1 SOLA GRATIA GRACE ALONE Sermon preached by Pastor C. John Steer Autumn Ridge Church October 7-8, 2017 No. 2: Sola Power Scripture: Titus 2:11-15 This month of October is an important one for us as Christians, because it marks the 500 th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. On October 31 st it will be 500 years to the day since Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. I am proud to say we have our own Wittenberg Door out in the Main Lobby. If you haven t nailed up your own thesis of faith, please do so after the service. It was Luther s hammering that started the Reformation which had an impact not only on church history but on Western history and on world history. This month we are celebrating with Christians all over the planet by looking at the five great Reformation solas. 500 years ago scholars spoke in Latin and the Latin word sola means only or alone. Last week we looked at Sola Scriptura the Bible alone. Kris Wiens, who is a longtime member of Autumn Ridge, sent me a copy of a letter from the Rev. Erasmus Westcott, who was the first pastor of this church. The letter was published in the December 28, 1859 edition of the Rochester News, which was the name of the Post Bulletin then. Mr. Editor: Being aware that considerable scepticism as to the Divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, is indulged by numbers, and openly declared by some in this community; and feeling it incumbent on me as one who has somewhat investigated this all important subject to do what I can to lead men to investigate this matter upon which so much depends: I have therefore resolved, (by God s help,) to give a course of lectures on the Evidence of a Divine Revelation of God to man, as contained in the Bible. That all who desire to do so, may attend, I have taken this method to notify the public. The first lecture will be at the Baptist Church on next Lord s day evening, at 6 ½ o-clock. Subject: The Necessity, Reasonableness and Vitality of a Divine Revelation to mankind. To be continued each Sabbath evening. E. Westcott It wonderfully demonstrates that our fellowship has had a commitment to Sola Scriptura for the past 158 years.
2 This week we move on to SOLA GRATIA which is Latin for GRACE ALONE. Luther lived in days when people were desperately trying to earn or even purchase their salvation. So they would go on pilgrimages, they would visit the relics of the saints, they would do good works all hoping this would give them enough merit in order to be saved. Luther cried out No! You don t need to do those things. They are unnecessary, for we are saved by grace alone. Grace is the glory of the gospel. During a conference on comparative religions in Oxford experts from around the world were discussing whether any one belief was unique to the Christian faith. C.S. Lewis wandered into the room and asked What s the rumpus about? He was told that his colleagues were discussing Christianity s unique contribution among world religions. In his forthright manner Lewis responded, Oh that s easy. It s grace. Now we might think that if grace is so important it would be easy to define. But in fact it is not. When I was a child I was taught that G-R-A-C-E stands for God s Riches At Christ s Expense. That s not a bad start, but the best you can give it is a C minus. Here are some other definitions of grace. Grace is the eternal and absolutely free favor of God, manifested in the granting of spiritual and eternal blessings to the guilty and the unworthy. Abraham Booth Grace at its heart is getting what you don t deserve and not getting what you do. Philip Yancey Grace is love that cares and stoops and rescues. John Stott Grace heals our vision letting us love a person by seeing them as God intended them to be. Fyodor Dostoyevsky Sola gratia is salvation by the grace of God alone. Believers bring no merit of their own before the judgment seat of God, but rest solely on God s mercy and grace. R.C. Sproul All these definitions are helpful but they don t fully capture what we mean by grace. Down through the years Christians have found the best way to explain grace is with a story. One of these comes from the slums of London in the 19 th century. Back then there was a social worker called Henry Morehouse. One evening as Henry was walking home he saw a little girl come out of a store carrying a pitcher of milk. Suddenly she slipped on the wet pavement.
