Grace and Glory

Q: What does the Bible say about grace and glory?

The Bible teaches that grace and glory are inseparable gifts from God, given to His elect. Psalm 84:11 highlights the relationship between grace and glory, asserting that the Lord will give grace and glory to those who walk uprightly. The distinction is made that while grace is often perceived as the initial gift from God, glory is its fulfillment. Some theologians have expressed that grace is glory in seed form, while glory is grace fully matured. This divine promise emphasizes that all believers can expect to receive both grace and glory through their relationship with Jesus Christ.

Q: How do we know God's grace is true?

We know God's grace is true through the testimony of Scripture and the experience of believers. The truth of God's grace is affirmed throughout Scripture, as seen in Romans 9:15 where God proclaims, 'I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.' God's grace is a sovereign act that is given to His elect, ensuring that grace is not earned but is a gift from God. Believers everywhere testify that their very existence and salvation are due to God’s irresistible grace, as Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15:10, 'By the grace of God, I am what I am.' Such testimonies are vital in confirming the active and real presence of God's grace in the lives of His people.

Q: Why is believing in God's grace essential for salvation?

Believing in God's grace is essential because it is through grace that we receive forgiveness, redemption, and eternal life. The belief in God's grace is foundational to salvation because it is through grace that we are redeemed by the blood of Christ. Ephesians 2:8-9 asserts, 'For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.' Without embracing the grace offered through Christ's sacrifice, we would remain bound by our sins. Romans 3:24 further states that we are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Therefore, faith in God's grace grants believers assurance of forgiveness and the promise of eternal life.

Q: What is the relationship between grace and the elect?

The relationship between grace and the elect is that God's grace is specifically given to those He has chosen. In Reformed theology, it is understood that God's grace is dispensed according to His sovereign will, particularly towards His elect. Romans 8:29-30 emphasizes that God has predestined those He has chosen, ensuring that grace is not universally given but selectively bestowed upon those whom He has appointed. This divine election is a topic of profound importance, illustrating God's mercy and love directed towards sinners who, by nature, deserve wrath. It signifies that every act of grace towards an individual is part of God's intentional plan for salvation.

Q: How does God give grace to believers?

God gives grace to believers through the mediatory work of Jesus Christ. The Scripture reveals that grace is not an abstract concept but is communicated through the work of Christ as our mediator. John 1:16 states, 'Of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.' The believer's access to grace is through faith in Christ, who serves as the bridge between humanity and God. This grace is sufficient for daily living, comfort in trials, and empowerment for service. It is promised that God gives grace seasonably as believers call upon Him in their time of need, ensuring that His grace is ever-present and adequate for every circumstance.

