Titus 2:11-14;
Ephesians 2:1-5
One of the distinctive features of Biblical
religion is the emphases on the Grace of God. No other system of religion, past
or present contains this description of divine grace. Grace is the story of the
love of God for His creation. Scripture tells us that all have sinned. It says
that the wages of sin is death. It says that the soul that sinneth shall die.
Sin is so powerful in its effect that all human beings and even other creatures
of God have been affected by its power.
What
is sin (1John 5:17)? Sin is transgression against the law of God, deviating away from
the law of God – the moral code for humanity. It is the breaking of God’s Law.
For instance, if God says do not steal, lie or kill, and you steal, or lie or
kill, you have broken the law of God and so you have sinned. The moral Law of
God which are contained in the Ten Commandments are not an arbitrary set of
rules. They are based on God’s Holiness. They are the Moral Code for humanity.
Breaking these laws insults God’s holiness! Breaking God’s laws offends God. This
is what is called sin. Sin alienates us from God, distances us from God, it
separates us, isolates us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2). When a lion wants to kill
an animal, it will first try to isolate it from the park. That is similar to
what the devil does (1Peter 5:8). You can begin to see why there is so much
evil in the world today. Because majority of people today are mindless of the
moral code of God, there is so much evil in the world. But God sent Jesus
Christ to deliver the world from sin and self-destruction. And this is the
theme of our text today. So the Grace of God is the provision of God to deal
with the sin of His people without them having to pay the penalty of sin. Jesus
paid the penalty of sin so that all who come to God by Him will receive pardon
for their sins. The Grace of God brings salvation. Three subsections will be
considered.
(i)
The Description of God’s Grace
(ii)
The Deeds Of God’s Grace in the
Godly
(iii)
The Doings of the Graceless and
Godless
What is Grace? (i) It is God’s favour to undeserving sinners. It is described as unmerited favour; (ii) Grace gives us what we do not deserve, and withholds from us what we do deserve. This means that we were sinners condemned to die and pay the penalty of sin eternally in hell fire. But through the Grace of God He sent Jesus to die on the cross so that we who believe might be saved from sin and its consequences. So Grace gives us mercy which we do not deserve and withholds judgement which we deserve. (iii) Grace brings us to God’s salvation. Salvation is the deliverance from sin and from its consequences. It is the deliverance from the judgement of God against sin and from eternal damnation. Salvation is deliverance from worldliness, ungodliness and worldly lusts (James 4:4; Luke 4:5-7; 1John 2:15-17). The grace of God delivers us from love of the world and friendship with the world.
Many books have been written about God’s
Grace. Many wonderful hymns have been written. Of all the songs about grace,
John Newton’s Amazing Grace stands out as the all-time great.
Amazing
grace! How sweet the sound
That
saved a wretch like me
I
once was lost but now I am found
Was
blind but now I see
There are many teachers and pastors and
theologians who believe today that once you raise your hand and confess Jesus
as Lord, you are saved and can never be lost again. All this is based on some
misreading or isolated scriptures (Jude 24; John 10:28-29; Rom.8:38-39, etc).
Brethren, security in Christ is for every believer. Our security becomes
eternal once we get into Heaven. While we are here there are battles to fight.
The flesh is still there. Satan is still there. You will still be tempted to
break God’s commandments. Your faith in Christ will be tested. You salvation
will be tested. Your commitment to God will be tested. There will be
opportunity to sin!
Let us put this in context. If a murderer
becomes a Christian, but then after goes back to a life of murdering people and
dies in that state, will he go to heaven as a result of eternal security? There
is no limit to how this might be extended…, an adulterer…? A thief… (Rom.6:1-23;
1Cor.6:9-10; Heb.6:1-8). Is it possible for a believer to become apostate? Yes.
If so then it is possible to lose your salvation if you remain in sin.
If you are saved, but you have now fallen
back into some of the things you left behind, you need to rush back to Christ
and confess those sins and ask God for forgiveness, restoration and revival.
2.
The Deeds Of Grace In The Godly (Titus 2:11-14; Eph.2:10)
What does Grace do in us? What is the work
of Grace in the believer?
(a)
Salvation (Tit.2:11). The Grace
of God provides salvation. Without God’s grace, you cannot be saved. And if you
are not saved because you have not received the grace of God, if you die in
that state, you will go to hell. The verdict of God is that the wages of sin is
death. Salvation will deliver from death – eternal death. If we accept the
grace of God it will lead us to salvation.
(b)
Sanctification (Tit.2:12) The Grace
of God leads to sanctification. We are enabled to live soberly, righteously and
Godly. Sanctification is also translated holy or holiness. Sanctification is
sometimes described as the removal of the Adamic nature, the inbred sin, the
principle or motion of sin (Ezekiel 36:25-27). The grace of God works in us to
take away the principle of sin and put the righteousness of Christ within us!
But Grace does not exempt us from holiness and grace does not permit us to go
on sinning. We are charged not to receive the grace of God in vain (2Cor.6:1).
The work of grace must be seen in us. The effect of grace must be seen in us.
Should we fold our hands, relax and not be watchful once we have received God’s
grace? No. We must deny ungodliness. That is action. We must deny worldly
lusts. That is action (Rom.12:1-2; Eph.4:17-22). We are told to “PRESENT YOUR BODIES” as living
sacrifices to God. Your body becomes the temple of the Holy Spirit
(1Cor.6:18-20). What does that mean to you? There are things to put off and
there are things to put on!
(c)
Glorification (Titus 2:13-14).
Looking for that blessed hope – the glorious appearing of our Lord and Saviour,
Jesus Christ. When we live in the grace of God we will constantly look up for
appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ (John 14:1-3). The grace of God prepares us
for the mansions above. When the trumpet shall sound we shall be changed
91Cor.15:51-52; 2Thes.4:16-18). We shall be changed from mortality into
immortality. We shall be changed from corruption into glory. We shall see
Jesus, We shall see Abraham Noah. We shall see Methuselah. We shall see Enoch.
We shall see David. We shall see the prophets. We shall see the apostles of
Jesus. We shall all the saints of God and will shall all dwell in glory.
The Bible is a complete book. It does not
leave us in doubt about God’s judgement against the unrighteousness of man. You
can find several lists of sin in various parts of the New Testament. Among
those lists you will find what ungodly people who do not have the grace of God
do with their lives. My brothers and sisters, you are warned. Be not deceived.
The unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God. Those who live this kind
of lifestyle are in danger of eternal damnation. If you have not been born
again, and you are living an ungodly life, you are in danger of hell fire. You
need to repent today and receive the grace of God that leads to salvation
sanctification and glorification. If you have been born again, but you have
backslidden, you too are in danger of damnation and hell fire. Repent today and
receive the grace of God that leads to salvation, sanctification and
glorification.
The trumpet shall soon sound and we all
shall be changed. We will all go into immortality. Let us close with (Daniel
12:2-3). Where will you spend eternity?
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