3 The pitcher fell from her grasp and shattered on the ground and all the milk ran into the gutter. The little girl began to cry as if her heart would break. Morehouse stepped up to see if she was hurt. He helped her to her feet saying Don t cry little girl. But there was no stopping her tears. She kept repeating My mummy will whip me. My mummy will whip me. Morehouse replied No she won t. I ll see to that. Look, the pitcher isn t broken in too many places. As he stooped down beside her he picked up the pieces and began to work as if he was putting the jug back together. The little girl stopped crying, for she now had new hope. She came from a family in which milk jugs had often been mended. Perhaps this stranger could repair the damage. So she watched as Morehouse fitted several of the pieces together until working too quickly he knocked it apart again. Once more she began to cry. Morehouse repeated Don t cry little girl. I promise that your mother won t whip you. He picked her up in his arms and carried her down the street to a shop that sold crockery. There he bought a new pitcher for her and still carrying her he went back to where the girl had bought the milk and had the new pitcher filled. Henry then asked her where she lived and when he was told he carried her to her home, set her down on the step and placed the full pitcher of milk in her hands. Then he opened the door for her. As she stepped inside he asked Do you think your mother will whip you? The question was met with a bright smile and the little girl replied Oh no, sir. Because this is a lot nicer pitcher than we had before. That story is an illustration of the grace of God. The Bible teaches that we were all created in the image of God but when our first parents Adam and Eve disobeyed God s righteous laws that image was broken beyond repair as far as human effort is concerned. This doesn t mean there is no value at all to human nature. Even a broken pitcher has value. Go into a museum and you will see lots of bits of broken pottery on display. Some of them are worth a great deal. So broken pottery is not worthless but it is worthless as far as carrying milk is concerned. In the same way human nature in its broken state is useless for pleasing God or earning heaven. But this is where the grace of God shows up. The Lord Jesus Christ came into this world which was weeping in its failure. Jesus became the means by which an utterly hopeless situation was transformed. Jesus never attempted to patch up fallen human nature. He did not come to reform us. He came to recreate us.
4 Instead of trying to put together broken pieces of our fallen nature, Jesus gives us a new nature that is a lot better than the one we had before. The little girl did not do anything to deserve Morehouse s favor. She didn t pay for the new pitcher and the milk. She didn t hire Morehouse s services. She had nothing to hire him with. She didn t even prevail upon his sympathies because she was feeling so miserable. Morehouse acted solely out of goodness. Spurgeon wrote Because God is gracious, sinful people are forgiven, converted, purified, and saved. It is not because of anything in them that they are saved. It is because of the boundless love, goodness, pity, compassion, mercy, and grace of God. In the same way the Bible does not try to define grace. Instead it tells us stories. A passage that wonderfully illustrates the story of grace is Titus 2:11-15. For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say No to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. These, then, are the things you should teach. In this story Paul tells us four great truths about grace. First we see WHAT GRACE BROUGHT. The grace of God brings salvation. (v.11) Only the grace of God can do this. The Law couldn t do it. Neither can religion or education or psychology or politics. All these things are helpful in making this world a better place but they can t save us. Only God s grace can do that. In his book Freedom of a Christian written in 1529 Luther wrote, For the person is justified and saved, not by works or laws, but by the word of God, that is by the promise of his grace, and by faith, that the glory may remain God s, who saved us not by works of righteousness which we have done, but by virtue of his mercy by the word of his grace when we believe. Luther is echoing what Paul told the Ephesians, It is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9) There are three reasons why salvation is such good news for sinners. First, because salvation is found in Jesus. Salvation is contained in a person that we can know and who has made himself known. Paul tells us this salvation has appeared. (v.11)
