From His Heart

Dr. Jeff Schreve: What is grace? God's riches at Christ's expense. He paid everything for you so He could offer you this free gift of the gospel of the grace of God. He reaches down His hand, and this is what He says: if you'll put your puny little hand of faith in My great big hand of grace, I will pull you up out of the pit. The gospel of the grace of God.

Guest (Male): Although we use the word grace a lot, many of us may not fully understand what that word conveys. And because we don't fully understand it, we don't get in on the fullness of grace. Today, we'll continue to learn what grace—G-R-A-C-E—truly is on this edition of *From His Heart* with a message entitled "God's Riches at Christ's Expense."

We'll hear part two of this lesson today. It's from Pastor Jeff's seven-lesson series, *Beyond Amazing: Understanding the Grace of God*. Remember, if you miss any of these dynamic lessons this month, you can go to fromhisheart.org and click the listen link to catch up. Download an MP3 of any broadcast, along with Pastor Jeff's sermon notes and outlines, all for free. Now, though, open your Bible to 2 Corinthians chapter 8 and learn from Pastor Jeff about a more comprehensive understanding of grace: God's riches at Christ's expense.

Dr. Jeff Schreve: Today, we want to look at one verse—one verse that is the gospel of grace in a nutshell. It's just one verse, 2 Corinthians 8:9. It comes in the backdrop of giving, and Paul says to the Corinthians, "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich."

So, here is our question: When it says, "For you know, you understand the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ," what does God want us to know and understand about His grace, about this gospel of the grace of God? There are three facets to grace that we see in this verse. Number one, God wants us to understand the riches of Christ. God wants us to understand the riches of Christ. "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich." That word rich means abounding in wealth, abounding in riches. Jesus was so rich because Jesus is God.

What are the riches of Christ? He is the one who spoke the worlds into existence. John, in his gospel, starts his gospel off this way: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being." So, who is the one who said, "Let there be light," and there was light? Jesus. Jesus did that.

He is the one who spoke the worlds into existence. Furthermore, He's the one who sits as King. "The Lord sat as King at the flood; yes, the Lord sits as King forever," Psalm 29 tells us that. He is the one whose glory and greatness are unfathomable. The Bible says in Psalm 145, "Great is the Lord and highly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable." Rich in His person, rich in His position, rich in His possessions, rich in power—He is the God of the universe.

Understand the riches of Christ. You have to understand where He came from to understand how low He stooped to us. Understand the riches of Christ. Second facet of grace: God wants us to understand not just the riches of Christ, but the poverty of humanity. Because 2 Corinthians 8:9 says the Lord, who was so rich, became so poor. Why? So that we could be rich, because we, as it is insinuated from that verse, were poor. He was rich and became poor, so we who are poor could become rich.

We are so poor. Understand the poverty of humanity. Paul put it this way in Ephesians chapter 2, verse 1: He says, "And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience." Think about that—dead. Is there anything worse than being dead? When we talk about the poverty of humanity, we are dead in trespasses and sin, and we're children of wrath even as the rest. All of us, dead in sin.

And when you are born in total depravity and you're corrupted by sin, you have a serious problem. Understand the poverty of humanity. Every person is born in total depravity, and every person is in desperate need of God's mercy and grace. And then it goes on to say, "But God, but God being rich in mercy because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."

We're in desperate need of God's grace, and God intervened. He became poor so that you through His poverty might become rich. You understand the riches of Christ, understand the poverty of humanity, and then understand the price—facet number three—the price that He paid. God is a holy God, and we have sinned in the face of a holy God. And when you offend the King of the universe with your sins, there has to be a punishment for that, a payment for that sin.

The only way to redeem man, so that man is not cursed forever and cast out forever in a horrible place called hell, is for Jesus to lay aside His robe, to put aside His crown, to step down off the throne—down, down, down, down—and become a man. Jesus humbled Himself to become a man. The Bible makes that clear. Philippians chapter 2 talks about the humiliation of Christ. "Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who although He existed in the form of God"—He is God—"but He did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but He emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant and being made in the likeness of men."

