#17 HCBC 2-04-07 AM
Celebrating the Lord’s Table:
“Grace Eliminates Boasting”
Romans 3:27-31
What have you accomplished?
Have you been promoted in your job?
Have you traveled to far away places?
Perhaps you own your own company?
What have you accumulated?
Do you have a nice vehicle?
Do you have a fine home?
Perhaps you have lots of nice things?
What can you do?
Dou you have a special skill that few people have?
Are you really good at what you do?
Perhaps you are trained to do something that the rest of us can’t do?
What do you know?
Do you read a lot?
Do you have a specialized degree?
Perhaps you know a lot about some subject that the rest of us are ignorant about?
What do you give?
Do you give your time to serve God and others?
Do you have abilities that you use for the benefit of others?
Perhaps you give a lot of money to the church or other organizations?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may think you have something to brag about!
God’s Plan for Our Salvation
Our Need: A righteousness from God 21-23
God has provided a righteousness of his own - a righteousness we do not possess
ourselves!
The Source: Freely by his grace 24
This righteousness comes to us by the grace of God!
The Basis: The sacrificial atonement of Jesus Christ 24-26
It is the death of the Lord Jesus Christ that satisfied the wrath of God that has made this
grace on God’s part possible!
The Means: Through faith 22 & 25
This righteousness that God has graciously provided becomes ours through simple faith!
In Romans 3:27-31
Paul brings out three implications from the fact that Salvation is by grace through faith:
1. Boasting is Excluded by Faith Rom 3:27-31
The first is that God’s way of salvation excludes boasting! Vs 27-28
Now Paul says: If salvation comes by way of the grace of God, where is boasting?
If salvation were by works or obedience to the law, we would have something to boast
about!
But if salvation is by faith, we have nothing to boast abot!
Faith excludes boasting!
Boasting is an expression of pride!
And
Pride is the greatest of all sins!
Pride was the very first sin!
It was the sin of Satan who said:
I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
On the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.
I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.
Luke 18:11-12
God’s way of salvation destroys and eliminates pride!
God’s way of salvation brings everyone down to the same level – lost!
God’s way of salvation brings everyone up to the same heights – saved!
The second is that there is one way of salvation for everybody! Vs 29-30
If there is only one God, it makes sense that there is only one way of salvation!
Jesus said:
“I am the way and the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me.”
Salvation by grace through faith says that there is one way for everyone!
The third is that,
far from allowing anyone to live as he pleases,
faith actually upholds the law! Vs 31
In justification by grace through faith the law is upheld in that it shows that we could
never keep it!
In justification by grace through faith the law is upheld in that it shows that the
punishment of sinners by death, as required by law, has been executed.
In justification by grace through faith the law is upheld in that it shows that it is on the
basis of a true righteousness that we are justified.
God has provided a righteousness of His own that we do not posses in ourselves.
This righteousness is by grace – we do not deserve it.
It is the work of Jesus Christ, on the cross, that brings this righteousness to us.
This righteousness becomes our through simple faith.
There is nothing to boast about on our part!
2. Boasting is Exemplified by Nebuchadnezzar Daniel 4
Nebuchadnezzar tells a story!
Gives glory to God 1-3
A dream brings fear 4-7
Daniel to the rescue 8-18
The explanation of the dream 19-23
The interpretation of the dream 24-27
The fulfillment of the dream 28-33 Boasting in verse 30
Other examples of prideful boasting:
Pharaoh:
Ex 5:1-2 Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, "This is what the LORD, the
God of Israel, says: 'Let my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the
desert.'" 2 Pharaoh said, "Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go?
I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go."
Uzziah:
2 Chr 26:16 But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was
unfaithful to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense
on the altar of incense.
Hezekiah:
2 Chr 32:24-25 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. He prayed to
the LORD, who answered him and gave him a miraculous sign. 25 But Hezekiah's
heart was proud and he did not respond to the kindness shown him; therefore the Lord's
wrath was on him and on Judah and Jerusalem.
For the people of God,
there is no boasting because all we are and all we have is from God by His grace!
3. Boasting is Experienced in Christ Gal 6:14
However: for the Christian there is a boast we can make – but its all about Jesus Christ!
Galatians 6:11-15
Jeremiah 9:23-24