our study make a book with me oh Lord, show me your self within your word.

Show me myself and show me my Savior and make a book with to me for Jesus sake. Amen is not uncommon for us to come to the Scriptures with that prayer I do so purposefully unhappy for it to become well known and well worn, and along with it.

The old Anglican prayer that we use from time to time with the three requests what we know not teach us what we have not give us what we are not make us and when we pray that before we come to the Bible. The obvious question is on what basis. On what basis do we anticipate that God will answer that prayer and the answer in one word is on the basis of grace and Paul in writing to Titus began his letter with grace in verse four of chapter 1 right in the very heart of it all. In verse 11 of chapter 2, he addresses the reality of grace appearing in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and then as you can see here the very end he finishes with grace once again the story of the good news is not good is not good advice about what men and women are supposed to do to make themselves acceptable to God. Rather, it is the story of good news of what God has done on behalf of sinners, to make it possible for them to know him and so repetitively purposefully I want to speak to you again this morning. On this final session to leave you with the phrase grace be with you all. Grace be with you all. Let's first of all defining grace that may give you two definitions that can run together if you like the undeserved love of God to men and women revealed in Jesus, or if you prefer. This God's acting in spontaneous goodness to save sinners if we don't get this right and many don't get it right then the church that doesn't get it right will fall into one of two gullies on either side of the pathway marked grace gully number one is that of legalism where people do not understand the nature of the grace of God, then they will seek to obey God with the wrong motive obeying God somehow or another seeking to put points on his scoreboard if you like the gully on the other side is the gully of antinomianism seemed like a big one but it isn't really normal. This is Greek for law and he is against law and therefore the antinomian is the person who says since God has executed an not guilty verdict on our behalf. In Jesus, then there is no place for the law anymore in our lives. You hear people say, very probably were not under law but under grace which of course we are. The Bible says that as a means of salvation. The findings of the matter is that the law of God is written in the heart of the child of God, in order that we might know what it is to love God.

If you love me.

Jesus said, you will keep my commandments. So that if you don't understand grace. You either keep commandments like a crazy person seeking to secure God's favor by your deeds and your righteousness while you say I don't I don't think we were told to do with deeds of righteousness and so in the Scriptures help us out. Don't because the balance is out in such a way that we understand that the grace of God humbles the proud heart that is committed to self-justification and it condemns the lazy and irresponsible lacks life that is the life of the person who is antinomian.

With that said, what I like to do is use the three requests of the prayer as the points or headings are for this meditation on grace itself. So the first heading, then, is what we know not grace teachers. The Bible doesn't set out to give as a scientific textbook science is discovered as a result of empiricism as a result of investigation know what the Bible gives us is the setting forth none of science by the setting forth of the story of salvation the whole story of the Bible is the story of what God has determined to do to put together a people that are his very own through his covenant expressed in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Finally, and seemingly so when you come to the Bible you discover things that you don't discover anywhere else while they may have been written as a result of them being discovered in the Bible but the truth of the Bible on their hats on full staying stewards that you don't really bump up against.

Otherwise Lemme just list them for you. Not all of them but some of first of all, the Bible tells her that we were created in God's image. It also goes on to tell us that that image in which we've been created which gives as a dignity as men and women.

That image has been marred or it is been spoiled by sin, so that when Adam and Eve fall rebel against God.

The image of God in man is spoiled at that point and all of those who are included in Adam all of humanity, all within the Bible and goes on to tell us that despite man's rebellion, God is her continual lover and a seeker.

And it tells us of his eternal plan is plan from all of eternity to see men and women. It tells us that in the execution of a plan conceived a minute in eternity. One member of the Trinity, namely, the son of God came as a substitute for sinners income to show people how they can make themselves acceptable to God. He came to those who by nature are unacceptable to God to die in their place will come back to is the Bible and then it tells us that he triumphed over sin and over death and the gray and the evil one in his resurrection and then thousands that the same Jesus has been exalted to the highest place in heaven that having gone to heaven. He has send the Holy Spirit to indwell lowlifes of those who believe to convince the world of the truth of Jesus to convict men and women of their sins, and to rescue men and women from guilt and from alienation and ultimately to rescue from mortality itself so that the last enemy that will finally be destroyed is death itself, and in a new heaven and in a new era, there will be no more death.

There will be no more cancer. There will be no more of that stuff at all because all things will be made new. Why are all these horrible things going on in the world because were living in between the. Where the new and the old colliding with one another because we live in a fallen world and the world that God made the world that we know are two different worlds, the world we know is not the world as God made it but is the world as we have spoiled really bad once and this Jesus came for bad ones to make as new ones, and even when he makes his new ones were still bad.

