- This is the last lesson
in the Amazing Grace series tonight that we're doing.
And the title of this lesson is The Impact of Grace.
The Impact of Grace.
People's lives are changed or impacted
by many things, good, and bad.
There are two events from my own life
that I'd like to share very briefly
to give you as an example of
how things can kind of, you know,
drive your life in one direction or another.
I remember as a 15 year old boy living in Montreal
with my mother and dad, I was an only child.
My mother coming into my room
at about two o'clock in the morning
saying that my father was ill.
That was a surprise to me because
I'd seen him at suppertime and he was well,
there were no problem.
And I had said good night to him before I went to bed,
and he had to go out and came back a little later.
And now a few hours later,
he lay dying in his room,
victim of a heart attack at 53.
And he just died right there while I was watching,
he just, he died.
That event at 15
impacted my life in many, many ways,
and it changed it's direction.
Even at 15 I had a certain direction
where I thought I was going,
but once my dad died,
boy it changed everything for my mother and for myself.
Not wanting to just cite an unhappy event
that can change the direction of your life,
there was also a happy event.
15 years later, now I'm 30 years old,
I remember sending this girl that I knew a postcard.
We'd been friends,
and I hadn't seen her for a couple of years
because she had moved to France.
Living in Paris, working in Paris,
and I remained in Canada and I had been
traveling around for a couple of years.
And so one Christmas I decided to send her a postcard
to her address, the old address that I had in Paris.
Now what I didn't know is that during the few years
that I hadn't seen or heard from her,
this girl had left Paris and moved back to Montreal.
Well, that little postcard,
it went from Canada to France,
and when it got there,
the building janitor where this girl used to live in Paris
got a hold of that postcard
and forward it back to Montreal
where the girl had moved to.
You see, on the day that the postcard arrived,
my postcard, the janitor had also received
a Christmas card from that girl with her forwarding address.
So he got a Christmas card from her
with a forwarding address,
and he got a postcard for her from me,
so he just took the postcard,
readdressed it, and sent it back to Montreal.
Well, when that girl received the postcard
forwarded from France, she looked me up,
and about a year later that girl, Lise and I were married.
And we still have that little postcard in our scrapbook.
That small act of sending a greeting,
a little postcard to this girl I once knew,
eventually had a tremendous, and I might say
a wonderful impact on my life.
Now I tell these stories from my own life
to underscore the idea that there are certain events
or people that have a lasting effect on our lives.
Not every event, of course,
not every person, but some events and some people
come into our lives and change our lives forever.
Well in my final lesson tonight on this series
I'd like to build on this idea,
and explain to you how one's life is changed
or impacted by the grace of God.
When the grace of God enters your life,
it has a certain impact.
It changes it in many ways.
And I'd like to share that with you.
Now the Bible is filled with all kinds of
information and stories about God
and his chosen people, the Jews,
the coming of Jesus,
and the establishment of the church by the apostles.
But what the Bible is about
is God's effort to impart his grace
to every person through Jesus Christ.
That's what the story is about.
Yes, there are descriptions of the creation,
lessons about faith,
teachings from Christ and his apostles.
However, when you bring all of this information together,
what the Bible ultimately gives us
is this incredible story of God's love for man
and how that love, or that grace
changes or impacts a person's life for good.
Obviously I don't have the time or the ability
to detail every change brought on
by God's grace in a person's life.
But I can give you three main ones
that represent in one way or another,
most of the others.
Okay, so three ways that the impact of God's grace
changes our life.
Number one, grace makes us eager to obey.
Grace makes us eager to obey.
The fleshly man, the worldly person,
celebrates and applauds disobedience and rebellion.
I mean, just look at our heroes.
They're the guys and the gals that
break the rules, that bend the rules,
or they make their own rules to get what they want.
They take justice into their own hands
and so on and so forth, and we applaud them.
Those are our heroes, aren't they?
But when a person comes into contact
with the grace of God, they are the ones who are broken.
They are the ones who are humbled.
Jesus describes the feeling in Matthew 5:6
when he says, "Blessed are those who
"hunger and thirst for righteousness,
"for they will be satisfied."
It's a hunger.
It's a thirst, it's a constant desire
to know what is right,
and the desire to do what is right.
John nails the experience when he says
in 1 John 3:6, "No one who abides in Him sins;
"no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him."
Now some people here think that John is saying
that Christians never sin, or they never make a mistake,
or they never fail.
Well, we know from experience that that isn't true.
