Classic Summer 2020: Sola Gratia

Grace Alone and the Error of Merit

Now i have been married for almost thirty years and what would you think of me if i met kim and uh... thirty years ago and said you know what i'd like to marry you. I'd like to accept you. But i have a few qualifications uh... here's a cookbook and uh... here's a financial ledger and you know in the next thirty years if you prove yourself to be a good cook and a good housewife uh... you can acquire some of these skills.

I might consider accepting you as my wife. What would you think of me. Yeah i have to talk about this right now while kim's not here. But you know what that's how we think about god very often it's in evangelical circles if we just do enough over the next thirty years then maybe at the end of our life when we have to lay down our heads and die will god accept us.

And of course we know that's wrong what we do in human uh... spheres we would never think of when it comes to god you know up front because of grace alone god says to the sinner i accept you. There's no condemnation for those in christ.

Jesus i'll never cast you out. You are my child because of my son's work on your behalf his perfect life his perfect death confirmed by the resurrection. And you trusting in him. I accept you from the very beginning up front justified early on the moment you believe you are right with god and nothing can change that.

And if i went back to the cook illustration and now you're free to cook without worry about failure. It is deep within us this idea that there's the grace of god. And then there's our merit and somehow they're co-mingled and that's that's making us right with god.

It's grace but it's not grace alone. And you know back in the days of the reformation this was a big deal. Are you right with god by his sovereign grace alone. Or is it by god's grace plus merit plus cooperation free will.

How are we seen as right in god's eyes. Now the medieval church had a little slogan and it's not blatantly heretical because it's got a little bit of something good in there. But it went something like this their little ditty, their little slogan was god will not deny his grace, so at least we're talking about grace.

He will not deny his grace to those who do what they can. You like that? Doesn't even rhyme as far as i'm concerned maybe it did in latin god will not deny his grace to those who do what they can. And this was the roman catholic church.

There is the grace of god but you add human merit you add sacraments, you add ordinances. You need grace. And you need grace not just by declaration but by infusion. For the roman catholics grace was a thing it was a substance, it was like a medicine, it was like gasoline it was a force and the pope said you can have some of this medicine, some of this substance some of this grace substance.

And you can have it through the church and through the church alone. And as you know there were seven sacraments that would give the church people this medicine called grace. It started off with baptism and here with baptism all original sin would be cleansed.

You would be regenerated and the process of justification would commence. The next step would be confirmation. You'd get the holy spirit, you'd have some special sealing power from god. There would be penance number three any kind of guilt or penalty from sins committed after baptism, after confirmation would be dealt with with penance.

Of course the holy eucharist you have a non-bloody sacrifice weekly offered up on the altar of the catholic church applied to the life of the believer. For those that were so inclined marriage you'd get a special grace anointing of the sick when you were near death you'd get the special anointing and then holy orders for bishops, priests and deacons.

And the crazy thing about this grace medicine substance that was needed was that it worked by itself. You didn't even have to believe if you got baptized. It didn't mean if it could mean I don't even believe in baptism.

But you still get credit for it. The latin word was ex opere operato. From the work worked. You don't even need to have faith. And you get this. And here's the wild thing. This concept is still around five hundred years later after the reformation.

It's here today. It's here in the roman catholic church despite scandals both sexually and financially. But it's also in evangelicalism. Except we don't crassly say god will not deny his grace to those who can do what they can we say.

Of course our modern day slogan is god helps those who help themselves. Did you know half of evangelicals surveyed thought that was a direct quote from the bible. And eighty four percent of evangelicals thought it was at least a biblical idea this week in christianity today august two thousand seventeen quote today half of american protestants say that both good deeds and faith in god are needed to get into heaven.

The same number believe that in addition to the bible christians need guidance from the church teachings and traditions. According to the pew research center. Well maybe it'll be better if we go overseas at least back in the reformation days.

Luther calvin's wingley germany sixty one percent of protestants believe good deeds are needed for salvation. Switzerland fifty seven percent. Holland forty seven percent. In other words sola gratia by faith.

About by grace alone. And sola fide by faith alone. They have the minority view in christian churches. Yes we believe in grace but it's not alone. So today we're gonna look at the topic of grace alone saved by grace.