New ones, and that's why he's going to have to make us finally all that he intends for us to be in a new heaven and a new forgiveness that is free, that is on Aaron, a religion that begins with grace, and not with the attempts at self-righteousness story of a new life that is given to those who have done nothing to deserve it and you have done everything to deserve judgment as a story of grace. So what we don't know. Grace teaches us. Secondly, what we don't have grace gives us CS Lewis in mere Christianity. In chapter 5 makes this point is quite a long quote but is purposeful. He says if the universe is not governed by an absolute goodness in all our efforts are in the long run, hopeless. But if it is, then we are making ourselves enemies tonight goodness every day and are not in the least likely to do any better tomorrow and so our case is hopeless again and hangs on to say, Christianity tells people to repentance and provides them forgiveness and therefore has nothing to say to people who do not know that they need forgiveness seriously was goes on to say is after you have realized that there is a real moral law and the power behind the law and that you have broken the law and put yourself in the wrong with that power is after all this and not a moment sooner that Christianity begins to talk. Now Christianity starts to speak to us because now we found that there is a place somewhere that I can go will resolve my predicament because you see the real question the princes and opponents, and genuine faith does not begin until it does. Press in upon us is how can I get rid of my sins, get rid of receipts.

Only when we see our predicament before God when we see ourselves.

We then understand the significance of seeing our Savior. I was our prayer wasn't made the move left a meal, Lord show is your self within your word.

Help us to know that this book is about Eugene and then show me myself and then show me my Savior see the Bible has the first show is our predicament before the solution means anything to is at all. CS Lewis actually finishes that little statement when he says when you are sick then you will listen to the doctor.

Some of us we don't like to go to the doctor when we go to the doctor. I we tell them how how wonderfully healthy we are, how you feel how you feel about your standing before God is a terrific gleaming like you feel like the guy in locating feel great been given my offering been attending in your clicking nicely for me. I see the problem is that the law of God demands complete obedience yet to get 100 on the test. 99 snow 43 certainly horrible and not only does it men complete demand complete obedience to its to the precepts of the law, but it demands the full insurance of the penalty for breaking those presets. How in the world am I going to get out of this predicament answer to that in a word is grace. See, this is the wonderful story the wonder of grace, that although we are sinners and we placed ourselves where God ought to be as aware on the throne.

Jesus has placed himself where we deserve to be dying in the place of sinners. That's why we go again and again to two Corinthians 521, that he who knew no sin became sin for us, in order that we might become the righteousness of God in him. If you're tracking with me you will recognize two that it is only as we said Grace teaches is these things and it is only grace that provides us with these things is only when we start to read the Bible and start to listen to the story of the Bible that we might come to an understanding of the thigh that this is actually the very truth of God and when we come to the conviction that this is actually true.

That doesn't mean that we have now believed, but we have actually advanced from simply saying I really what this is all about. Now we find ourselves Inc. I think that's true I minister this would happen to Saul of Tarsus is not means all of Tarsus didn't come to our church service and decide to become a follower of Jesus Saul of Tarsus grand jury services except the killing people even going to synagogue services. The pool needs people out take them away chain. The mom get rid of them. He was the fellow who was present when Stephen was marked and what happened to Saul of Tarsus was that the grace of God intervened in his life, gradually, progressively, gently, unmistakably, so that when the light shone from heaven was brighter than the noon day sun. You can read about it in acts chapter 9. It wasn't simply that it blinded him physically, but it shone into the darkness of his blindness and open his eyes to the reality of the five that he was actually prosecuting the risen Lord Jesus Christ and suddenly all a lot of things must've fallen into place. He must've said to himself, or that explains why that Stephen guy was able to face that stoning with such amazing faith and confidence. The grace of God ever shown into your heart, the darkness likeness. Thirdly and finally, what we know, not grace teaches what we have not.

Grace gives and finally what we are not.

Grace makes us when their Sunday school teachers taught me about grace they give me an acronym to know this God's riches at Christ's expense when he taught me the nature of justification. They told me that it was when we trusted in Christ. We were justified by grace and then it God views it viewed as just as if we never send just as if we never said that's good but is not really accurate because in Christ, we are not simply put, back to the Garden of Eden, which would be to be back in the position of Adam and Eve pre-sin. But in Christ all of his righteousness is credited to our account is not simply that we have now, but a zero balance but that all of the righteousness of God has been granted to us and we have become heirs of eternal life. See what this means. It sets us free from the dreadful tyranny of trying to make ourselves acceptable to God and allows us to find our identity in the Lord Jesus Christ.

