Sunday, April 22, 2012

The Grace Gate

The Grace Gate!
April 22, 2012
Romans 5:2

Introduction
  • Have you ever wondered, have I really been forgiven?
  • Has God really wiped out that sin which I committed?
  • We sometimes find it hard to experience forgiveness
  • The first step to restoring relationship with God, is to bring ourselves and our sin, to Him
  • Our sins separated us from god, now we need these sins removed from us
  • God provided a way to take care of this, in the old testament
  • When the Israelites were told to make the tabernacle, there was a courtyard around the tabernacle.
  • It was made of posts covered with fine linen, on the north, west and south sides
  • On the east side was a 30 foot entrance, which was special, the white linen was embroidered with blue purple and scarlet yarn
  • When people would come to ask for forgiveness of their sins, they would bring their sin offering to the gate, or entrance
  • The priest would instruct them to bring their goat to the place of slaughter, lay their hands on the head of the goat, and then the person who had sinned had to slaughter the goat of the sin offering
  • The priest would pray for the man and he would be forgiven
  • Nothing is said about doing penance, or payment of money
  • All that had to be done was a symbolic act, transferring the sin onto Jesus
  • This is grace

The gate was open

  • God had provided a way for forgiveness to be extended
  • The way was open for people to restore their relationship with God
  • The way in which people received forgiveness was by grace
  • God did not make it impossible to achieve.
  • The person who wanted forgiveness had to come to the entrance to the tabernacle – I have called it the grace gate
  • Grace and forgiveness was always available
  • Jesus was represented by the animal
  • The person was able to come to the place where forgiveness was extended, by entering the grace gate
  • It was always open
  • Grace is always available

What is grace

  • Grace means favour, undeserved
  1. grace 1a) that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness: grace of speech
  2. 2) good will, loving-kindness, favour 2a) of the merciful kindness by which God, exerting his holy influence upon souls, turns them to Christ, keeps, strengthens, increases them in Christian faith, knowledge, affection, and kindles them to the exercise of the Christian virtues
  3. 3) what is due to grace 3a) the spiritual condition of one governed by the power of divine grace 3b) the token or proof of grace, benefit 3b1) a gift of grace 3b2) benefit, bounty 4) thanks, (for benefits, services, favours), recompense, reward

Grace is undeserved

  • Grace is God’s favour on us, his desire to show goodwill to us, love us, and show us mercy
  • It starts with God sovereignly wanting to not leave us in our wretched condition, but he draws us to him, he turns our hearts to Jesus
  • This grace develops us in our Christian faith continually.
  • It is the expression of God’s favor on us, his goodwill towards us.
  • This grace continues to work in our hearts, to keep us close, to strengthen us, to draw us close to him
  • If we want closeness and intimacy with God, we must understand grace

But do we live in grace?

  • So often we come to Jesus, hungry, thirsty, dirty, and we ask for forgiveness
  • We know we need grace, and we ask God for his free pardon for our sins
  • We become a new creation
  • But so often we then pick up the controls of our life
  • We think that by our prayer and Bible study we will become a better person
  • We think that it is now up to us to live a clean life, and get our life straight
  • The truth is that God is the one who is doing this work in us
  • This is grace
  • Grace is lived out in allowing God to do his work in us
  • Eph 2:8-10

The grace gate is open

  • God has made access to grace available to us, not just when we accepted Jesus, but every day
  • Daily we can come into his presence
  • Heb 4:16
  • Daily we can come before God and receive grace in time of n3eed
  • I need God to clean me up, not myself
  • The gate is open
  • The entrance to god’s throne room is available for us to go through
  • We are not unworthy, because God has made us worthy
  • We can approach him, cleansed of sin
  • But it all starts with approaching that gate, that entrance, and allowing him to take our sins upon him
  • Is this a day when you need grace?
  • Grace is available, without price, freely given as a sign of God’s favour
  • The altar is open, if any would want to come forward
  • We will close with a praise song – only by grace will we enter