Salvation by Grace Alone in John’s Gospel

When we say grace alone we mean that god owes us nothing but by his own good pleasure by his own will by his own sovereign decree. He lavishes grace and love upon us. Especially through the person of christ jesus.

It's one thing to say i believe in grace. It's another thing to say i believe in grace alone. Unmerited favor. Demerited favor based on the person christ jesus. I have nothing to make myself commendable before.

When you get to heaven i'm sure you will recognize that it was all god and god alone before we get in the passage. Let me ask the question this way because i think this idea has seeped into evangelicalism.

Big time. You and your friend each hear the gospel and you respond positively and believed in the lord jesus christ. But your friend didn't your spouse didn't your roommate didn't your child didn't. Both hear the same gospel.

The good news forgiveness is found in christ jesus. And god grants us to you by faith in him alone. Why did you believe. And your friend roommate spouse didn't heard the same gospel. One affirms it and believes it the other one rejects it.

You were smarter higher IQ more handsome more education more righteous you were better. The answer cannot lie in the person. It has to lie in the god who's sovereignly gracious who goes to god's heaven.

The answer to that lies in not the man but in god. And that is grace. God will not share his glory with another. And when you realize god saves you from his self his own wrath and deliverance from hell.

Not because something is good in me but because god by his own good pleasure his own decree his own free will. Then you can say amazing grace. But if you think it's you who did it you can't say that's a sweet sound that saved a wretch like me every time the clock struck on the hour spurgeon said by grace you've been saved.

That's what we should be telling our people because we so begin to think we're saved by grace. Plus something else. So when you hear the clock ring twelve i don't think i'm gonna preach until that point.

But by the way i haven't preached in a long time. I think i'm gonna go long today. It's a forgotten truth. It's an ignored truth. It's an important truth. So take your bibles and turn to the gospel of john.

Please i've got to clear up a few things steve has said just kidding. But the gospel of john please thank you for preaching through. I've been studying john a lot this summer and ecclesiastes a lot this summer.

I want you just to see quickly from john that salvation is god's doing. It is by his initiative. If you'd like to understand sola gratia it's simple understand that god initiate salvation and understand how bad we are.

And then you've got sola gratia. And that's what we're going to look at today understanding that the cause of salvation the driver of salvation the instigator of salvation the catalyst of salvation is god and god alone.

Then you'll understand sola gratia. And you'll even more understand it if you understand this concept that we are depraved and they were corrupt and that we're fallen and we need a savior. We can't save ourselves because grace initiates and there can be no cooperation because what would we contribute our sin.

Now we could look at paul's epistles. He really loved grace. And wouldn't you if you were paul too the pharisee ism and everything else that went along and all the rules. And he's saved by sovereign grace.

But john also understands it. And before we go to our main passage go to chapter one verse eleven. And you can see throughout the book throughout this gospel the sprinkling of sovereign grace god's initiative even if it doesn't say the word grace.

John one thirteen is where we'll land. But we're going to start off in verse eleven he came to his own and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him who believed in his name he gave the right to become children of god who were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but born of god but of god.

Well the good news is this now allows gentiles to be saved because it's not based on blood or ethnicity or anything else. But the cause here is god and god alone. It's not your physical birth who your parents are.

It's not your ethnicity. It's not are you jewish or anything else. It is god's work alone supernatural work of god alone. He goes on to talk about grace in verse fourteen. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us.

And we have seen his glory glory of the only son from the father full of grace and truth. Verse sixteen. For from his fullness we have all received grace upon grace. Verse seventeen. For the law was given through moses.

Grace and truth came through jesus christ. Sola gratia means it's by grace alone caused by god initiated by god driven by god. And we're gonna see that in full or display now in chapter six. John chapter six as steve has taught us uh... this gospel drives everyone to believe that jesus is the christ the son of the living god.

You read it and it's got one main intention to so elevate jesus christ that you say i will not trust in my own righteousness anymore. I will trust in jesus. And there are these seven great i am. Statements in the book are there not.

This is the first one. I'm the bread of life. Chapter eight i'm the light of the world. Chapter ten i'm the door of the sheep. Chapter ten i'm the good shepherd. Chapter eleven i'm the resurrection in the life.

