BLESSED TO BE CHOSEN BY GOD PART 3

Eph 1:7-10

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a scandalous message of redeeming grace.

What do I mean that it’s scandalous?

Scandalous by definition is “Causing general public outrage by a perceived offense against morality or law.” The world at large see’s Jesus and the gospel as hate speech; the gospel is a major threat to our so called “Civilization”. This message is so scandalous the Jews and Greeks didn’t get because of their ignorance to the truth of the gospel and Jesus Christ. To the Jew, the Gospel was the worst sort of blasphemy because it claimed that the Nazarene who died accursed on Calvary was the Messiah. To the Greeks, it was the worst sort of absurdity because it claimed that “Jesus” this Jewish Messiah was God in the flesh. The Apostle Paul wrote “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,” 1 Cor 1:21-23. Sadly the rest of the world at that time and even today respond no differently to this message of truth.

“He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.” John 1:10

“None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” 1 Cor 2:8

This was true for Paul and this was true for you; before this scandalous message of the gospel penetrated our unregenerate hearts. Listen to who Paul was before the beauty of the Cross penetrated His sinfilled heart! “though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” 1 Tim 1:13-14. This was you just like Paul!  “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,” Col 1:21

Why is there so much confusion and lack of understanding of God’s saving grace? Answer! They/We, live in a culture and world system of relativism. But again this isn’t something new as we have already seen from the scriptures previously. Paul Washer said this “We live in an age of Relativism - a belief system based upon the absolute certainty that there are no absolutes. We dishonestly applaud men for seeking the truth, but call for the public execution of anyone arrogant enough to believe he has found it. We live in a self-imposed Dark Age, the reason for which is clear. Natural man is a fallen creature, morally corrupt, and hell-bent on autonomy (i.e. self-government). He hates God because He is righteous and hates His laws because they censure and restrict his evil. He hate the truth because it exposes him for what he is and troubles what still remains of his conscience. Therefore, fallen man seeks to push truth, especially the truth about God, as far from him as possible. He will go to any extent to suppress the truth; even to the point of pretending that no such thing exists or that if it does exist, it cannot be known or have any bearing on our lives.”

When a child of God looks back to the Cross it should instantly cause our hearts to melt with adoration and praise. This scandalous message is so amazing that it saved you and me from the wrath that is yet to come. The Scriptures recognize that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a “stumbling block” and “foolishness” to all men of every age and culture. However if we, seek to remove the scandal from the message is to make void the cross of Christ and its saving power.

We must understand that the Gospel is not only scandalous, but it is supposed to be! Through the foolishness of the Gospel, God has ordained to destroy the wisdom of the wise, frustrate the intelligence of the greatest minds, and humble the pride of all men. To the end that no flesh may boast in His presence, but just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 1 Cor 1 :31. This is what Paul has been telling us all along as through the opening of this letter.

Look at next few verses beginning in (v7- v10) What does that look like for you and me? God took something that is unholy and deserving of punishment and death and made us clean. Think about that for a moment! The scriptures tell us a truth that some don’t want to accept or would rather follow after cliché sayings and warm fuzzy feelings in the church. For example “Love the sinner and hate the sin.” And when a person makes a statement like that what you are saying is “Sin is something that is outside of us”. And isn’t right!  Sin is very much a part of us! When Jesus went to the Cross He wasn’t dying for the stuff we have done outside of us, He was dying for the sin that is inside of us. Our sin is the very core of our being and He was dying in our place because God hates sinners. And for those three long excruciating hours God was pouring His hatred and perfect wrath upon the sinless Lamb of God, because God hates sinners.

Listen to what David wrote “The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the LORD abhors (detests, loathes) the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” Psalm 5:5-6

Jesus took the full force of God’s hated and wrath for sinners. Jesus stood in our place (our propitiation) which is where we belong because God hates sinners. But please hear me…. and don’t leave today thinking the Pastor only said God hates sinners. Because we also read in the scriptures that God loves sinners.

As I read last week “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” Rom 5:6-9

John penned these words of encouragement “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:9-10

Paul said “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Rom 3:23-26

How do we reconcile both of these truths?