We are coming to an end in this
series of studies in Bible doctrine. And I want to speak to you tonight
and perhaps another time or two concerning the state of God's
saints in heaven. And then of course, with regard
to the second coming of our Lord in the day of judgment. But tonight
I want to talk to you from this 84th Psalm, verse 11. Our subject is grace and glory. For the Lord God is a son to
guide us in his way and shield to protect us in the way. The
Lord will give grace and glory. No good thing will he withhold
from them that walk uprightly. Grace and glory are inseparable
gifts. They are given by God to both,
that is, grace is given and glory is given, both are, to each one
who receives either. If God gives you grace, he'll
give you glory. If he gives you glory, it's because
he has given you his grace. The two really are the same thing.
Grace is glory in the seed. Glory is grace in full bloom. Glory begins in grace and grace
is consummated in glory. One of the old writers said grace
is glory begun and glory is grace consummated. Grace is glory in
the bud and glory is grace in the fruits. Grace is the lowest
degree of glory, he said. And glory is the highest degree
of grace. These two great, marvelous gifts,
God bestows upon the fallen sons and daughters of Adam in Jesus
Christ. Grace and glory. The first thing he gives is grace.
And the last thing he gives is glory. All right, let's look
at these two things together. The Lord will give grace. Oh, how I love that word grace. Amazing grace, how sweet the
sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now am
found, was blind but now I see. Grace is God's riches at Christ's
expense. In the life, in the experience,
in the hope of every believer, everything is traced to this
source, grace. We testify with the Apostle Paul,
every believer does, by the grace of God, I am what I am. Oh to grace, how great a debtor,
daily I'm constrained to be. Let that grace, Lord, like a
fetter, bind my wandering heart to thee. Now read this promise
in the boldest, largest, broadest sense imaginable. will give grace. The Lord will give grace. The Lord God Almighty, the great
Jehovah, the triune God, will by his irresistible power, according
to his own sovereign will, as a matter of certainty, freely
give grace to somebody. He will give grace and where
he gives it, he gives it irreversibly. Well, to whom? To whom will he
give grace? We know that he will give grace,
it's asserted in our text. Someone's going to receive grace
from God. Who are they? The Lord will give
grace to his own elect. I want you to turn to Romans
chapter nine, and I want to talk to you a minute about this thing
of God giving grace to his elect. Our Lord Jesus said to his disciples,
you have not chosen me but I have chosen you. He lifted his eyes
to heaven on one occasion in Matthew 11 and he said father
I thank you that you've hidden these things from the wise and
prudent and you've revealed them to babes. God gives grace to
some and he hides his grace from others according to his purpose. God gives grace to some And he
hides his grace from others according to his purpose. In my family
and in yours, we see the demonstration of God's absolute sovereignty. Raised in the same household,
under the same influences, with the same circumstances, with
the same environment, with the same education or lack of it.
Oh, we recognize that God has graciously reached down and snatched
us as brands from the burning and set our feet on Christ Jesus
the Lord. What about the others in the
family? Left them to themselves. And there they are. What makes
the difference? Grace. Just His grace. What do we do? We bow to His
will. Thank God for His love and His
grace and His mercy. so freely bestowed upon you and
I who are the objects of that love, grace, and mercy. But those
to whom grace is not given must never imagine that somehow God
owes them something. Oh no! No, no. We all deserve
His wrath. We all deserve His judgment.
You, me, mom, dad, brother, sister, we all deserve His wrath. You
and me too. But God's given grace to some.
Look here in Romans 9 verse 15. Moses said, show me your glory.
God said, all right, here it is. He says to Moses, I will
have mercy on whom I will have mercy. I will have mercy. Oh, it is his glory to be merciful. But it is also his glory, Ron,
to have mercy on whom he will have mercy. He doesn't have mercy
on whom I will have him to have mercy. He doesn't have mercy
according to your will. but rather he has mercy according
to his will. He says, I will have compassion
on whom I will have compassion. So then, this matter of salvation
is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God
that showeth mercy. You see, grace belongs to God. It is his sovereign prerogative
and there are some among the fallen sons of men whom God has
chosen as the objects of his grace to them and to them alone
and to all of them he will give grace. The Lord will give grace. He'll give grace to every sinner
redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ. Now I stress this every time
I come close to getting an opportunity to. Because in this day most
everybody thinks that the death of Christ is sort of like a roll
of the dice, just a crapshoot, just a shot in the dark, just
the Lord Jesus dying hoping maybe somehow somebody would come along
and give some merit and efficacy to his death by their faith in
him and by their free will decision and they would make it possible
for him to be satisfied with the sacrifice he made at Calvary.