5 This is a clear reference to the incarnation for in the birth of Jesus the grace of God appeared. Until that time salvation had been hidden, but in Jesus it is visible, knowable and touchable. Because grace is found in Jesus it never runs out. Whatever we have done grace can cover it. For Jesus said, My grace is sufficient. (2 Corinthians 12:9) That means his grace exceeds any need that we might ever have. Let that truth sink into your soul. There is nothing that we can do that is not matched and surpassed by the grace of God. Paul explains how this happens. "Where sin increased, grace increased all the more." (Romans 5:20) Then we see that salvation is complete in Jesus. There is nothing we can add. There is nothing we can do. There is no price we can pay. A perfect Savior produced a perfect salvation that is freely offered and can be freely received. Martin Luther wrote In Christ, God made himself small for us, to show us his heart, that ours might be won. Then the good news is that salvation is available in Jesus. That means it is available to you and me for this salvation has appeared to all people. It is universal in its scope. This doesn t mean everyone will be saved but the offer of salvation is made to all for Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved. (Romans 10:13) So we see what grace brought. It brought salvation that is found in Jesus, that is complete in Jesus and is available in Jesus. Now notice WHAT GRACE TAUGHT. It teaches us to say No to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. (v.12) Grace brought us salvation and it taught us sanctification. Here we see the progress of the Christian life. Once God has redeemed us from sin he goes on to redirect our lives. The grace that saves us goes on to sanctify us in two ways, both negatively and positively. Negatively grace teaches us to say No to ungodliness and worldly passions. God has saved us by his grace that we might be like him. Therefore, he wants us to renounce any behavior that would contradict his character. As Christians we are to set our minds on heavenly things, not on worldly passions. You might wonder what these worldly passions are. From the use of this phrase in other passages of scripture we can say they include immoral sexual craving, addictions to alcohol, excessive yearning for material possessions and a desire to dominate others.
6 The tragedy is that many are in bondage to these passions but the good news of the gospel is that God s grace can liberate us from them. John Newton, who had been a slave trader, wrote his testimony of his own deliverance in his famous hymn. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. Some people want to remove the word wretch and replace it with something more positive. But Newton would tell us Keep it in. I was a wretch. I descended to the lowest state a human being can reach. I trafficked in human flesh. I was a disgusting individual but God s grace can even save a wretch like me. Newton was not only saved but he became a minister of the gospel and he encouraged William Wilberforce in his lifelong battle to eliminate slavery. As we allow grace to teach us we find that our testimony is similar to Paul s when he wrote: At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. (Titus 3:3-5) Then grace also teaches us positively. It teaches us to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. (v.12) So the grace of God brings a beautiful balance into our lives. It helps us to live in harmony with ourselves by being self-controlled. It helps us to live in harmony with others by being upright. It helps us to live in harmony with the Lord by being godly. Do you see what is happening? Sola gratia transforms someone who is persona non grata into a grace-filled individual. Paul is now warming to his theme. He has told us what grace brought and what grace taught. Now he addresses WHAT GRACE WROUGHT. Samuel Morse, the inventor of the Morse Code, sent the first telegraph message from Baltimore to Washington in 1839. It stated What hath God wrought. We have the answer to what hath God wrought in the next verse. The fact that the grace of God has brought salvation means that We wait for the blessed hope the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. (v.13) Without grace the second coming of Jesus will be a terrifying experience, for everything we have done will be revealed. Every idle word will be judged. We face the prospect of being banished from God s presence forever. But with grace the coming of Jesus is an event we can welcome and eagerly look forward to. Paul calls this our blessed hope. That hope keeps us going in the tough times of life.