How does a person wrap their minds around the fact that God hates sinners and loves sinners at the same time? Look to the Cross

Look to the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ did on our behalf, you and me sinners to the core who are guilty and worthy of this death. But Jesus chose to come to this earth, be rejected, despised by His own and the world to save sinners, not sin but sinners. May we never weaken or minimize our sinful nature and rob the cross of its meaning. Sin is not outside of us but a part of us and without Jesus’ veracious death and resurrection we are doomed because God hates sin. And if God hates sin then He must hate the sinner. See, Paul knew who he was before Christ entered in and he knew that this scandalous message. Paul knew this would be hard for people who are naturally sinful like him at the core and narcissistic by nature. The beauty of the Cross and the gospel message is all about Him. It’s all about Him and His glorious plan of salvation only found in the scandalous message of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

In Him we have redemption….

This phrase denotes liberation from bondage or imprisonment. Just as the Jews were delivered from the Red Sea in Exodus 15. Our redemption has been in Christ alone.

Our redemption is spoken of as an event that has already taken place. Let that sink in this morning! “We have been redeemed” “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Col 1:13-14. God, by Himself has done the work of rescuing us and accepting us into the Kingdom of His Beloved Son. This redemption came at a cost “Through His Blood”. Christ Jesus took your place and He was sacrificed for sinners like you and me. This is what it cost for you to be redeemed to eternal life.

In Him we have forgiveness of sins….

Paul reminds us that redemption is linked with forgiveness of sins and we only find forgiveness in Christ alone. We are told in Mark chapter 2 that a paralytic man was lowered down through a roof by his friends and what happens next is amazing. “And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."” Mark 2:4-5. This made the religious elites very upset because we read “Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, "Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, "Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise, take up your bed and walk'?” Mark 2:6-9

Ask yourself! Was this man looking for physically healing or spiritual healing through God’s grace in forgiveness? What is more important? Because the Psalmist said “LORD if you kept a record of our sins who, O LORD could ever survive.” Ps 130:3-4

In Him we have been given wisdom and insight to the scandalous message of reconciliation….

Another thing God has done is by expressing His grace by giving us “wisdom and understanding”. He lavishes us with understanding of the gospel and how we are to live our new lives according to His goodness and grace in light of His saving plan. Everything God has done and planned has been providentially and structurally put together by God’s grace and purposes. That includes your redemption, forgiveness and adoption as sons and daughters. Why has God done so much for us? Why has He blessed us with every spiritual blessing, chosen us in Christ and He did all this before the foundations of the world? Why has He declared us blameless and holy by predestining us as His children and lavished us with redemption, forgiveness, wisdom and insight? Answer: In order that He might gather everything to Himself for His praises and glory. (3-v10)

  

What does the scandalous gospel of redeeming grace look like?

There was a story about an Englishman who bought a Rolls Royce. It had been advertised as the car that would never, ever, ever break down. So the man bought the Rolls Royce at a hefty price and was driving it one day when, to his surprise, it broke down. He was far away from town so he called and said, “Hey, you know this car that will never break down? Well, it’s broken down.”

Immediately, a Rolls Royce mechanic was flown to the location where the car was broken down. The car was fixed, and the man went on his way. Naturally, the man expected to get a bill from Rolls Royce. It was clearly expensive for them to provide such service (not often does a mechanic fly to where your car is broken down!), and he wanted to get the whole ordeal behind him.

So when the bill had not yet come a few weeks later, the man called Rolls Royce and said, “I’d like to go ahead and pay my bill for my broken-down car so that we can get this behind us.” In turn, Rolls Royce responded by saying, “Sir, we are deeply sorry, but we have absolutely no record of anything ever having gone wrong with your car.”

The God of the universe looks at your life and says, “I have absolutely no record of anything ever having gone wrong in your life.” In fact, because “In Him we have redemption through His blood”, That is scandalous grace……..knowing who I was before Christ saved my wretched soul. And what’s as equally as amazing! God says the exact opposite: “I have a record of everything having gone right in your life.” That is the scandalous grace of God in the gospel of His salvation. This is why we tread softly and slowly when we see the gospel of our LORD written in the scriptures.