All Sufficient Grace
Bible Study Time 8-13-06
Church links:
Bible Study Time 8-13-06
In Romans, Chapter 5, the Apostle Paul said:
Romans 5:12-14 (NKJ)
12 . . . just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned--
13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.
Here we see that before the Law, God did not hold people accountable for their individual sins because there was no law. As Paul said, sin is not imputed where there is no law.
However, it is clear that all people from Adam to Moses were under the curse of death because they all died. Paul’s question then was this: On what basis did God sentence everyone to death? His conclusion: All people received the death sentence because of Adam’s sin.
The curse of death passed from Adam to all those who followed after him though they did not commit the same sin that Adam committed. No one after Adam had the opportunity to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When God pronounced the curse, He said:
Genesis 3:22-24 (NKJ)
22 . . . "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, (he may) put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--
23 therefore the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken.
24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
Obviously, God is the One and only being who has the right to determine what is good and what is evil, to determine what is just and what is unjust. There is no one above God to pass judgment upon His judgments or upon His actions. He is the ultimate authority over all of creation. It was God who determined that because of Adam’s sin the sentence of death would pass upon all people.
That’s bad news, and some people say, I just can’t believe in a God like that. Well, for those people there is some more bad news. We don’t get to chose the character of God. God is who He is, and it is in our best interest to find out who He is. Proverbs, Chapter 9, says:
Proverbs 9:8-12 (NLT)
8 . . . don't bother rebuking mockers; they will only hate you. But the wise, when rebuked, will love you all the more.
9 Teach the wise, and they will be wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn more.
10 (The) Fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in understanding.
11 Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life.
12 If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit. If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.
Those who are wise will want to find out who God is because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Accordingly, those who are wise rejoice in the word of God. The Bible is the direct result of God’s love and of His grace. The Bible is the only book which is written by God, and it is God’s purpose to reveal Himself through the Bible. Paul said:
2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJ)
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Peter said:
2 Peter 1:19-21 (NKJ)
19 And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts;
20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation,
21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
Because God loves us, He gave us His word. Because He wants all men to be saved, He gave us His word, and in His word we find that because of one man’s sin, death passed upon all men.
Why did God tell us this? He wants us to understand why we look around and see so much evil. He wants us to understand why we look around and see people who do foolish things and create so much needless pain and suffering. He wants us to understand why we do foolish things that create so much pain and suffering. He wants us to understand how to be saved from sin and from eternal condemnation.
The good news about the word of God is that it is not something that we have to travel across land and sea to find. It’s not something that we have to search for in the far reaches of outer space or in the depths of the ocean. No, the word of God is close at hand. As Moses told the children of Israel:
Deuteronomy 30:11-14 (NLT)
11 "This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand or perform.
12 It is not up in heaven, so distant that you must ask, 'Who will go to heaven and bring it down so we can hear and obey it?'
13 It is not beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, 'Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear and obey it?'
14 The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.
The Apostle Paul wrote the book of Romans during the Acts-period while God was offering the New Covenant Kingdom to the nation of Israel. Paul said in Romans 10 that his heart’s desire and his prayer for Israel was that they would be saved, but he went on to say that they were ignorant of the fact that:
Romans 10:4-11 (NKJ)
4 . . . Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, "The man who does those things shall live by them."
6 But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down from above)
7 or, " 'Who will descend into the abyss?' " (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach):
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
11 For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."
God’s wants people to understand how to be saved from the curse of sin. Oh, what a simple message of salvation God has provided for us through the Bible. The book which is close at hand. It’s found in almost every home in America and is being distributed all around the world even as we speak. This book is the book that contains God’s simple message of salvation:
Romans 10:9 (NKJ)
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 5 says that by one man sin came into the world, and by God’s decree, death passed upon all men. God had the right to do that because He is God, but He also has the right to offer salvation to any and all who believe in the work of one righteous man. Romans 5 says that:
Romans 5:15-17 (NLT)
15 . . . this one man, Adam, brought death to many through his sin. But this other man, Jesus Christ, brought forgiveness to many through God's bountiful gift.
16 And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin. For Adam's sin led to condemnation, but we have the free gift of being accepted by God, even though we are guilty of many sins.
17 The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over us, but all who receive God's wonderful, gracious gift of righteousness will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
It was by God’s decree that death passed upon all men, and it is by God’s decree that all men can be saved because of Christ’s finished work upon the cross. Just as surely as all people face physical death because of Adam’s sin, all who believe in Jesus Christ will be given victory over sin and death and will someday be given an immortal body which is not subject to death.