Chapter fourteen on the way the truth in the life. And chapter fifteen i'm the vine. Good thing is only seven. Cuz i'd be off this platform. We need a bigger platform. Walk back and forth. Here's the first one.

I'm the bread of life. It's super famous. And it just pulls you in and we get to understand who god is within the trinity working and what his thoughts are about sinful mankind. And does he love them.

Will he save them. So let's pick it up in verse twenty two. What's happened so far in the chapter is that jesus has fed five thousand men and he's walked on water. Verse twenty two of john six. The next day the multitude that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there were no other small there was no other small boat there except one.

And that jesus had not entered with his disciples into the boat but that his disciples had gone away alone. There came other small boats from tiberias near to the place where they ate the bread after the lord had given thanks.

Now they're going to try to find him because they want more physical bread. When the multitude therefore saw that jesus was not there nor his disciples they themselves got into the small boats and came to capernaum seeking jesus.

I mean where is jesus. Did he walk home. Did he take a different route. We can't find him. He's left. We need him. We want him. They found him the other side of the sea. They said to him rabbi when'd you get here.

When'd you get here. They're surprised. So the the walking on the water must have been just for the disciples and the disciples alone. Now as we're going to go into the section here's what you're going to see very often six times matter of fact came down from heaven.

Came down from heaven. Came down from heaven. The initiative of god of the sun coming down from heaven to save the lost jesus verse twenty six answered them and said truly truly it's very important. Verily verily i'm telling you the truth.

I say to you you seek me not because you saw signs but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. You're not real believers. You're in it for the food the bread. Your motives aren't good. And of course in chapter two jesus knows what's in a man because he can read men's minds and women's minds.

And he knows they're in it for superficial desires. So he says to them verse twenty seven. Do not work for the food which perishes. You're going to be hungry tomorrow. But for the food which endures to eternal life which the son of man will give to you.

For on him the father god has set his seal. The woman at the well said you know what i like this living water. Let me have some more of it. And jesus says you'll be thirsty the next day. So too do these people say you know what.

We just want some more food. And jesus said there's something more important than food. He didn't say by the way i'm so glad i've got a big crowd. Thank you for paying attention to me. I mean he's rebuking the crowd.

You've got bad motives. Therefore they said to him can you imagine what shall we do so that we may work the works of god. You just tell us what god requires whatever god requires we'll do. And of course what does he require.

Perfection. Obey the law perfectly. But if you can't be right with god by doing that because of adam's fall there is another way trusting in one who could perfectly obey. Jesus answered and said to them verse twenty nine.

This is the work of god that you believe in him whom he has sent. He's not talking about faith in faith. Just be a person of faith have a sincere faith have an existential faith. You need to have the object of faith.

So how do you get to heaven by works completely obeying the law. We can't do that because of adam's fall. Consequently our sin nature. And now there's another way. Jesus perfectly kept the law and died for those who would break the law believe in him.

Believe in the one whom the father has revealed. When you say what do we do. You're talking about self-reliance self-sufficiency. We can do what's required of god. And so what do they say. Well okay we're supposed to believe in you.

Well then prove you're somebody special. So they said to him what then do you do. For a sign so that we may see and believe you. What work do you perform. We know you just fed twenty thousand people in the chapter earlier earlier in the chapter.

And if you think you're better than moses then do something better than moses. Our father's eight men in the wilderness as it is written he gave them bread out of heaven to eat. I mean this feeding of the twenty thousand is nothing compared.

What moses did. I mean you fed us for one day. If you calculate all the days that moses fed the israelites it's fourteen thousand six hundred days. By the way later on rabbis said that the messiah. Here's how you recognize the messiah.

He could call down manna from heaven. Verse thirty two. Jesus then said to them truly truly i say to you it is not moses who has given you the bread out of heaven but it is my father. Now look at the tense.

Look at the verb tense who gives you. Present tense who's giving you the true bread out of heaven. Who's the true bread out of heaven. Who's the father giving right now we're not talking about past tense giving.

You're spending way too much time talking about moses. Far too little on god himself the manna. Back in those days you had to get manna the next day. And on friday night you had to get two days worth.

But there's another manna that god gives another bread sustenance that god gives. He's giving right now. Present tense. He's giving me i am the bread of life. Focus on him. For the bread of god in verse thirty three that which comes down out of heaven excuse me.