John's point is that those who have been
impacted by God's grace do not want to sin.
Their spirits yearn for purity.
Their souls desire righteousness.
Those who know Him cannot practice sin.
They want the very opposite.
They want to quit sinning,
and they want to practice obedience.
I mean, I ask you a question.
Isn't your flesh, sometimes when you think about it
just tired of sin?
Don't you wish sometimes, "Boy, I wish I could
"just unload this sinful flesh of mine,
"and just get through a single day
"where every thought is pure,
"where every intention is righteous and good,
"where every action can be applauded by God.
"Could I just have 24 hours of perfection, please!"
Don't you ever get to that point?
I'll tell you something.
No law,
no meditation practice, no exercise, no philosophy or book
can make you want to obey.
No.
This desire is the result of God's grace in our lives.
And because of it, our character and our actions
and our directions in life are changed forever.
Before I became a Christian, I kind of wanted to sin.
I wanted to avoid doing the right thing
by figuring out a way to sin
without feeling guilty about it.
But after the grace of God entered into my life,
I began to see in myself, a desire to do it right,
and to get it right,
and to please God.
Something that a sinner, something that a non-believer
doesn't spend two minutes, ever, thinking about
is, "What would God want me to do?"
But for the believer, for the individual impacted by grace,
a lot of prayer time is spent asking God,
"Lord, what would you have me do?"
That's grace that has done that
in your life, in my life.
Another change brought on by the impact of grace.
Grace makes us work hard in the Lord.
Now I'm not saying that anyone who works hard
has been impacted by grace.
I mean, lots of people work hard
for various reasons.
People work hard to care for their families,
and some work hard to get ahead or to get rich.
Some work hard because they like to work,
or they have a dream of accomplishing something.
But those who have been impacted by grace work hard
in an area where these others would not
invest a single minute.
And that is in the building up of the Kingdom of God
here on earth, what we call the church.
Paul describes this labor of love
brought upon him by God's grace in 1 Corinthians 15:9-10.
Let's look at that one please.
1 Corinthians, I sent you to the second scripture
I'm going to read.
1 Corinthians 15:9-10.
Listen to what he says.
He says, "For I am the least of the apostles,
"and not fit to be called an apostle,
"because I persecuted the church of God.
"But, by the grace of God, I am what I am,
"and his grace toward me did not prove vain,
"but I labored even more than all of them,
"yet not I but the grace of God with me."
And then a little further on, Paul describes the effort
and the sufferings that he has endured
because of God's grace.
And that passage is in 2 Corinthians 11:23.
And I read for you.
He says, "Are they servants of Christ?
"I speak as if insane - I more so;
"in far more labors, in far more imprisonments,
"beaten times without number, often in danger of death.
"Five times I received from the Jews 39 lashes.
"Three times I was beaten with rods,
"once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked,
"a night and a day I have spent in the deep.
"I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers,
"dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen,
"dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city,
"dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea,
"dangers among false brethren.
"I have been in labor and hardship,
"through many sleepless nights,
"in hunger and thirst, often without food,
"in cold and exposure.
"Apart from such external things,
"there is the daily pressure on me
"of the concern for all the churches."
You think this guy worked hard?
You think his life was easy?
And in this passage, you know,
Paul doesn't even mention
the thousands of miles that he traveled,
the lessons and sermons given,
the epistles written, and the men trained,
not to mention the ministry to the poor and to the ill.
What would move a man who was a religious leader
with a comfortable position and a bright future
to abandon it all and earn his living
as a tradesman from day to day
and endure such a difficult
and a demanding and thankless life?
Well Paul said it back in 1 Corinthians 15:10.
He says, "By the grace of God,
"I am what I am."
He could have also said, by the grace of God
I do what I do.
I work as I work, I suffer as I suffer.
You know, I can always tell the difference
between those people who have been educated
in the doctrine of grace
and those people who have truly experienced
the power of God's grace in their lives.
Those who've been indoctrinated,
they know the church traditions,
and they can spout the lingo,
but there's no fire in the belly.
They don't volunteer, they don't try to
know or help others.
They're pretty cheap when it comes to giving.
They think Christianity is about coming to church.
I've said many times that attending worship
or Bible study, this is not serving the Lord.
This is when the Lord is serving you and me
with his word, with his people, with his presence.
Now, those who have truly been impacted by God's grace
show it by their desire to serve,
to work, to give, to sacrifice.