Nothing could be further from the truth. That Christ who's
preached in this day, that Christ worshipped by most men and women
in this day, or what's called worship, who is an utter failure,
who did not do anything at Calvary, is no Christ at all, and no savior
of men's souls. He is a false Christ and an idolatrous
figment of man's imagination. Jesus Christ did not die for
nothing. He did something at Calvary,
Sam. He put away our sins. He made us the righteousness
of God in Jesus Christ. He bore the wrath and judgment
of God Almighty as our substitute. And when he did, he satisfied
the justice of God on our behalf. All whom he redeemed by his blood
shall have the grace of forgiveness. For it is written in whom we
have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sin. That's
what redemption means. That's what it means. Paul said
it again, in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness
of sins. He's telling us that to be redeemed
is to be forgiven. That says if Christ died for
you, your sins are forgiven. If your sins are forgiven, Christ
died for you. All whom he purchased shall have
the grace of reconciliation, justification, and perfect righteousness
before God. They all for whom he died shall
have the grace of eternal life. He said, I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. He said,
my sheep hear my voice. I know them and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal
life. and they shall never perish.
Those for whom Christ died then, those for whom he accomplished
redemption, shall have the grace of everlasting salvation. Our
Lord Jesus by his blood infallibly secured grace for his redeemed
one. More than that, salvation and
grace shall come to every believing sinner. Now let's look at a few
scriptures. Turn to Mark chapter 16. Mark
chapter 16. God's sovereign election and
Christ's effectual redemption inspire us to preach the gospel
fervently to every creature. Because we know that the Lord
will give grace to his chosen. He will give grace to his redeemed
one. He will give grace to his blood-bought
people. Now we don't know who they are.
We don't know who God's elect are. We don't know who Christ
redeemed. except as they believe. And yet
we are assured by God himself that every sinner who believes
on the Lord Jesus Christ was chosen of God in eternity and
redeemed by Christ at Calvary and is called by the Spirit.
Look here in Mark 16 and verse 16. He that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be
damned. Somebody said, but what if he's elect? Or what if he's
not elect? The issue is not that at all. The issue is if you believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ, you shall be saved. And if you do not believe,
you shall be damned. And you can do what you want
to with any conflict that comes up. Turn to John chapter 3. John chapter 3 verse 14. Our Lord Jesus says, as Moses
lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the
Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should
not perish, but have eternal life. My friend, Brother Herbert
Wilson, somebody said to him one time, said, you folks don't
believe in whosoever will. He said, oh, yes, we do. We just
don't believe in whosoever won't. We recognize whosoever will,
let him come take of the water of life freely. And if you come
take of the water of life, you shall have it in Jesus Christ
the Lord. And you will not come except
you come willingly. I recognize thy people shall
be willing in the day of thy power, but I recognize that anyone
who comes to Christ, whosoever will, let him come. And he will
take of the water of life freely. Look in verse 36. He that believeth
Own the sorrow. Underscore that next word, half.
Half. Half. Got it. All in it. Everlasting
life. If you believe on the Son of
God, it is because God in his grace has already given you grace. If you believe on the Son of
God, it is because God has come to you in grace and called you
to live because the faith by which you now trust him is itself
the gift of God and the operation of God. The long and short of
the gospel is this. If you believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, If you trust his precious blood alone for salvation and
acceptance with God, he will give you grace. And yet I know
that no sinner can believe unless he has grace. And no sinner will
have grace unless he believes. Boy, that's a contradiction only
in your puny mind. Only in these depraved minds
who think we're smarter than God. God says the Lord will give
grace, and he'll give it to any sinner who believes on his side. Whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved. What grace is it that God promises
to give? All of it. All of it. Some people
talk, many people imagine, most of us, that God gives a little
grace in the beginning. He saves the sinner and he He
just gives you a little grace. And then if you're good, he'll
give you a little more grace. And if you pray enough, he'll give
you a little more grace. And if you come down the front and somebody
tells you to waggle your tongue and say a bunch of nonsense and
gibberish until finally you think you're speaking in tongues, then
you've really got grace. He doesn't say the Lord will
give graces. He doesn't say the Lord will
give some grace. He says the Lord will give grace. Grace. All grace. All the fullness of
grace in Jesus Christ the Lord. Regenerating grace, justifying
grace, sanctifying grace, persevering grace. It's all His grace. And the Lord will give His grace