For the bread of god is that which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world. Then they said to him lord always give us this bread. Jesus said to them i'm the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger.

And he who believes in me will never thirst. What did jesus not say. I've got a bunch of bread of life. I know where the bread of life can be found. He says i am the bread of life as bread satisfies and satiates the desire of hunger.

I satisfy and satiate all your desires spiritually. But i said to you verse thirty six that you have seen me and yet do not believe. He said that to the jews in jerusalem. And now he's saying it to these men here.

Of course they wanted him to be a political mercenary. And now we come to the passage about divine initiative. How do you understand sola gratia grace alone. We understand by looking at god's initiative to save verse thirty seven.

If you haven't underlined these verses in your bible i bet you will do it. Now all that the father gives me will come to me and the one who comes to me i will certainly not cast out. For i've come down from heaven not to do my will but the will of him who sent me this is the will of him who sent me that of all that he has given me i lose nothing but raise it up on the last day.

For this is the will of my father that everyone who beholds the son and believes in him will have eternal life. And i myself will raise him up on the last. Do you see what the writer is doing. Some of these people don't believe.

They're questioning jesus. He's talking about bread spiritually using a metaphor. And they're thinking about pieces of you know unleavened bread. I was gonna say wonder bread. But that would be bad. I went to the uh... quick stop kind of seven eleven cumbies in california we needed some bread or something and some sausages and eggs.

I walked in there and they only had one kind of bread in that little place and it was wonder bread. I'm sorry i could not do it. I could not. I remembered bert evans back in economics class current economic issues university of nebraska at lincoln he said they've got a chemical that they put in wonder bread that makes it smell fresh.

I couldn't do it. Hey if you're here to give this bread eternal life and some don't believe. Maybe the message is broken. Maybe the messenger is broken. Maybe there's a frustration here. You're coming to save people.

You're coming to seek out people. And not everybody's believing they're saying give us this other bread. Somebody watches a miraculous sign of jesus and doesn't come to faith. Well then maybe his mission is a disaster.

Maybe god's plan is frustrated. But see if the plan of god doesn't depend on the people's responses whether they resist or are frustrated with the comments. But if it depends on god's initiative then you're thinking properly.

The ultimate answer to who's in heaven and who's not is not found in a person. It's found in the triune god. Did you notice the text all that the father gives to jesus. Every person that's given to jesus will come to faith.

God the father gives the son a love gift of people and every single one of them will believe. This is the godward side of salvation. And this is the primary side of salvation. Because every other side our response, our belief, our repentance, our coming to christ is secondary, it's a response.

It's an evidence to the work of god, not the cause. The father gives a love gift to the son people and they will come to christ and then come to the father. God is sovereign over salvation, do you notice the text.

Even who gives me nobody can claim any type of god. You owe me salvation. It has to be. The father gives the son in eternity past a love gift. And by the way if that happens what's the text. Say whoever comes to me i will never drive away.

Verse thirty seven. God initiates a salvation. And the response to salvation coming to christ it means you'll never be driven out. I said this week on twitter if you could lose your salvation you would.

If you could lose your salvation you already did. And if you could lose your salvation jesus didn't keep his promise to the father. But he did never ever driven away. Jesus keeps he preserves preserves.

They will surely come to the father. And the only way you're ever going to believe is if god enables you to believe. Even faith is a gift. Is it not acts. Thirteen forty eight. As many as were appointed to eternal life.

Believe. The ultimate cause of salvation is found in here. The purpose of the carnation incarnation coming down from heaven was not to do his own will is to do that of the father. Verse thirty eight says it.

But the will of him who sent me. And the sun's going to be obedient. And so the father says here's my gift to you son. Here's a group of people. Not every person. Not no person but a group of people. I want you to rescue them and save them.

I don't want one to perish. If one perishes what does that mean. Jesus couldn't fulfill his goal of salvation. If god the father says to the son you go rescue the elect the bride of christ and give them back to me as a redeemed people as a ransom people as a holy people as a as a bride spotless unblemished.

And the sun on that day on resurrection day on judgment day says father i i gave you most of them but not all of them. It would be to the shame of the sun. Didn't you do what i said. Weren't you able to fulfill what i've commanded you to do.

