The Benefit of Christ #1 - Grace of Christ

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe – Beginning 9/11/2013
Wednesday Messages

LESSON ONE – THE GRACE OF CHRIST
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Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him
                     that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
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I.    WE ARE CALLED INTO THE GRACE OF CHRIST

    A.    You and I do not choose the grace of Christ. It is beyond our nature to do so.
    B.    John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
    C.    Matt 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
    D.    First God calls us by the Gospel. This is the General Call of God
        1.    Rom. 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
        2.    Matt 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
        3.    Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
            a.    We are to preach the Gospel to every creature, every human being, no matter what their background or religious persuasion.
            b.    God takes this Gospel when he sees fit and brings power to be upon people, for we find in Rom. 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
            c.    This power is what makes the difference in this General Call and our next point, The Effectual Call.
        4.    In our text, these folks had been called by the General Call of God. We know this, because they were removed from the true Gospel to another Gospel.
    E.    Then God calls us out of darkness into his glorious light – This is the Effectual Call
        1.    1 Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
        2.    In the General Call, God calls everyone who hears the Gospel, and many reject
        3.    In this call, he actually calls them effectually out of darkness into his marvelous light.
        4.    This is the work of God, for we read in 2 Cor 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
        5.    God calls us out of darkness by shining in our hearts the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
        6.    This effectual call is also shown in 2 Thess 2:14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
            a.    Here we are called by the Gospel to the obtaining (or receiving) the glory of Jesus Christ.
            b.    God effectually calls us into his kingdom (1 Thess. 2:12)
        7.    1 Peter 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

II.    HOW WAS CHRIST’S GRACE MANIFESTED?
    A.    He Became poor
        1.    2 Cor. 8:9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
        2.    Phil. 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
        3.    Phil 2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
        4.    Phil. 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
    B.    Through The Gift of Righteousness
        1.    Rom 5:17 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
    C.    It Is God’s Grace, But Given By Jesus Christ
        1.    1 Cor 1:4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;
        2.    So we know by this that we cannot receive the grace of God any other way except through Jesus Christ.
        3.    Eph 4:7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
III.    THE JOY OF CHRIST’S GRACE
    A.    Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
    B.    This grace in our hearts is from God. It is saving grace, growing grace, sustaining grace, knowing grace, loving grace, Christ’s grace.

IV.    GOD’S GRACE AND CHRIST’S GRACE ARE THE SAME
    A.    2 Thess 1:12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
    B.  The use of the word "and" here is the ascensive use and can be translated "even."

V.    THE GRACE OF CHRIST IS ABUNDANT
    A.    1 Tim. 1:14 And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
    B.    We Are To Be Strong In The Grace of Christ
        1.    2 Tim. 2:1 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

VI.    SOME WILL DENY THE GRACE OF JESUS CHRIST
    A.    Jude 1:4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
        1.    To deny means to prove to oneself that something is not true or that a thing or person does not exist.
        2.    But to deny that something exists is self-contradictory. You cannot prove that something isn’t. The only way to do that is to have complete universal knowledge of everything, and no human being has that, of course.
        3.    The only way to logically deny Christ is to put something in his place. Therefore Galatians speaks of “another gospel,” (See our text) and Gal. 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
        4.    Or another Jesus – 2 Cor. 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
        5.    So the only way to deny Jesus Christ in this way is to pervert him.
            a.    That is, to make Jesus something that he is not.
            b.    Some say, as we have recently noticed, that Jesus casts out devils in the name of Beelzebub.
            c.    Others say he is no king “We have no king but Caesar” John 19:15.
            d.    They say he is simply human and not God – Matt. 13:55  Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?  56  And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?
        6.    But Jesus is the “only Lord God.” Jude 1:4
    B.    The Fate Of Those Who Deny Him -- Matt 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.
    C.    But we are to deny ourselves – Matt 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.