1 Amazing grace! how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found–
was blind, but now I see.
2 ‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
how precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed!
3 Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come:
’tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.
4 Yea–when this flesh and heart shall fail,
and mortal life shall cease:
I shall possess, within the veil,
a life of joy and peace.
5 The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
the sun forbear to shine;
but God, who called me here below,
will be forever mine.
(https://hymnary.org/hymn/SSOH1893/page/111)
The Bible says in Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Eph 2:8-9 ESV)
For by grace—that Amazing Grace.
We know the song. We sing it at many funerals. Several websites not that it is the most favorite of all of the Christians Hymns. We remember the story behind the song of the hymn writer John newton, who was a converted sea captain of slave ships, who reflected on his sin and reflected:
1 Amazing grace! how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found–
was blind, but now I see.
1. Newton saw his sin, as dark as it was was, but he saw how Jesus saved him only by grace.
It is that grace that…”you have been saved through faith”. (Eph 2:8a ESV)
We don’t talk enough about grace.
We love to focus on the law. We love to focus on the rules. Rules are easy, but everyone needs grace.
As we look in Webster’s Dictionary for the definition of Grace, we see that the noun form means;
“unmerited divine assistance given to humans for their regeneration or sanctification”
But, the verb form means;
“to confer dignity or honor on”
You see, while we receive grace (noun) from God—this unmerited favor; we extent grace (verb) to others. We give others dignity. We treat others with dignity and honor. Just as we were honored by Him.
So, the Bible says
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. (Eph 2:8a ESV)
We have been saved—past tense. If you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ for your Salvation, you have been saved. We need to be careful not to worry about this. Once you have placed your faith in Christ, you are saved…period. We don’t deserve grace in the first place, so the sin that you do after your place your faith in Christ is know different than the sin you did before. It is sin and it only highlights your need for a savior.
2. Which brings us to the second point:
8bAnd this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, (Eph 2:8b ESV)
This is very important for us to remember. We need to understand that we are given grace as a gift. I am not entitled. I did not earn it. It is not my right to have it…it is a gift. Free.
I was trying to give an illustration of a free gift, but it seems that any gift comes with strings attached. In some way. The string is affection in some way, or an advertisement of some sort, or good will. Gifts are dangerous. We have briefings each year regarding gifts because whether we like it or not, we use gifts for many different reasons.
The closest illustration I could think of is of a parent giving his or her child a gift for no other reason but to give a gift. But, even them, there is an expected response—ever so slightly and it is ok—I don’t want to go all dark.
But, God’s grace. Has no strings. He gives regardless. For a being to know the past, present, and future of each one of us. Christ died for us. And the Bible says
8bAnd this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Eph 2:8b-9 ESV)
3. Through this verse, we see that grace cannot be earned, it can only be given. So the recipient cannot boast.
There is no aware to be proud of. There is no trophy to put on our shelf or plaque to go on the “I Love Me wall”. There is no boasting—because you had absolutely nothing to do with it. It is grace.
But, even with grace, you want to get excited. You want to tell others. You want to celebrate. But, the boasting is in the Lord, only.
And as we boast in the Lord, we reflect on what he has done. What has grace done for you? Newton’s final verses of Amazing Grace say:
4 Yea–when this flesh and heart shall fail,
and mortal life shall cease:
I shall possess, within the veil,
a life of joy and peace.
5 The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
the sun forbear to shine;
but God, who called me here below,
will be forever mine.
So, that is my encouragement to you this morning. That you will look at grace in a new way. When you face the triumphs and the failures that come, remember that it was
“’tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.”
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Photo by Timothy Eberly on Unsplash