Be unthinkable. Jesus had a specific purpose to come to earth. And without getting political we did have a president in the past that put up a big poster on a ship in the ocean after a certain mission.

And it said mission what accomplished. And then people argued was it accomplished or not. There's no argument here. The last adam becomes a life-giving spirit. First corinthians fifteen. He loses none.

And he raises them up. If you have a unbeliever that's close to you or you'd like to see go to heaven. Maybe a spouse or a child or a neighbor. What if it was up to you to save that person. Do you pray enough to evangelize enough.

Certainly pray for them. Certainly evangelize them. Those are god's ordained means. But the one who has the power to save is not that person. It's only god. It gives me hope. How would i hope for people that are slaves to sin to ever come to faith unless i thought you know what god you rescue every person you've sent the sun to die for.

And the response is verse forty that everyone who beholds the sun and believes in him may have eternal life. And i myself will raise him up on the last day. The evidence of saving faith is of course belief.

Donald ray barnhouse wrote a commentary on romans. And it's not just a commentary on romans. It's on romans in every other book of the bible. That's why it's so many volumes. And it says in his commentary a christian visited a hospital and paused at each bed to say a word of prayer and give out a gospel tract.

She came to the last bed and spoke to the patient very briefly. Dear man when you come to the end of this life will you go to heaven. Oh i think i shall get to heaven all right. What do you think they do in heaven.

Well i hadn't thought about that. But i imagine they sing a great deal. It was either singing or clouds. One of the two. That's right the visitor said. And we have the words of that song in the bible.

She opened revelation five. And they sang a new song. You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were slain and with your blood you purchased men for god from every tribe and language and people and nation.

And then she said i'm going to go now. Here's the new testament. Here's the tract. But if you went to heaven tonight could you sing that song. The next day she visited him again and he said quote. I read those verses fifty times.

I shall never talk about my good works again in heaven they sing praises to christ for redeeming them with his blood. I've been trying to get to heaven without a savior. But now i know heaven's song. And i've trusted in his blood so that i can sing that song.

The Father Gives the Son a People

Now friends the father sends the son to do the work of a savior. The son is completely obedient. And does that work. The response is we believe then in the son. God's grace alone saves christians. I will in no wise cast out.

Ask yourself the question how do i have hope of heaven. I can trust the father because he's going to send the son knowing the son can do it. And i can trust the son because the son always does the work of the father.

So that's a lot different than how do i know i'm going to go to heaven. Well i prayed the sinner's prayer. I did this. I walked the aisle. I pray. I read my bible. I'm glad you read your bible and you pray.

But your assurance is found outside of you. God the father promised god the son saved. Now as i'm talking about the sovereignty of god and salvation. Don't do this. Don't say that's all fine and dandy.

But i'm just a beginner. Maybe you know calvin's institutes and bavinc. And when i graduate to the other lagos class and bible institute class and follow the elders and go to seminary. Then let's talk about sovereignty.

But not right now friends he was talking to people in capernum who are blue collar workers who are fishermen and other things. This is not some high doctrine. This is something you ought to know. We know god is sovereign.

The way i like to talk about it to people. True story. By the way when i'm in california i always wear my boston celtics hat. Well i don't always. I don't like to church but regularly. And sometimes i wear my boston bruins shirt.

But of course when i come back here you only see me in san francisco. Giant stuff and lakers and warrior stuff. Now i have no idea what i was going to say. Oh i tell people what's your favorite team. Oh you know patriots.

What's your name. Your first born kid luke. You know they say i thought you know what. You're a little sovereign aren't you. You love to pick and choose. You pick and choose your favorite teams. What food you like to eat.

Who you're going to marry. You pick all kinds of things. Because god has made you in his likeness and in his image. You're a little sovereign. And so what you don't like in god. He picks who goes to his heaven.

None deserve it. And he picks some you don't like that. But you like your own choices. But friends if it wasn't for the sovereignty of god nobody would go to heaven. The father has to initiate the son has to seek and save the lost.

And even if you say why isn't everyone saved. The answer has to be found in the decrees and counsels of god. Because in no one is there goodness in the ability to regenerate themselves. And the response can either be praise god from whom all blessings flow.