7 That hope is summed up in a story I heard about Granville Cliff. He was practicing his putting at his golf club in Shropshire, England when a stray shot from another golfer knocked him unconscious. When he came to he refused to go to the hospital or even go home. Instead he teed up on the first hole and got a hole-in-one. That s the attitude of a Christian sustained by grace. We keep going even when it seems we cannot. So we have seen what grace brought, what grace taught and what grace wrought. Now Paul shows us WHAT GRACE SOUGHT. What was God s object in sending his son? The answer is the Lord Jesus came to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. (v.14) We learn here that Christians are very special people. The old King James Version translates this verse that we are a peculiar people. That s absolutely true. Some of us are more peculiar than others. But isn t this a wonderful truth. Jesus came seeking us because he wanted us for himself. That s why he died. First, that he might redeem us from all wickedness. And second, that he might purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. This verse is a marvelous summary of the Christian life. We start by being pardoned and we go on to live a life of purity. Perhaps that is the longing of your heart today. You would love to know God s forgiveness and freedom from your sin. The good news of grace is that you can when you believe in Jesus. A year ago a group of us visited John Wesley s house and church in London. John Wesley was a minister and a missionary but he had never experienced forgiveness. At the age of 35 he went unwillingly to a small room in a narrow street in North London called Aldersgate. There someone read from Martin Luther s commentary on the book of Romans and John Wesley felt his heart strangely warmed. Wesley later wrote in his journal, I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation and assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death. The grace of God gripped Wesley and the experience changed him forever. His life became an adventure for God. He rode 100,000 miles on horseback telling thousands about the glorious grace of God. What about you? Have you discovered grace? Have you received grace? Are you enjoying grace today? God s grace is the most precious commodity in the world and yet it is free.
8 Our passage now closes with some words to Titus as an elder of the church. These, then, are the things you should teach. (v.15) The elders of the church are to ensure that the story of God s amazing grace is taught in the church to young and old, to men and women. This will enable a fellowship to grow in the grace and knowledge of their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Paul continued, Encourage and rebuke with all authority. (v.15) The elders are to rebuke believers who are not exhibiting the marks of grace because that s a disgrace. If you are ever passing by Buckingham Palace in London look and see if the Royal Standard flag is flying from the roof. If it is it means the Queen is in residence. It is a sign of the monarch s presence. So it is in the church of Jesus Christ. The flag of grace should be flying over our fellowship. It is the sign that the king is present in the lives of his people. 500 years ago Luther preached Sola Gratia but it was not welcome in his day any more than it is welcome in ours. There are two reasons we don t like Sola Gratia. First, because we want to earn our salvation. We don t like to accept charity. We would like to work our way into heaven. You see this worked out in almost every funeral. People say He was a lovely fellow, so kind to animals or She was a great lady, always helping the neighbors as if those actions could have earned our salvation. The truth is both those people are wretched sinners. They have broken all the commandments and disobeyed God. They turned their back on their creator and nothing they could do can help them one bit except God s grace. That s what makes us right with God and fit for heaven. There is an old story of a man who died. He went to the pearly gates where Peter explained, It takes a thousand points to get into heaven. Tell me about yourself. The man said. When I was a child I went to Sunday School every week. I read my Bible every day. I obeyed my parents. I memorized the entire letter of Romans. Saint Peter said That s very good. That s one point. Tell me something else about yourself. The man said swallowed hard and said, As an adult I was an Elder at my church, I tithed my income, went on mission trips, worked with the youth group and helped the poor through our food bank. Saint Peter said, That s very impressive. That s another point. Tell me something else about yourself. The man was shaking at this point and he said, There is nothing much to tell. At this rate the only thing that will get me into heaven is the grace of God.
9 Peter said, You re absolutely right. And grace is worth a thousand points. Welcome into glory. Second, we resist sola gratia because we don t like what the Bible teaches about our fallen human nature. The Bible says that our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked. There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God." (Romans 3:10-11) Rather than acknowledge our total helplessness and hopelessness apart from the grace of God, we like to think we are not so bad. Surely we have a role to play in our salvation. The gospel is sometimes presented like this. Satan votes against you. God votes for you. And it is up to you to cast the deciding vote. But if that is the case I have saved myself. Sola gratia is important because if we reject it we reject the only gospel that can save. The alternative to sola gratia is a gospel that depends on our goodness instead of the grace of God and that s no gospel at all. Sola gratia is what makes the gospel good news. Sola gratia shows that it is God who acts first. It is God who draws the wretched sinner to himself. It is God who gives new life to people who are dead in their trespasses and sins. It is God who causes us to be born again. So with Luther and the other reformers we say praise God for sola gratia, for I am saved by grace alone.