This salvation has nothing to do with our good works. It has to do with God’s overwhelmingly abundant grace. Paul said:
Romans 5:20-21 (NKJ)
20 . . . the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more,
21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Law was given so that we could understand the magnitude of our sin, but where sin abounded, grace did much more abounded.
God’s superabounding grace is beautifully illustrated in the parable of the king who forgave the debt of His servant. In that parable the Lord said that the king forgave his servant even though the servant owed him 10,000 talents, which was probably more than 15 million dollars by our standards today. Specifically, Jesus said:
Matthew 18:23-27 (NKJ)
23 "Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
24 "And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
25 "But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.
26 "The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'
27 "Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.
Of coarse, we know that according to this parable this same servant went out and found a man who owed him only a hundred denarii, or a few thousand dollars, but he refused to forgive the debt. The Lord said:
Matthew 18:28-34 (NKJ)
28 "But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'
29 "So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'
30 "And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.
31 "So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.
32 "Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.
33 'Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'
34 "And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.
What an incredible illustration of God’s forgiveness and of our own reluctance to forgive! The king represents our heavenly Father and the fact that He is willing and able to forgive all of our sins, regardless of how great our sin debt may be. He makes no requirement for us to even try to pay the debt ourselves. Our debt is too great to even begin to pay it off.
When I read this story, I am convicted that I often view my sin debt as being somewhat like the 100 denarii, which was about what a man would receive for a hundred days worth of work, or four or five months worth of work. Well, even that is a sizable debt. I know that most of us would be fairly upset if someone owed us 4 or 5 months worth of back pay, but they refused to pay us.
But I am amazed when I see that my sin debt in the sight of God is not represented by a hundred denarii, but it’s represented by 10,000 talents, by millions of dollars. Truly the grace of God is amazing. I know that I can’t even image the vastness of my sin, but this I know, according to Romans 5, where sin did abound, grace did much more abound. Where I am often unwilling to forgive even the sins that I can understand, God is willing to forgive my sin debt which is greater than I can imagine.
Our heavenly Father is willing to forgive our sin debt because of the work of Jesus Christ, His Son, upon the cross of Calvary. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
If you have never accepted God’s forgiveness for your sin, won’t you confess your sinful state today and accept God’s forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice upon the cross of Calvary.
Well, I see that our time is gone for this morning. Thank you for listening to another broadcast of Bible Study Time.
Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com
Romans 5:12-14 (NKJ)
12 . . . just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned--
13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.
Here we see that before the Law, God did not hold people accountable for their individual sins because there was no law. As Paul said, sin is not imputed where there is no law.
However, it is clear that all people from Adam to Moses were under the curse of death because they all died. Paul’s question then was this: On what basis did God sentence everyone to death? His conclusion: All people received the death sentence because of Adam’s sin.
The curse of death passed from Adam to all those who followed after him though they did not commit the same sin that Adam committed. No one after Adam had the opportunity to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When God pronounced the curse, He said:
Genesis 3:22-24 (NKJ)
22 . . . "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, (he may) put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--
23 therefore the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken.
24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
Obviously, God is the One and only being who has the right to determine what is good and what is evil, to determine what is just and what is unjust. There is no one above God to pass judgment upon His judgments or upon His actions. He is the ultimate authority over all of creation. It was God who determined that because of Adam’s sin the sentence of death would pass upon all people.
That’s bad news, and some people say, I just can’t believe in a God like that. Well, for those people there is some more bad news. We don’t get to chose the character of God. God is who He is, and it is in our best interest to find out who He is. Proverbs, Chapter 9, says:
Proverbs 9:8-12 (NLT)
8 . . . don't bother rebuking mockers; they will only hate you. But the wise, when rebuked, will love you all the more.
9 Teach the wise, and they will be wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn more.
10 (The) Fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in understanding.
11 Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life.
12 If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit. If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.
Those who are wise will want to find out who God is because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Accordingly, those who are wise rejoice in the word of God. The Bible is the direct result of God’s love and of His grace. The Bible is the only book which is written by God, and it is God’s purpose to reveal Himself through the Bible. Paul said:
2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NKJ)
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Peter said:
2 Peter 1:19-21 (NKJ)
19 And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts;
20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation,
21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
Because God loves us, He gave us His word. Because He wants all men to be saved, He gave us His word, and in His word we find that because of one man’s sin, death passed upon all men.
Why did God tell us this? He wants us to understand why we look around and see so much evil. He wants us to understand why we look around and see people who do foolish things and create so much needless pain and suffering. He wants us to understand why we do foolish things that create so much pain and suffering. He wants us to understand how to be saved from sin and from eternal condemnation.
