The Creed - I Believe In Grace

I BELIEVE in God the Father Almighty, Maker

of heaven and earth: And in Jesus Christ his only

Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose

again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the

right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy

catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins;

the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen

The CreedI BELIEVE in GRACE








The Creed – I Believe in Grace

―When I get to heaven I shall see three wonders there. The

first wonder will be, to see many people there whom I did not expect to see—the second

wonder will be, to miss many people whom I did expect to

see; and the third and greatest wonder of all, will be to find

myself there.‖- John Newton

Key Question…―What is Grace?‖

And what are its implications for us?



SoliSolus

SolaSolaSola

To the Glory of God Alone

Christ Alone

Scripture Alone

Faith Alone

Grace Alone

The Five ‗Solas‘ of the

Reformation

Faith is…


―Trust‖―pistis‖: state of believing on the basis of the reliability of the one trusted

―True faith is not only a knowledge and conviction that everything God reveals in his

word is true; it is also a deep-rooted assurance, created in me by the Holy Spirit through the

gospel, that, out of sheer grace earned for us by Christ not only others, but I too, have had my

sins forgiven, have been made forever right with God, and have been granted salvation.‖

- Heidelberg Catechism (Q. 21)


Grace is…


―Unmerited Favor‖―charis‖: a beneficent disposition toward someone

"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 may boast."(Ephesians 2:8-9)


"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the

forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His

grace which He lavished on us"(Ephesians 1:7-8)



Unwarranted confidence in human ability is a product of fallen human nature. This false confidence now fills the evangelical world; from the self-esteem gospel, to the

health and wealth gospel, from those who have transformed the gospel into a product to be sold and sinners into consumers who want to buy, to others who treat Christian faith as being true simply because it works. This silences the doctrine of justification regardless of the official commitments of our churches. God's grace in

Christ is not merely necessary but is the sole efficient cause of salvation. We confess that human beings are born spiritually dead and are incapable even of

cooperating with regenerating grace.

We reaffirm that in salvation we are rescued from God's wrath by his grace alone. It is the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit that brings us to Christ by releasing us

from our bondage to sin and raising us from spiritual death to spiritual life.We deny that salvation is in any sense a human work. Human methods, techniques

or strategies by themselves cannot accomplish this transformation. Faith is not produced by our unregenerated human nature.

- Cambridge Declaration on Grace

The Cambridge Declaration

How Were the Old Testament Saints

Saved?


But if we‘re saved today through faith and grace via the death of Jesus…


"The Lord spoke to Moses that very same day, saying, ―Go up to this mountain of the Abarim,

Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab opposite Jericho, and look at the land of

Canaan, which I am giving to the sons of Israel for a possession. ―Then die on the mountain where you ascend, and be gathered to your

people, as Aaron your brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, because

you broke faith with Me in the midst of the sons of Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin, because you did not treat Me

as holy in the midst of the sons of Israel. ―For you shall see the land at a distance, but you shall

not go there, into the land which I am giving the sons of Israel.‖"

(Deuteronomy 32:48-52)

An Old Testament Lesson on Faith/Works

Two Most Important Men of the Old Testament

Abraham Moses

Faith

2 Men

Works

The spiritual lesson behind Moses being denied entrance into the promised land is this: the man of law/works does not enter the

promised land, only the man of faith doesThe Creed – I Believe in Grace

ForerunnerNew Covenant

OldCovenant

2 Types

2 Covenants

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the

men of old gained approval."(Hebrews 11:1-2)


" What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found? For if Abraham was justified by works,

he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? ―Abraham believed God, and it was

credited to him as righteousness.‖ Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness

apart from works: ―Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, And whose sins have been covered."

(Romans 4:1-7)



• ―Then he [Abraham] believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. (Gen 15:6)

• ―And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the Lord Will be delivered; ― (Joel 2:32)

• ―For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.‖ (Heb 10:4). • ―whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was

to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed;‖ (Ro 3:25). Greek: ―passed over‖ = ―letting go unpunished‖

• ―Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent,‖ (Acts 17:30)

• ―In the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways; and yet He did not leave Himself without witness‖ (Acts 14:16)

• Only Jews? No, Jonah sent to the Gentile city of Nineveh

―The basis of salvation in every age is the death of Christ; the requirement for salvation in every age is faith; the object of faith in

every age is God; the content of faith changes in the various dispensations.‖ – Charles Ryrie


―Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ―The Pharisee stood and was praying

this to himself: ‗God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ‗I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.‘ ―But the tax collector,

standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‗God, be merciful to me, the sinner!‘ ―I tell you, this man went to his house justified

rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.‖

(Luke 18:10-14)

1. Acknowledgement of God2. Acknowledgement of sin3. Acknowledgement of faith

δικαιόω;dikaioo: same word used in Romans 3:28


God Looked Forward for those Before the Cross

God Looks Back for those After

the Cross

For God, there is no such thing as time…

Faith and Grace – Present in Both Periods


―Proleptic‖ SpeechThe representation or assumption of a future act or development

as if presently existing or accomplished

"‗Have you not heard? Long ago I did it; From ancient times I planned it. Now I have brought it to

pass."(2 Kings 19:25)

"He was despised and forsaken of men … He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our

griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was

crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging

we are healed…. But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him."(Isaiah 53:3-6)