Praise him praise him jesus our blessed redeemer. You're in charge of salvation. And you have saved me. And you'll save who you please as often as you please when you please. Or there's another response to the sovereignty of god.

And it's here verse forty one. So the jews grumbled about him because he said i'm the bread that came down. That sounds exactly like the fathers of israel in the wilderness. Who do you think you are. Hey we know where you live.

Is this not jesus the son of joseph whose father and mother we know he lives right down the street. How does he now say. I've come down from heaven. Do not grumble among yourselves. Jesus answered them.

And so he says it again. He gives them what they don't want. They're not sovereign. He's sovereign. No one can come to me unless the father who sent me draws him and i will raise him up on the last. This is selective drawing.

And you have to be drawn to god. Because what's the text say no one's able to come. No one has the power. No one has the ability. We believe in the fall. And so there has to be a compelling force. And that's what that word.

Draw is here. This word could be used of a dragnet drawn across the water. It could be used of paul and silas when they're dragged by a mob. This could be used of rich men dragging you into court. And the idea isn't caveman hair on the cave woman.

And dragging. The idea is there's a superior force. I know god's not a force. But this is the idea of the word there's a superior force. And there's a an object and that superior force is exerted on that object.

So the result is successful. In other words to use it the words uh to speak of god. When god of the father gives the son a mission to go on that mission will not be frustrated. And as we know the spirit of god will compel.

And to draw there will be grace. That's irresistible to pull that person to believe. Lydia's heart will be opened by god so that she can believe. What kind of drawing is it. Is it violent. Is it like god's intruding.

I remember uh... daryl gates back in the l .a. police department they had this kind of tank that would go into these crack houses and bull down these doors. Bulldoze down these doors. Is it like that?

Is god violent? Now how does god do it? Amazing. Verse forty five. It is written in the prophets. They shall all be taught of god. How does god compel. How does god draw. By teaching people the bible.

And having illumination of god on the inside. It's a fulfillment of the old testament promise. By teaching faith comes by hearing the message of christ. And then if you go down a little bit farther verse sixty four.

But there are some of you who do not believe. For jesus knew from the beginning who they were. Who did not believe and who it was that would betray him. Verse sixty five. For he was saying for this reason i have said to him that no one can come to me unless it has been granted him from the father.

And some don't like sovereign grace. And so verse sixty six says they withdrew and they didn't walk with him. Sola gratia. It means that god is the initiator in salvation. It means john chapter ten with the with the great shepherd good shepherd passage i give them eternal.

So if that's true who gets the praise when you get to heaven who's going to get the praise for your salvation. You'll be saying praise god from whom all blessings flow. Paul is is going down. Saul is going down the street on the way to damascus.

And he's interrupted. And he thinks he controls his own destiny. He's a free will man. Until something happens he gets slain in the spirit. There's the only place i think you can find getting slain in the spirit.

He gets slain by jesus christ himself. And he wakes up thinking sovereign grace. Not unto us oh lord but to your name give the glory. Augustus top lady has written some famous songs and written some tracks and books.

He has a an article that i read this week that it's entitled this men not their own saviors not your own saviors. That's true. And if you want to understand sola gratia you say god initiate salvation and that he had to do it because we're sinful and we're fallen.

I think most people today they think they're sinful and grace might be necessary but they don't think that grace is only necessary because they think they're actually pretty good. And the more you begin to think about sovereign grace friends if you don't think about it rightly the matter you get if anything is hated bitterly it is the out and out gospel of the grace of god.

Especially if that hateful word sovereignty is mentioned with it dare i say he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy. And furious critics will revile you without stint. If you want to see a man worked up to the satanic is clearly utter most.

But some of the new divides here you preach a free grace sermon a gospel which is after men will be welcomed by men. But it needs divine operation upon the heart and mind to make a man willing to receive most sold this distasteful gospel of the grace of god.

Because after all what do we believe. God votes for you satan votes against you and you cast the deciding vote. That's true. The people think this way because if you think there's an inkling of good in you then you've got something to cooperate with.

You think you're good at all. You can cooperate with god. Well time is fleeting and i didn't get to the second idea and that is men and women are sinful and there needs to be a recognition of that. But i think about songs that we would sing about grace.