When Christ was on the cross drawing His last human breaths, He said, “it is finished”. Well, was it, or wasn’t it? If “it” was finished, what was “it”?
Understanding the glorious message of God’s abundant grace toward all believers isn’t new. It may be new to many, but it certainly isn’t new like some modern, novel movement within the church that is fashionable for a short time.
This short excerpt from a message preached in 1861, in the Metropolitan Tabernacle, in Newington, England, by the Rev. Octavius Winslow, D.D., has become one of my favorite on this subject:
“What a spring of comfort flows from it to the true Believer amid his innumerable failures, flaws, and imperfections. What service do you perform, what duty do you discharge of which you can say, “It is finished”? Alas, not one! Your service is imperfect, your obedience is incomplete, your love is fluctuating, yes, upon it all are the visible marks of human defilement and defect. But here is the work which God most delights in, “finished.” “You are complete in Him.”…
June 4, 2013 in Blog by Grace Church
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Old Car – New Car
Walking by the Spirit vs. the Flesh
Pastor Javin van Kaam
May 5, 2013
New American Standard Version Used
Romans 8 | Galatians 5:13-18 | John 15:5 | 1 John 2:6-10
As a believer you can only walk by the Spirit
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
Galatians 5:16
The law of Christ is to love
14 For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Galatians 5:14
The desire of the flesh is to reject love and to exalt itself
17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.
Galatians 5:17
May 5, 2013 in About Grace, Podcast, Sermon Notes, Video, Video Announcements by Grace Church
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Leslie Chambers
Have you ever wondered what people think of you? As my husband is Alan Chambers, the President of Exodus International, I have. At present, he is somewhat of a conundrum for a lot of people. There seems to be some confusion about who he is, what he is saying and what he stands for. Here it is in a nutshell: while he has…
May 2, 2013 in Blog, Grace2U by Grace Church
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This week’s Quotable Grace post is a re-post from www.puregraceonline.com
The New Covenant reveals God to be a dear, dear, Father. God is our Heavenly Father and He desires a relationship with us that is not only familial but personal and intimate. Religious legalism presents God in a much different light that is not Biblical or true. Legalism mars the portrait of our Heavenly Father that the New Covenant has painted of Him. A revelation of grace is a necessity for this marred and grotesque misrepresentation of Father God to be corrected, and the beautiful and life-giving truth of our Heavenly Father to be restored to the Church.
(Pure Grace, page 159-160)…
April 24, 2013 in Quotable Grace by Grace Church
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Jeff Fitzgerald
Have you ever felt like God has hit the mute button and you can’t hear Him? Let me encourage you that He has not, but sometimes it sure feels like it. I am going through a time now where it seems like this is the case and I just can’t hear Him speaking. One thing we have to remember is just because…
April 23, 2013 in Blog by Grace Church
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Most have heard it taught that Christians are not under law but under grace (refer to Romans 6:14). Grace teaching seeks to help the body of Christ understand why this is true, and why this is such incredibly good news.
Meanwhile, others point fingers reacting negatively because they believe that grace teachers are soft on sin, and serve to aid immature Christians to live lives of compromise and sin.
Since “truth sets us free” (Jn. 8:32), let’s compare the Law (Old Covenant) to the New, because the contrast is startling. Understanding this contrast will help you walk in all that Christ died to give you.
The Bible calls the Old Covenant, “the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2). But, it was given by God, so why would it be classified such?
The Mosaic Law, also known in the Bible as the “law of sin and death”, was given by God to govern spiritually dead people. The Law was never given…
April 11, 2013 in Blog, Grace2U by Grace Church
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To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.-Isaiah 61:3 (KJV)
April 7, 2013 in About Grace, Podcast, Sermon Notes, Video, Video Announcements by Grace Church
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Technology is always advancing in this country. One of the more popular advances is the Hybrid automobile. If you haven’t heard of this you probably have been living in a basement somewhere for the last 10 years or so. Basically hybrid vehicle uses two different modes of fuel; one being the traditional gasoline powered and the other electricity. This technology has allowed people to save money on the ever rising cost of fuel in this country. The beauty of it is once the electricity runs out, you can switch on over to good old gasoline. Just as you can switch back and forth between the two sources, many preachers and teachers are using the same…
April 4, 2013 in Blog, Grace2U by Grace Church
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The Resurrection Saves Us
Pastor Clark Whitten
March 31, 2013
New American Standard Version Used
Romans 5:10
10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
April 1, 2013 in About Grace, Podcast, Sermon Notes, Video, Video Announcements by Grace Church
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“Religion and legalistic Christianity are tools the enemy uses to limit the damage done to his kingdom by the finished work of Christ. He uses religion to keep people out of the Kingdom of God through the lie of works-based salvation. He uses legalistic Christianity to keep true Christians from being able to demonstrate and display to the world the glorious Gospel of grace, and thereby limiting the impact a transformed life should have on the world.” (Pure Grace, page 87-88)
The performance based approach in relating to God that is the hallmark of legalistic Christianity does not allow the glorious transformational work of the Holy Spirit to function properly. When one is always fearful that God is angry and disapproving, intimacy with Him is limited. Grace invites us to come boldly and without hesitation into God’s presence. It is there, in His presence, that we are transformed and matured. Legalism in all of its forms is a deadly deterrent to growing up in Christ and allowing love to regulate our lives. If I were the enemy, I would use the tactic of legalism too!
March 20, 2013 in Pure Grace, Team Grace by Grace Church
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