Here is the Creator taking the form of the creature. The God the Bible says heaven, not even the highest heavens, can contain God, yet here is God coming to Earth in the form of a little baby. Wow. That God would do that, to humble Himself by becoming a man, a bondservant—it says a *doulos*, that's the Greek word, that's a slave, the lowest slave. He humbled Himself to do that, to become a man.

But He didn't stop there. Not only did He humble Himself—you talk about trading in your riches for poverty—you see when Jesus is born, there's no room for them in the inn, and He's born in a stable, born in a barn. They put Him in a manger. That sounds kind of nice around Christmas time, but that's a feeding trough. He's there in the straw. The Creator of the universe is there. You talk about stepping down, stooping down. What is grace? Stooping down to an inferior. He has stooped so far down.

You think, can He go any lower? Yes, He goes much lower. He humbled Himself to become our sacrifice for sin. It says in Philippians 2:8, "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." Remember this about God: Because He's holy, holy, holy, He cannot just say your sins are forgiven. There has to be a payment for sin.

1 Peter chapter 1, verse 18 says this: "Knowing that you were not redeemed, you were not purchased by gold and silver through your futile way of life inherited by your forefathers, but with precious blood." That's how God redeemed you, with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless—the blood of Christ. He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. So, it is amazing that Jesus would step down off His throne to become a man, but it is mind-blowing that He would die in your place, in my place. He would take on our poverty and die in our place so that we could take on His riches.

That's the gospel of grace. He humbled Himself by becoming our sacrifice for sin. You remember when He was praying in the garden? He said, "My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here with Me, watch and pray. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak." And He went about a stone's throw from them, and He fell on His face and He said three times, "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me." And the silence from heaven said, "My son, there is no other way."

The only way that they can be redeemed is by You taking the cup of all the sin of all the world and drinking every last bitter drop of all the sin of all the world and You die in their place. And Jesus said, "Nevertheless, not My will but Yours be done," and He willingly went to the cross and died for your sin and my sin and the sin of the whole world, and He rose again on the third day.

"And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore also God highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father."

He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. He died for your sin and my sin. For you know the grace—that is grace—unmerited favor, that He would die in your place and my place and rise again from the dead, and then say to anyone who will believe, repent and believe, "I will give to you My grace and eternal life." Jesus will save anyone who comes in repentance and faith. He offers salvation to anyone who will trust Him, to anyone who will turn from sin and turn to Christ.

Guest (Male): What a marvelous truth, to know that salvation is freely offered. Pastor Jeff will return in just a moment to conclude the lesson, "God's Riches at Christ's Expense." Stand by for that. Today, you're listening to part two of the message, "God's Riches at Christ's Expense." It's one of seven messages in Pastor Jeff's series, *Beyond Amazing: Understanding the Grace of God*.

In this series that we're airing this month, Dr. Jeff Schreve shares clear biblical insights into God's grace—a grace that is truly beyond amazing. And the full, unedited series is also our gift to you for your support this month of any amount. And you can receive it on a USB flash drive, on CDs, you can get DVDs to watch it, or an immediate MP3 download—all for your gift of any amount. Simply call 866-40-BIBLE or go online to fromhisheart.org.

And thank you for making that gift today that allows this program to reach the world each and every day. When you get the series, you'll be reminded of God's continually faithful, amazing grace throughout life and in the promise of eternity with Him for His children. Call 866-40-BIBLE or go to fromhisheart.org. God bless you. Now back to the lesson, "God's Riches at Christ's Expense."

Dr. Jeff Schreve: You know, we talk about the fact that salvation is a free gift. "The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord," Romans 6:23. It is a free gift, but it's the most expensive gift ever purchased because it was purchased with the blood of God—the blood of God. And He offers it to you and me. It's by grace. You can't earn it, you don't deserve it. There's no way to get it other than receive it—humbly receive it through repentance and faith.