The good news about the word of God is that it is not something that we have to travel across land and sea to find. It’s not something that we have to search for in the far reaches of outer space or in the depths of the ocean. No, the word of God is close at hand. As Moses told the children of Israel:
Deuteronomy 30:11-14 (NLT)
11 "This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand or perform.
12 It is not up in heaven, so distant that you must ask, 'Who will go to heaven and bring it down so we can hear and obey it?'
13 It is not beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, 'Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear and obey it?'
14 The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.
The Apostle Paul wrote the book of Romans during the Acts-period while God was offering the New Covenant Kingdom to the nation of Israel. Paul said in Romans 10 that his heart’s desire and his prayer for Israel was that they would be saved, but he went on to say that they were ignorant of the fact that:
Romans 10:4-11 (NKJ)
4 . . . Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, "The man who does those things shall live by them."
6 But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down from above)
7 or, " 'Who will descend into the abyss?' " (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach):
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
11 For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."
God’s wants people to understand how to be saved from the curse of sin. Oh, what a simple message of salvation God has provided for us through the Bible. The book which is close at hand. It’s found in almost every home in America and is being distributed all around the world even as we speak. This book is the book that contains God’s simple message of salvation:
Romans 10:9 (NKJ)
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 5 says that by one man sin came into the world, and by God’s decree, death passed upon all men. God had the right to do that because He is God, but He also has the right to offer salvation to any and all who believe in the work of one righteous man. Romans 5 says that:
Romans 5:15-17 (NLT)
15 . . . this one man, Adam, brought death to many through his sin. But this other man, Jesus Christ, brought forgiveness to many through God's bountiful gift.
16 And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin. For Adam's sin led to condemnation, but we have the free gift of being accepted by God, even though we are guilty of many sins.
17 The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over us, but all who receive God's wonderful, gracious gift of righteousness will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.
It was by God’s decree that death passed upon all men, and it is by God’s decree that all men can be saved because of Christ’s finished work upon the cross. Just as surely as all people face physical death because of Adam’s sin, all who believe in Jesus Christ will be given victory over sin and death and will someday be given an immortal body which is not subject to death.
This salvation has nothing to do with our good works. It has to do with God’s overwhelmingly abundant grace. Paul said:
Romans 5:20-21 (NKJ)
20 . . . the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more,
21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Law was given so that we could understand the magnitude of our sin, but where sin abounded, grace did much more abounded.
God’s superabounding grace is beautifully illustrated in the parable of the king who forgave the debt of His servant. In that parable the Lord said that the king forgave his servant even though the servant owed him 10,000 talents, which was probably more than 15 million dollars by our standards today. Specifically, Jesus said:
Matthew 18:23-27 (NKJ)
23 "Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
24 "And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
25 "But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.
26 "The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'
27 "Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.
Of coarse, we know that according to this parable this same servant went out and found a man who owed him only a hundred denarii, or a few thousand dollars, but he refused to forgive the debt. The Lord said:
Matthew 18:28-34 (NKJ)
28 "But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'
29 "So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'
30 "And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.
31 "So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.
32 "Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.
33 'Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'
34 "And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.
What an incredible illustration of God’s forgiveness and of our own reluctance to forgive! The king represents our heavenly Father and the fact that He is willing and able to forgive all of our sins, regardless of how great our sin debt may be. He makes no requirement for us to even try to pay the debt ourselves. Our debt is too great to even begin to pay it off.
When I read this story, I am convicted that I often view my sin debt as being somewhat like the 100 denarii, which was about what a man would receive for a hundred days worth of work, or four or five months worth of work. Well, even that is a sizable debt. I know that most of us would be fairly upset if someone owed us 4 or 5 months worth of back pay, but they refused to pay us.
But I am amazed when I see that my sin debt in the sight of God is not represented by a hundred denarii, but it’s represented by 10,000 talents, by millions of dollars. Truly the grace of God is amazing. I know that I can’t even image the vastness of my sin, but this I know, according to Romans 5, where sin did abound, grace did much more abound. Where I am often unwilling to forgive even the sins that I can understand, God is willing to forgive my sin debt which is greater than I can imagine.
Our heavenly Father is willing to forgive our sin debt because of the work of Jesus Christ, His Son, upon the cross of Calvary. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
If you have never accepted God’s forgiveness for your sin, won’t you confess your sinful state today and accept God’s forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice upon the cross of Calvary.
Well, I see that our time is gone for this morning. Thank you for listening to another broadcast of Bible Study Time.
Write me at: jimjoan77@juno.com
Church links:
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