They may not say much, but their work
and their contribution says it all
to the world and to the church
and especially to the Lord.
Jesus said that those who are forgiven little love little,
and those who are forgiven much, love much, Luke 7:47.
You know, perhaps that's what
separates the men from the boys
when it comes to hard work in the name of the Lord.
Perhaps it's just that people who are less motivated
are that way because they don't realize
what kind of sorry sinners they really are,
and they forget, they figure that they don't owe
God a whole lot, "I wasn't so bad,
"I never killed anybody, you know."
And those who bear the heat of the day
and the sweat of the heavy spiritual lifting in the church,
maybe they just know themselves a little bit better.
Maybe it's a question of personal honesty.
Maybe it's a question of self awareness.
All I know is that those who are painfully aware
of their true condition before God
are usually the most productive.
And those who are spiritually nearsighted
don't usually operate on
a whole lot of spiritual horsepower.
I mean, didn't Paul the apostle say,
"I am the chief of sinners?"
You think there's a relationship there
between his awareness of his sinfulness
and his desire to serve God?
Maybe that's the connection between grace
and the desire to work hard for the Lord.
Well that leads me to the third change
that results from the impact of grace.
Grace makes me feel thankful.
It makes me feel thankful.
No other gift to us in life is more precious
than the grace of God.
That's why I feel thankful.
Do we realize how precious grace is?
Listen to what the Bible says.
I'm going to run through some scriptures.
Don't try to follow, I've got too many in a row.
The Bible says that, it is by grace that Jesus
was sent to die for our sins, Hebrews 2:9.
It is by grace that the world
came to know about Christ, Titus 2:11.
It is by grace that we personally
have received the truth, John 1:17.
It is by grace that we are saved, Acts 15:11.
It is by grace that we are justified
and forgiven for sin, Romans 3:24.
It is by grace that we receive
the promises of God, Romans 4:16.
It is by grace that we enjoy
peace with God, Romans 5:2.
More, do you want more?
It is by grace that we are made
free from the demands of the law, Romans 6.
It is by grace that we have
hope for the future, 2 Thessalonians 2:16.
Are you getting the feeling for how
precious God's grace or God's favor is for us?
There's more.
It is by grace that we become
who we are in Christ, 1 Corinthians 15:10.
It is by grace that we receive
gifts so we can minister to others, Romans 12.
It is by grace that we have the courage
to speak out, Romans 15.
It is by grace that we are able
to give thanks, 2 Corinthians four,
to give generously, 2 Corinthians eight,
to give joyful praise, Colossians three,
to go boldly before God in prayer, Hebrews chapter four.
More?
It is by grace that we have each day
what we need, and when we need it, Hebrews 4:16.
And then finally it is by grace
that we are perfected, confirmed,
strengthened and established, so we can live
together with God in Jesus Christ, 1 Peter 5:10.
Just in case we doubted the value of grace.
And so because of these and all other blessings
showered down upon us by grace,
our hearts are tuned to gratitude.
You know, like a radio, you've got your radio tuned to,
you get into the car, you turn on the radio,
you've selected certain stations, right, that you like.
Well, grace tunes, presets our heart to thankfulness.
A heart impacted by grace is preset for thanksgiving.
A life impacted by grace finds a reason
to give thanks in everything seen,
everything heard, everything felt.
What a marvelous thing it is,
and what a wonderful spiritual experience to have
that throughout your day,
the things that you see, and the things that you experience
you relate them to God's gracious gift to you.
Thank you Lord, the sunrise was beautiful this morning.
Thank you for giving me that.
Thank you for giving me eyes to see,
and thank you for creating the world in such a way
that simply the rising of the sun gives me joy.
That's grace that does that.
Can you imagine living your life
seeing the grace of God in the smile of your grandchild?
The breeze that goes through the trees
and makes that marvelous sound?
The birds that sing?
The wonderful talent that God has
given to some to sing, or to dance,
or to whatever, play musical instruments
or to write poetry?
To be able to see your life in the world
through the prism of grace is a wonderful, wonderful gift.
For this reason, Paul says to Titus
that grace teaches us to say no to ungodliness, passion,
to live upright and godly lives, Titus 2:11-12.
Eventually just saying thank you is not enough.
The feeling of gratitude spills out
into joyful praise, holy and dedicated living,
and a genuine love for other people
as a response of gratitude for this grace.
Have you never felt so grateful for a favor
that someone did for you, that you wanted to do
something for someone else, that impulse?