to everyone who believes. He will give us grace to instruct
us and grace to direct us. I love this passage in Proverbs
3. You don't need to turn there. It's in verses 5 and 6. I love
it for a lot of reasons. I proved it so often. My wife
and I, early days of our relationship when we were dating, I found
these two verses to be such a source of strength to us. This is what
the scripture promises. Trust in the Lord with all thine
heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. I don't know
which of those two is tougher, but to trust him with all your
heart or not to lean to your own understanding. The fact is,
to the degree you trust him, you don't trust yourself. And
to the degree that you trust your own understanding, you don't
trust him. Trust in the Lord with all thine
heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. But pastor
there's some places where you have to you have to trust your
own judgment. Oh, no. No, no, listen now in
all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy path.
That's the promise. He'll give grace. Grace to direct
you through this world. Grace to comfort you in time
of trouble. Grace to revive you when your
soul is vanquishing. Sufficient grace to serve him,
to worship him, to honor him, to follow him, to endure all
things for him. He giveth more grace when the
burdens grow greater. He sendeth more strength when
the labors increase. To added affliction he addeth
his mercy to multiplied trials. He adds his peace. How does he
give this grace? He gives it mediatorially through
the Lord Jesus Christ. The only way a sinner gets grace
is in a mediator. The only way a sinner gets grace
is through a priest, through a sacrifice, through a mediator. One who is accepted with God. One who is himself worthy of
God's acceptance. but one who can lay hold of man.
And that mediator is the man who is God, Jesus Christ our
Savior. He gives grace seasonably. As our days demand, his grace
is given. And he gives grace readily. Oh,
God is always ready to be gracious. I started to say, I wish I could
convince you of that. I wish I could convince me of
that. God's always ready to be gracious. Let us, therefore,
come bold unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy
and find grace to help in the time of need. But I don't feel
worthy. That's the time to come. But
I don't feel that I can call on the Lord. That's the time
to call on him. But I feel so far from him. That's the time
to call on him. He gives grace readily. The scripture
says he delighteth in mercy. and he gives his grace constantly,
at home or abroad, on the land and the sea, as thy days shall
be man's, shall thy strength ever be. You read this promise
as broadly as you will. It is to you, my brother or my
sister, the promise of God to you in every condition, in every
circumstance, in every time of your life. The Lord will give
grace. When you're tempted, he'll give
you grace to endure temptation. When you're called to suffer,
he'll give you grace to suffer for it. And when you're called
to leave this world, he'll give you grace to die with it. Who gives this grace? The Lord. Not the preacher. Not the church. Not some slick soul winner. Not
the priests. Not the confessional. The Lord
gives. The only way you're gonna get
it is to do business with him. To do business directly with
him. The Lord will give grace. Now then, look at this next line.
And the Lord will give glory. Look at that word, and. The Lord
will give grace and glory. That little connecting word.
It's more precious than all the gold in the world. The Lord will
give grace and glory. Not he will give grace and if
you behave right now he'll give you glory. No, no. Not he will
give grace and then you earn varying degrees of glory. It
says here, Bob, he will give grace and glory. There are a lot of folks who
are determined, it seems, to take the word out. But that word
is like an indestructible rivet, uniting grace and glory. The text doesn't say the Lord
will give grace in perdition or the Lord will give grace in
purgatory. It says the Lord will give grace
and glory. Now the text does not promise
glory without grace. You cannot have glory unless
you have grace. But the text does promise that
wherever grace is given, Glory will follow. What is this glory? Turn to first Corinthians 2.
I know I'm in water well over my head here, but I want to just
scratch the surface a little bit, give you something to go
home rejoicing in. This puny brain can never comprehend
what that glory is that God should give. I'm not sure we will even
comprehend it to eternity. We will spend eternity beginning
to comprehend it. And yet, God has revealed something
to us of that glory which awaits us. The apostle writes here in
1 Corinthians 2, 9, As it is written, I have not seen nor
ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man. Now this
is what it says, no eye has ever seen anything like this. No ear
has ever heard anything like this. It has never entered into
the heart of a man the things which God hath prepared for them
that love him. But God hath revealed them to
us by his Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things,
yea, the deep things of God. Now, this much I know. Where God gives grace, he will
give the glory of heaven. I don't know what that is. I
don't know what that is. Folks, they write books about
it, but they write books about speculation. I don't know what
it is. I know this. It's described as