He'll save anyone who comes to Him in repentance and faith. And what happens when you come? We who are in tremendous poverty, spiritually bankrupt, dead in sin, what happens? The moment we believe, we're given eternal life. We have the riches of His spirit. Not only does God forgive us when we come to Christ in repentance and faith, not only does He cleanse us from all sin—past, present, and future—but He gives us His Holy Spirit. The God of the universe, the third person of the Trinity, comes to live inside our hearts.

You talk about being rich. Can you imagine as a Christian, the God of the universe lives in you? That's what Paul said. "What, do you not know?" he said to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians 6. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your bodies." We have the gift of the Holy Spirit.

You know, I had somebody get onto me one time because I would say to people, "God loves you and God has a wonderful plan for your life." And this one guy said, "Don't tell people that. How can you tell people that? What about the person that trusts Christ and then they are from a Muslim background and their family rejects them and their family kills them because they trusted Christ? Did God have a wonderful plan for their life?" I said, "Salvation is receiving forgiveness and cleansing and the Holy Spirit of God. If that is not wonderful, then I don't know what the word means."

It doesn't have to do with what are the specifics that you go through. It's that I have God living inside me, that my name is recorded in heaven. Wow, how awesome is that? And when the Spirit lives inside, then you have access to love and joy and peace and patience and kindness and goodness and gentleness and faithfulness and self-control. Against such things, there is no law.

And one of the things that is said, Matthew and Luke, where Jesus said, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him?" That's in Matthew's account, Matthew chapter 7. And then in Luke chapter 11, we read the same kind of thing, but it says this: "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

Now, I remember in my Christian life, I would say, "Man, I like what Matthew says a little bit better than what Luke says because 'good things' is just so broad, and the Holy Spirit is really just focused on the Holy Spirit." And so I'd quote that to the Lord—"Lord, I need this good thing, how much more," you know, "if you then being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him?" And God does give what is good to those who ask Him. And so I'd ask the Lord for whatever good thing I was wanting.

And then it dawned on me: Is there anything that can be better than the Holy Spirit? I mean, when you talk about the list of good things, the top of the list is God Himself. Jesus said, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone." And the best of the good is the Holy Spirit. And so, the good things, that's like getting a golden egg. The Holy Spirit is like getting the goose that laid the golden egg. It's getting God to live inside of you. How could you dare say that you're not going to experience a wonderful life if you give your life to Christ? Because God comes to live inside you. That is worth it all.

Now, that happens in this life, but then as we trust Christ in the life to come, there will be the riches of heaven for all eternity. "Enter," Jesus said, "into the joy of your Master." The joys of heaven. I'll close with this story. A man fell in a pit. It was a deep pit, a dark pit, a muddy, nasty, slimy pit. There was no getting out of this pit.

Some people came by. A realist came by, said to the man in the pit, "Now, *that's* a pit." The subjective person came by and said, "I feel for you down there in that pit." The objective person came by; he said, "That's what happens when you walk too close to the edge of the pit." Buddha came by. "Your pit is only a state of mind," he said. Confucius came by. "If you would have listened to me, you wouldn't be in that pit." A Pharisee came by. "Only bad people fall into the pit."

The evolutionist came by. "You are a rejected mutant, destined to be removed from the evolutionary cycle. You're going to die in the pit so that you can't produce any more pit-falling offspring—survival of the fittest." County inspector came by. "Do you have a permit for that pit?" The self-pitying person came by. "That's not nearly as bad as *my* pit." The charismatic came by. "Just claim that you're *not* in the pit." The optimist came by. "Cheer up, things could be worse." The pessimist came by. "Cheer down, things *will* get worse."

But Jesus came by. He looked at you down in that pit, and He being rich in mercy because of the great love with which He loved us, He took off His crown. He laid aside His robes. He fell down in the muck and the mire of the mouth of that pit, and He reached down His hand. And He said if you will put your puny little hand of faith in My great big hand of grace, I will pull you out of the pit.

As we close today, I want to ask you—you search your own heart—have you ever put your puny little hand of faith in God's great big hand of grace? What is grace? God's riches at Christ's expense.