GALATIANS MESSAGE 3
Saved by Grace
INTRODUCTION: We believe that we are saved by grace through faith. Amen. Saved by grace through faith.
- We, in fact, state that in our constitution: “We believe salvation is by the grace of God, only through repentance and confession of faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. On the cross He shed His blood as atonement for our sin.”
- Saved by grace. There you have it. It’s settled. But not really. There’s a problem. It seems like everyone else believes that also. At least they say they do. The Catholics, those in the Restoration Movement, even the Mormons.
- In an article by Bruce Hafen on grace in The Encyclopedia of Mormonism he writes: All of LDS theology also reflects the major premise of the Book of Mormon that without grace there is no salvation: “For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do” (2 Ne. 25:23). The source of this grace is the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ: “Mercy cometh because of the Atonement” (Alma 42:23).
- Let me say a word about integrity and accountability in Bible study and research. When I share these sometimes very pointed statements with you concerning the different gospel as Paul calls it—a false gospel, whether from the Mormons or the Methodists or the Masons or the Catholics or the Restoration Movement, I am make every effort to accurately reflect their views. My first choice is to state these opposing views using their own words. For instance, if you want to know what the Mormon’s call the gospel, go to their web site. Or just Google “Mormon gospel” and you will find the same information that I am sharing. Ditto for the Restoration Movement.
- But back to my/our problem. We say that we are saved by grace. The Catholics say that they are saved by grace; the Mormons say that they are saved by grace, etc. And honestly, the research is wearying—wading through statements of faith and “what we believe” web pages. And much of it sounds pretty good.
- So where do turn? Do we give up and merely acknowledge the differences or give in and accept the differences?
- No. We thank God for the letter to the Galatians. The Apostle Paul sounds a clarion call in Galatians—there is one gospel, the gospel that he preached, and turning from that one gospel to different gospels brings the curse of God.
- A clarion is a medieval horn with a clear sound—sometimes also defined as a shrill, narrow-tubed war trumpet. The sound of a clarion is hard to ignore as it is loud and pure and clear in tone.
- Paul’s message in Galatians is a clarion call. It is loud and pure and clear in tone: There is one gospel. Get the gospel right or bring the curse of God on any who receive your fake gospel.
- So I thank God for Galatians, and I take heart in the singular, unique nature of God’s gospel as I wade through and try to decipher statements of faith and encyclopedia articles. I hear Paul’s words—I hear the loud, pure, clear message of Galatians: one gospel.
- Through all the haze and fuzziness and confusion and compromise, Galatians gives us clarity and focus. God’s word is a lamp to our feet and it is a light to our path. And you don’t hide the light. You set the light in a high place to pierce the darkness. And standing in that light, we know that even though everybody says that they believe in saved by grace—let’s be very blunt here—somebody’s lying. Somebody is damned and deceived.
- So we need to define our terms. We don’t need more fuzziness; we need high-definition. We need to look to the plain-spoken, clearly written, revealed word of God for answers. We need to know grace; what it is and why it matters. And that is what we are going to attempt this morning. Grace. What does it mean? Why does it matter? And what does it look like?
Grace: What does it look like? What might grace look like in our lives?
You might see this …
- (Galatians 5:22–25 NLT) But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.
And not this …
- (Galatians 5:26) Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.
A tree planted by streams of water …
- (Psalm 1:1–6 NIV) Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
- (Jeremiah 17:7–8 NIV) But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.
Peace like a river of peace and righteousness as the waves of the sea …
- (Isaiah 48:18 ESV) Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.
A life of love …
- (1 Corinthians 13:1–7 ESV) If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
CONCLUSION: Don’t get bamboozled.
- To get bamboozled would be to be deceived; someone got the better of you by trickery, flattery, or the like. It means to be duped or hoodwinked; played the fool—gypped, cheated, swindled, defrauded or flimflammed.
- So don’t get bamboozled and don’t bamboozle yourself with mere religion or creed or statement of faith. Don’t let your deceived heart flimflam you because you’ve got a polished, packaged, rehearsed testimony.
- When you stand in front of the mirror of God’s holy word, do you see a life of grace?