a city four square. It's described as a city with
gates of pearl and walls of jasper. It's described as a city with
streets of gold and a sea that's crystal clear as clear as glass. It's described as a city with
a tree of life and a fountain of living water. It's described
as a city where the sun never sets. It's described as a city
where there's no weeping, no sorrow, no crying, no sickness,
no sin, no death. All of those things are words
that are used to condescend to our teeny brains and make us
understand that heaven is indescribably beyond what we can even imagine
in its glory. The Lord will give us the glory
of eternity. Eternal You know, I can almost imagine
eternal death. Yet I can't begin to imagine
eternal life. What a word! Eternity! Who can define it? What a combination
of words! Eternal life! Who can define
that? No one on earth can fathom the
meaning of those words, eternal life. We always confound eternity
with time. And we always confound life with
death. We think about life, but in life,
we think about all those things that attend life. Sorrow, heartache, disappointment,
sickness, bereavement. But we're talking about life
where there's no sorrow. No belief, no sin, no disappointment, no
death. Eternal life. The Lord will give
us the glory of Christ himself as our mediator. Turn to John
17. John chapter 17. Maurice and
I were talking about this this afternoon. He was working on
this passage of scripture. He called me up and was asking
me some questions about it. Little did he know I was working
on it as well. But in John chapter 17 and verse
22, we have our Lord's great high priestly prayer, and he's
wrapping this prayer up. Now remember, God said, my glory
will I not give to another. God will never share his glory
with a human being. He'll never share his glory with
you or with me. But our Lord Jesus Christ, our
great high priest, speaks in this prayer as the God-man, our
mediator. For example, says, thou hast
given him power over all flesh. Well, God the Father didn't give
his Son, as his Son, anything. Because as his Son, Jesus Christ,
the Son of God, possesses everything in equality with the Father.
But as our mediator, as the God-man, as our substitute, because of
his obedience to the Father, the Father has given him power
over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many
as thou hast given him. Now look at verse 22. And the
glory, the glory. Remember he said, Father, restore
to me the glory which I had with you before the world was. This
glory he had as our covenant surety before he ever came into
this world to finish his work is our surety. The glory which
thou gavest me. The Lord Jesus, having finished
his work, brought in everlasting righteousness, redeemed us with
his blood, arose from the dead and ascended up into heaven.
And he took possession of heaven's glory. Mark, he took possession
of all of it. Do you reckon the father withheld
anything from him? No good thing will he withhold
from him that walketh upright. That's it. That's it. The glory
which now gave it to me. Look at this. I have given to him. That means
Paul, Harry, whatever God gave his son, he gave us in his time. All of it. All of it. Whatever
Jesus Christ, the God-man, now possesses as the God-man, we
shall possess forever in him. Whatever that glory is which
Christ has as our mediator, as the reward of his perfect obedience,
we shall have when we see him in heaven as he is. Oh, I can't
tell you how my heart pats to know my experience. the meaning
of what I just said. He will give us the glory of
perfect, total victory over all our adversaries, the world, the
flesh, and the devil. And he will give us the glory
of a perfect nature. The purpose of God in predestination from old eternity is that when
he's done, Every one of his chosen would stand before him holy and
without blame. Every crook in the path, every
bend in the road, every slob of the sand, every deep dark
valley, every hill of difficulty. Every barbed arrow that pierces
your heart. Everything that brings tears
from your eyes and crushes your heart. Everything that brings
a smile to your face and glistens your eyes. Everything! God Almighty
has purpose from eternity. So that in the end, he presents
you to believe wholly and unflinchingly in God. And what is purpose? He's going to bring it to pass.
The Lord will give us the glory, then, of perfect death. In heaven's glory, we shall have
a perpetual Sabbath, an endless day of perfect peace, happiness,
and security. Mr. Spurgeon stated it so much
better than I could ever state it. He said, it shall not be
possible for a man to have a wish ungratified, nor a desire unfulfilled. Every power shall find ample
employment without weariness, and every passion shall have
full indulgence without so much as a fear of sin." That's glory. The Lord will give
grace and glory. Beep.

Grace and Glory

What does the Bible say about grace and glory?

How do we know God's grace is true?

Why is believing in God's grace essential for salvation?

What is the relationship between grace and the elect?

How does God give grace to believers?

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Grace and Glory

What does the Bible say about grace and glory?

How do we know God's grace is true?

Why is believing in God's grace essential for salvation?

What is the relationship between grace and the elect?

How does God give grace to believers?

Sermon Transcript

About Don Fortner

Comments

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