Summer Sermons - Captured By God's Grace
June 30, 2024
What’s this?
It’s a section of this Stack that reflects the content of a weekly small group Bible study that I lead. These posts primarily consist of a sermon outline used as notes during the meeting. A longer description can be found on the About page. If you subscribe to this Substack but don’t wish to receive notifications for this section, select Manage Subscription from the upper-right menu and turn the notification off there.
Audience
These summaries are prepared for and presented within an on-campus small group audience, adding explanations and additional questions during the meeting itself. Members of the group vary in their understanding, but are familiar with the Bible, can find references fairly quickly, and tend to believe what they read there. The beliefs we hold vary individually.
There are no particular expectations with regard to the online audience. Curiosity is enough, and perhaps patience if you understand things differently. The same goes for visitors to the church itself. Questions and comments are encouraged.
Small Group Situation (News - Please Read)
This section of the Substack was meant to reflect the materials prepared for a small group meeting that I was leading. All of the other members of that group have either opted out for the summer or have been unable to attend regularly. The result is that I prepare for the meeting but no one else comes.
I have included the postable materials for this last week’s session below. If I prepare anything for future weeks this summer, it will likely be minimal, and I may or may not post it here — I haven’t decided because I don’t yet have enough information.
I may start another group in September, if there is interest. It would be an at-home small group, for people living nearby, and I would then have materials I prepared for it that I could post here. The on-campus group could also resume at that time, and then I could share preparations with that group as well.
This sermon was given by our Transitional Pastor. The former Senior Pastor resigned at the end of June, 2022, to start his own non-profit consulting organization in Texas, the search team failed to find a qualified candidate and was dissolved, and the position remains unfilled. This pastor is serving on a part-time, interim basis to lead the church, and will give sermons occasionally.
I wanted to be sure to post this sermon, because it goes into the matter of the “Sin Problem”. Since I just published my own “Sin Problem” post (after thinking about it for two months!), this didn’t seem like a coincidence (and no, I didn’t know that this sermon was coming). I have included the “sin problem” segment of the sermon transcript below. The rest of the outline is taken from the outline in that week’s church bulletin, into which I also merged a few rough notes that I took during the service.
Sermon Video
Optional but recommended. Transcript available for download below.
Sermon YouTube Livestream Link
Full Service YouTube Livestream Link
Lightly edited transcript
Sermon Outline
(Kid's game story - "Capture the Flag" [00:31])
God's influence in our lives.
Synonyms.
2 Cor 5:14 (Love of Christ compels)
Has control over us.
1 Cor 9: Paul compelled to preach the gospel
Compels us to love others.
Lk. 7:36-50 (Woman with alabaster jar)
Pharisee's thoughts -- 'sinner'
(Money lender parable)
Much forgiven. Faith saved her.
God's love and grace should be overtaking/taking over us
We tend to be captured by ...
1. The WORLD
2. Our need to be LOVED BY OTHERS
3. Our PRIDE
4. Our HURTS and RESENTMENTS
5. Our FEARS (ANXIETIES, WORRIES)
6. Our SIN
To be captured by God’s amazing and overwhelming grace we have to ...
1. Understand how badly we need it. Romans 3:19-20; 5:12-14; 6:23; 7:14-25; Ephesians 2:1-3
(The Sin Problem)
Can't fix it ourselves.
Which means ...
Our condition leads to death and eternal separation from God.
We can’t fix the problem ourselves!
From the transcript:
20:58 “Our sins, they are many.” [From an earlier hymn that was sung.] What are we just saying? Our sins, what? His mercies are more sick, can't sit. His mercies are more. Wow. Now, to get captured by God's grace, I'm moving into the how-to section, okay? To understand what it means to be captured by God's grace, you gotta understand how badly we need it, how badly we need God's grace.
21:31 Because here's the truth, we all have a sin problem. Every one of us does. We are all infected with it. We are all born into it. Adam's sin was transferred to us, Romans 5:12. That's what happened to us. And it has corrupted all of us at the core of our being. Everybody in the world, even Christians struggle with a sin problem. We just don't want to admit how bad it really is in us.
22:07 We somehow want to minimize it or rationalize it. And here's how we do it. Well, I recognize I have a sin problem, but I'm not as bad as that guy.
22:32 Yes, you are. Yes, you are. This is why when I ever teach the book of Romans, the hardest chapter for people to deal with is Romans chapter three, where you know where Paul goes, "No one is righteous, no not one, all sin, all have liars, all this." You walk through, oh my gosh, can we get to the end of the section, right?
23:00 Because it's really difficult to see how bad our sin problem really is. And I'm sure there's some of you think, "Really, Dad, is it really that bad?" Yes, it is. It really is. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of life is the gift of God is eternal life. There's grace, right? And you know, you understand that our condition leads us to death and leads us from separation from God and hell.
23:32 And you also know that we can't fix the sin problem ourselves, can we? We just can't fix it. Paul says, I do the things I don't want to do, and I don't do the things I want to do, and I think I'm going to do good, but then evil's right there with me, and he finally gets to the end of chapter seven. Oh, what a wretched man I am. Who's going to rescue me from this body of death? Right? And then he says, thanks be to God. Thanks be to God.