That's the impulse that we work from as Christians.
And speaking of God's grace in terms of the kingdom,
the Hebrew writer summarizes it best when he says,
"Therefore, since we receive a kingdom
"which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude
"by which we may offer to God an acceptable service
"and reverence, and awe," Hebrews 12:28.
The single most recognizable characteristic
in the lives of those who have been
impacted by grace of God
is a thankful and appreciative heart.
When I hear people sometimes
that don't see the good in anything,
that all they see is things that they can criticize
or be crabby about and unhappy about,
I mean I get it if you're in the world,
if you don't know the Lord I get it.
But if you're a member of the Lord's body,
if you've been impacted by grace,
that your entire day and outlook is negative,
something's wrong there.
There's some sort of disconnect going on.
Whether times are good or bad,
these brethren are always sensitive to
and grateful for God's grace in Christ Jesus.
All right, so let's kind of
bring this discussion home, shall we?
Ask yourselves, has the grace of God
had an impact on my life?
Let me help you answer that question.
Grace has impacted your life
if doing what the Lord wants you to do
is continually growing in importance in your life.
In other words, you may not be perfect,
but you'd like to be.
You'd like to be.
And getting rid of sin is a joyful event,
not a sad, nostalgic one.
In other words, when in the various ways
that the Spirit works in our hearts
whether it's through the Word of God
through the spoken word, through an admonition,
so on and so forth, when a sin that you are doing
is pointed out in some way,
you are happy to get rid of it
because it means you are now going to
draw that much closer to God.
Rather than be angry and upset
and fretful that you have to give up
some worldly habit or some sinful practice.
And grace has impacted your life
if more of your time and resources
have been devoted to the Lord this year
than last year.
You know, sure, we get sick, we get busy.
But in all honesty, is the time and effort
and money that you're investing in the Lord
and his church, is that growing, or is that shrinking?
You know Paul's life and ministry wasn't meant to be
a monument or a one time thing.
It was meant to be an example for us to follow.
He said to imitate him as he imitated Christ.
Jesus did what he did because he wanted to give us grace.
Paul did what he did because he received grace.
The question is, what do we have to show
for the grace that has come into our lives through Christ?
And the grace that Paul the apostle received
is exactly the same grace that you and I have received
through Jesus Christ.
And then finally, grace has impacted your life.
If much of your prayer life,
and much of the motivation for what you do
is based on gratitude and not fear or guilt.
The virtue of being grateful is the first one
to be cultivated in order to be pleasing to God.
Oh, we can be weak in many areas,
we can be struggling with bad habits and sinful actions,
but if we can begin to be grateful
for God's kindness and grace,
all of these other things can be conquered.
If you can't say thank you, you can't overcome sin.
If you don't know how to say thank you,
then you don't know how to overcome sin.
In Romans 1:21 Paul says that an ungrateful heart
is the first sin that sends man headlong
into the darkness of every other sin.
Grace has made a difference if thankfulness is on your lips
and in your heart each day of your life,
regardless of the circumstances of your life.
Now if you can't relate to what I'm saying this evening,
if grace has not impacted your life,
it may mean one of two things.
One, well perhaps you have not let
the grace of God into your heart.
You've not allowed God's grace into your life.
You've not allowed the blood of Jesus Christ
to wash away your sins in the waters of baptism.
You've not allowed the Holy Spirit to come
and dwell in your soul, that's how the grace comes in.
It could be something as simple to understand
as not having obeyed the gospel.
You might be a believer, but are you an obedient believer?
Maybe the obedience part is missing.
Maybe you have not confessed Christ.
Perhaps you have not been buried in the waters of baptism.
That's how the grace comes in, brothers and sisters.
And maybe, maybe, it's not a question
that you haven't let the grace come in.
Maybe you've let the grace go out.
You know, you've resisted Christ's grace
and his Spirit by being unfaithful
or living outside of his commands,
or refuse to feed on his word.
I can tell you with confidence
that God is anxious to fill you with his grace
if you will let him.
For the first time through repentance and baptism,
or for a refill, if you wish,
as you're restored to faithfulness.
Won't you think about that
as we close out our series on grace.
Won't you think about,
do I have to let the grace in
because I've never obeyed Christ?
Or do I have to ask God to come back,
because I've abandoned him in one way or another?
We have an opportunity to respond
directly to his invitation of grace.
As we stand and as we sing this song,
please consider the things
that we've spoke of this evening.