"Unless I am convinced by the testimonies of the Holy Scriptures or evident reason (for I believe neither in

the Pope nor councils alone, since it has been established that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures adduced

by me, and my conscience has been taken captive by the Word of God, and

I am neither able nor willing to recant, since it is neither safe nor right to act

against conscience. God help me. Amen‖

- Martin Luther, Defense at Diet of Worms

Faith and Grace – The Transforming Power


―In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one

was reading Luther‘s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the

change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart

strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an

assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from

the law of sin and death.‖- John Wesley, Personal Journal

Faith and Grace – The Transforming Power


During his last hours, John Knox woke from a slumber sighing, and told his friends that he had just been tempted to believe that he

had ―merited Heaven and eternal blessedness, by the faithful

discharge of my ministry. But blessed be God who has enabled me to beat down and quench the

fiery dart, by suggesting to me such passages of Scripture as

these: ―What hast thou that thou didst not receive?‖ ―By the grace

of God I am what I am.‖ ―Not I, but the grace of God which was with

me.‖‖


"Then those whose balance (of good deeds ) is

heavy, they will be successful. But those

whose balance is light, will be those who have lost

their souls; in hell will they abide,"

Sura: 23:102-103

Grace in Islam?


Karma is best translated ―cause and effect.‖ Whatever one does in this life exercises an impact on the next one. It

guarantees that all people get exactly what their actions merit.

Grace in Hinduism?

What Does ‗Grace‘ Mean for us?



―No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I

will raise him up on the last day.‖ (John 6:44).


• ―There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; ― (Ro 3:10-11)

• ―For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father‖ (John 6:65).

• ―A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.‖ (John 3:27)

• ―You did not choose Me but I chose you ‖ (John 15:16)• ―All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to

Me I will certainly not cast out.‖ (John 6:37)• ―What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them,

does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?‖ (Luke 15:4)

• ―I was found by those who did not seek Me, I became manifest to those who did not ask for Me.‖ (Ro 10:20/Isaiah 65:1).

God Pursues Us; We Don‘t Pursue Him


―Christian theology teaches the doctrine of prevenient grace, which briefly stated

means this, that before a man can seek God, God must first have

sought the man.‖- A. W. Tozer


"―What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which

is lost until he finds it? ―When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ―And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his

neighbors, saying to them, ‗Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!‘ ―I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no

repentance. ―Or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds

it? ―When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‗Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!‘ ―In the

same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.‖"

(Luke 15:4-10)

God Pursues Us; We Don‘t Pursue Him

What part did the sheep and the coin play in the process?


"―For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His own

possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. ―The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the Lord loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the Lord brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt."

(Deuteronomy 7:6-8)

God Gives Us Grace Without Cause


Alexander Whyte, the great Scottish preacher, once stood up in his pulpit in Edinburgh and said: ―I have discovered the most wicked

man in Edinburgh … ‖ Then he paused, while the congregation

eagerly awaited the name; whereupon the preacher

continued—‖Alexander Whyte‖


"We love, because He first loved us."(1 John 4:19)

"For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but

God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and

the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast

before God."(1 Corinthians 1:26-29)

God Gives Us Grace Without Cause


"Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven

you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;"

(Ephesians 4:32-5:1)

We Forgive as We‘ve Been Forgiven


" Then Peter came and said to Him, ―Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?‖ Jesus said to him, ―I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up

to seventy times seven. ―For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. ―When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. ―But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to

be made. ―So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‗Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.‘ ―And the lord of that slave felt compassion and

released him and forgave him the debt. ―But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‗Pay back

what you owe.‘ ―So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‗Have patience with me and I will repay you.‘ ―But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until

he should pay back what was owed. ―So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. ―Then

summoning him, his lord said to him, ‗You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ‗Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I

had mercy on you?‘ ―And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. ―My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of

you does not forgive his brother from your heart.‖"(Matthew 18:21-35)

We Forgive as We‘ve Been Forgiven


"This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by

the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun

by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so

many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles

among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Even so

Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.‖

(Galatians 3:2-7)

We Stop Trying to Earn God‘s Favor

What Grace Doesn‘t Mean…



" What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How

shall we who died to sin still live in it? . . . For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of

the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?

But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of

righteousness."(Romans 6:1-2, 14-18)

Grace Doesn‘t Mean Freedom to Sin


―Why do you call Me, ‗Lord, Lord,‘

and do not do what I say?‖

(Luke 6:46)

Lord: Kurios ―Owner , Controller of a person‖

Grace Doesn‘t Mean Jesus is Only Savior


―The Lord will not save those whom He cannot command. He will not divide His offices. You cannot

believe on a half-Christ. We take Him for what He is –the anointed Savior and Lord who is King of kings and

Lord of all lords! He would not be Who He is if He saved us and called us and chose us without the

understanding that He can also guide and control our lives.‖

- A. W. Tozer, I Call it Heresy!

Jesus is Both Savior and Lord


―Scripture never speaks about anyone ‗making‘ Christ Lord, except God Himself, who as ‗made Him both

Lord and Christ‘ (Acts 2:36). He is Lord of all (Romans 14:9, Philippians 2:11), and the biblical

mandate for both sinners and saints is not to ‗make‘ Christ Lord, but rather to bow to His lordship. Those who reject His lordship or give mere lip service to His

sovereignty are not saved (cf. 1 Cor. 12:3, Luke 6:46-49).‖

- John MacArthur, The Gospel According to Jesus

Jesus is Both Savior and Lord

The Beauty of Grace


"Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience,

not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?‖

(Romans 2:4)


not the wrath of God…not the brutality of God…but the kindness of God…

Or, in other words, His Grace


"―Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-

laden, and I will give you rest. ―Take My yoke

upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and

humble in heart, and you will find rest for your

souls. ―For My yoke is easy and My burden is

light.‖"(Matthew 11:28-30)








The CreedI BELIEVE in GRACE

The Creed - I Believe In Grace

Spiritual

gods grace

regenerating grace

sheer grace

creed of heaven

holy ghost

holy spirit

true faith

christian faith