It engenders within the believer a humility that does not to see everything in terms of oneself and it provides a security for time and for eternity because once we are in Christ, we are in him forever be finishing this way this forgiveness is not mechanical or in personal Jesus doesn't impose salvation on those who don't want it and he doesn't deny salvation to those who do want because Jesus Christ made provision for sin. All men and women are not automatically forgiven and that's why when Paul writes in two Corinthians 5. He says we beseech you in Christ behalf, or we implore you, embrace behalf to receive this reconciliation. This reconciliation that is been provided for you in Jesus in taking your place and dying in the place of the sinner you appropriateness to yourself.

You take it to yourself as our other acumen is not faith forsaking all I trust him forsaking all I trust we finish with the two men back in the temple.

The Pharisee is a picture of self-justification. He felt good about things, but his feelings didn't correspond to the state of his soul, yet that if some incentives are how you feel about things. I feel great. I come up here regularly.

I do more than my fair share, legalistic obedience all I fast I start doing a lot of other things and I'm certainly not like a lot of the people are coming here to Parkside church. I really feeling pretty good about myself or Lynn yet his feelings were great. They didn't correspond to his soul. Is it only for those of you who would like me Sunday by Sunday to send you away feeling good about yourself, you realize it's a really is a tall order for me to do is, indeed, if I'm sending you away sin myself away from the Bible continually say I feel great about myself. The chances are were not getting present doesn't mean we should go away feeling horrible about ourselves and the issue it means that we should go away with a true understanding of ourselves and a true understanding of Jesus and a true understanding of grace the tax collector's speech is much shorter God be merciful to me, this is is not appealing to God's better nature is not is not is not thinking to himself, or maybe going to let me off. I've been such a horrible rascal know he's the kind of person.

He's the kind of girl who sits in church like this and they see themselves. I hope I hope nobody in here knows what I'm really like.

I hope nobody in here knows all the things that I have done. In fact I'm surprised that a large chunk of the ceiling is not fallen down and hit me on the head just for coming in here if there's any way God that I can be forgiven. There's any way that I can be cleansed. See this fellow must've looked across in the temple area and seen seen the altar with the blood on the altar and realized himself that that forgiveness that is offered via that altar is at some great cost but he had no speech to me only a plea there's little doubt that some of you who are listening to me know have never ask God to pardon you as this man did deep down inside you know yourself to be guilty. Deep down inside you know that you're in the wrong with God but instead of 10. Yet, and crying out for forgiveness and acknowledging that you're a sinner you bury and you bury it in religious professionalism.

You tell yourself things about how much better you've been doing from how you were previously doing. Why are you doing because you don't understand the grace of God. You don't understand that you can never deal with that predicament. In that way. The only way to deal with is to look away from yourself to look away into that bloodstained altar to look away to the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ and to say Lord, be merciful to me, this Jesus that I tell you that it was this man that went down to his house justified declared righteous set free from the condemnation that Mark 10 ask you again. Have you ever have you ever ask God to pardon you this amended and you find yourself saying yeah I get all of this and actually I do believe the light is shining into my heart when my supposed to do while the answer to that is very very straightforward. One of the dealers who was looking after Paul asked the very same question and he said I will must I do to be saved. And Paul said, believe, believe.

My nose was to join a class or something nice was due something, give something believe believe the vilest offender who truly believes that moment from Jesus. Pardon receives if we don't really understand grace missed the whole point of the gospel.

Grace is what makes the gospel good news, listening to Truth for Life Alastair back with a message called grace be with you all. If you listen regularly to truth for like to know we are careful about selecting books to help you grow in your faith in the book were talking about today is in line with that goal. It's a book titled lessons from the upper room by Sinclair Ferguson in the book Sinclair invites us to experience what it might've been like to actually being in the private upper room with Jesus and his disciples as they shared their final meal together. This is a close-up look at the section of Scripture known as the upper room discourse. John chapters 13 through seven you read lessons from the upper room will learn more about Jesus deepest desires for his disciples.

The book is yours. When you give a donation to support the ministry of Truth for Life to give, click the book and reducing of the mobile app or visit us online@truthforlife.org/about Lapine is tithing still relevant in our day, or is it an outdated practice. The answer to this frequently asked question. Join us Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life where the Learning is for Living