24:05 Wow. God is the one in our sin that breaks into our lives and brings His grace. We weren't even asking for it. He's the one who decided, "I'm gonna break into your life and I'm gonna lavish my grace upon you." Wow. Second thing, to be captured by God's grace, then I have to overwhelmingly appreciate what a gift God has actually given me.
24:35 Ephesians 2:8 and 9, it is by grace that you were saved and that's through faith and not of work so that no one, it is a gift of God, so that no one can boast. And again, I wanted to say again, I think we have a difficult time appreciating the gift of grace because in that truth that he's lavished on us, it's hard for us to understand the reason behind it that we are really that bad sinners wise.
25:04 Do you realize that if there is, I want you to understand the gift. If there's one iota ounce of thought in your head, that certainly I'm not that bad or I can do something about this.
25:39 That just drifts into your head. You think, oh, it's not as bad. It's no longer a gift. It's no longer a gift. You've just turned it into an obligation. That's the gift.
25:57 You know when Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, Acts chapter nine, God knocked him off that horse and said to him, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?" I don't know what he said, I don't know what Paul said, but I can imagine what he said, what he's thinking. Saul, why are you persuading me? If I was Saul, here's what I'd be thinking. Oh boy, I'm burnt toast now.
26:30 Jesus is going to zap me. I'm done. I deserve it. I persecuted the church. I persecuted him. I'm burnt toast. Hey, I want you to be my missionary to the Gentiles. I'm gonna shower my grace upon you and give you something you don't deserve, and I want you to be my missionary to the Gentiles.
27:00 This woman in Luke 7. Wow. He loves me. He loves me. I don't know if you sit during the day. Now you might have to turn the computer off or the TV off or, you know, whatever it is.
27:22 And do you ever just set aside time just to sit and breathe, breathe in God's love? Do you know that when God created humankind, he reached down, this is really cool, he reached down and grabbed the dust of the earth, and he formed it into a human being.
27:57 And he got up really close. He breathed life into his nostrils. How intimate is that? That our God loves us that much that he, and isn't his grace, a breath of fresh air that just, here's God.
28:27 I'm redeeming you. You are my child. I'm your God. Nothing will separate us from the love. Nothing. Wow. That's our God. But you have to focus on that and talk about that in a second.
28:52 All I know is this, when you're captured by the grace of God, it changes the way you think. It really does. Which changes the way you feel, which changes the way you act. 'Cause thoughts affect feelings, feelings affect actions, right?
29:16 So if you have stinking thinking, you're gonna have stinkin' feelings and your actions are gonna be pretty smelly. But if your thoughts are on God's grace, see what I'm going at? That's what I'm thinking about. So let me give you some things, three things I'm gonna close this off with and help you understand this.
29:47 Here's what I've noticed about people that are captured by God's grace. I've watched this in people. I really have, and it draws me to the grace of God more. It really does. But here's what I've noticed about it. And then you might wanna take like a little temperature of yourself on these things, you know, for you personally. Where are you on this stuff?
30:12 Those who are captured by God's grace, it leads them to live with an overwhelming joy and a passion to worship God. This woman that was crying at Jesus' feet are tears of joy. They're not tears of sadness, they're tears of utter joy. He loves me and it bursts forth from her eyes.
30:41 It's not a trickle down, it's just bursting forth, and she grabs her hair and she's just washing because she is so joyful that he's had a house. I'm going to the house. There's a party. I don't care. I'm going to tell him how much I love him because he's brought this joy in my life. Can't stop her. Imagine if they were there, hey, who are you yet? Move out of my way. I gotta get to Jesus.
31:11 I gotta tell him how happy I am and how joyful he has made me. You know Again, like I said, we read the story and we think it's a bit over the top, but there's that joy within her that's uncontrollable. And listen, you see it with people who understand that grace of God is just, wow, they just can't, they erupt. You look at their, you can see it in their eyes.
2. Overwhelmingly appreciate what a gift God has given us.
Ephesians 2:8-9; Acts 9:1-9
Which means ...
Appreciating the price paid for our sin.
Daily focusing on the gift of Christ’s grace.
The focus of your life on God’s grace will lead you to live ...
1. With an overwhelming joy and passion to worship God. 2 Samuel 6
(Billy Graham)
(CR story)
2. With an overwhelming hunger for more of God.
(Mary and Martha)
3. With an overwhelming unction to give what you have received with others.
Question to answer is: How do we get there?
Philippians 4:8-9
Sermon Points
To be captured by God’s amazing and overwhelming grace we have to…
Understand how badly we need it.
Overwhelmingly appreciate what a gift God has given us.
The focus of your life on God’s grace will lead you to live…
With an overwhelming joy and passion to worship God.
With an overwhelming hunger for more of God.
With an overwhelming unction to give what you have received with others.
Digging Deeper
On a scale of 1-10 (1=low, 10=high), how captured are you by ...
God’s grace in your life? How has it transformed your life?
What is getting in the way of you being captured by God’s grace?
Six things were shared that we tend to be captured by—which of them would you say you struggle with the most?
How have you taken God’s grace for granted?
What do you believe is the connection between God’s grace and our unction (gut desire) to share his grace with others?
Thank you for another uplifting talk.