The Light Shines On

Grace means condescending favor.  God reaches His hand down to you from heaven to save you through Jesus Christ. Jesus overcomes your failures by His grace.

Jesus was from the racial lineage of Abraham and royal lineage of King David. 

How did people get saved in the Old Testament?  They were saved by looking forward to the Grace that is found in Jesus Christ. 

The Old Testament people were unfaithful.  Abraham lied about his wife being his sister in Egypt. 

David had an affair with the wife of Uriah, Bathsheba, and killed Uriah for it. 

Jesus can overcome your unfaithfulness, too. We are not saved by our good works, but it is through the grace that can be found in Jesus Christ. 

1. Jesus can overcome your failures by His Grace.

Romans 3:23 (ESV)

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

2. Jesus can overcome your unfaithfulness by His faithfulness. 

2 Timothy 2:13 (ESV)

if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

Covenant means to cut.  There are both conditional and unconditional covenants.  Unconditional covenants were made to Abraham and David.  

God will honor His covenant even if people do not.  He said this to King David.  

2 Samuel 7:12-16  (ESV)

12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 

13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 

14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men,

15 but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. 

16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’”

God's covenant with Abraham included land (Genesis 12:1), people, (Genesis 12:2), and blessings (Genesis 12:3).  It was a personal blessing.  It was a national blessing.  It was a universal blessing.   In you, Abraham, all the families of the earth will be blessed. 

The first covenant leads us to the second covenant.  There has never been or will be a way to get to God except through Jesus. We can never earn or merit God's forgiveness from our sins. You can't. Jesus did. 

3. Jesus overcomes your past by giving you His future. 

Hebrews 6:19  (ESV)

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

Hebrews 10:23  (ESV)

23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.

1 Peter 1:3 (ESV)

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

What man cannot produce for himself.  God can produce through His Son.  What man cannot purify for himself.  God can purify through His Son.

John 1:14 (ESV)

14 And the Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

2 Corinthians 1:20 (ESV)

For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.

God has already said yes to be your Lord and Savior if you'll let Him.  Won't you say yes back to Him?

Darryl Craft, Whitesburg Baptist Church

http://www.whitesburgbaptist.org/sermons/the-light-shines-on-men/