Jesus Christ Our Passover: Part 8
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Grace Abounds
With Warren “Barney” Barnhart
The fulfillment of God’s plan of redemption was completed in the work of Jesus Christ. It is evidenced in our lives by believing. His accomplishments paved the way for a new way of living and a new way of life— called righteousness.
His death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and the giving of the holy spirit on the day of Pentecost gave all mankind hope and a way to have a relationship with God—and to be righteous before Him. This has been God’s simple desire. And now He has perfected a way for man to be filled with spiritual life, power, and the ability to walk as a righteous son of God with all power.
It’s this loving act of grace that has enabled man to enjoy a life of freedom, power, and victory.
John 1:17 KJV:
For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
The real true quest in Christian living is learning how to get that which is on the inside out in the open.
I never knew what condemnation was until I became a Christian, then I became an expert in it. But that’s not how God would have us to live. We’ve been given right-standing with God and He wants us to know it in our hearts.
Romans 5:1–2 KJV:
1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
There are five occurrences of “much more” in Romans Chapter 5 and I encourage you to look at them all sometime.
Romans 5:12– KJV:
12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: 13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. 15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. 16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. 17 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) 18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
How do we put what we have into practical application?
“Anytime we are in a state of lack, inability, or sin, we are in need of the grace of God. However, in these times of greatest need, our misconceptions about God cause us to run from God instead of running to God. We feel we will be rejected if we run to God.”
“Jesus Christ is not repulsed by our inability to cope with sins. He knows that it’s impossible for man to win over sin in his own strength. Having walked the earth as a man, He knows full well that the grace or ability of God is the only power that can make man able to win over sin.”
Hebrews 4:16 KJV:
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
How could one come before God with boldness when his desires are being drawn to sin? The answer to this question is the key to learning to receive grace for victory or continuing to sin.
Though people may reject us, God does not. First and foremost, we must realize that we are approaching a throne of grace, not a throne of judgment. Religion has painted such a mean, false picture of God that we usually run from God in our times of need instead of running to him.
Even under the Old Covenant, David’s key to victory was his awareness of the mercy of God as we read in Psalm 145.
Since it is the throne of grace, we need to understand that it is the place we need to go when we need God’s ability.
A works mentality tells us that if I’m not worthy then God will not hear me. No matter what you have done, the accuser will try to convince you that it is not enough. Even if you have done all good works and have not sinned, that will not bring you into the presence of God because faith cannot be based on your personal accomplishments. It must be based on the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Your emotions are not trustworthy; they’ll lie to you. Feelings of unworthiness may flood over you, but they do not change God’s Word. The fact of the matter is that you are unworthy, apart from Jesus Christ. It’s not based on you. Acceptance is totally based on the work of Jesus Christ.
1 John 1:9 KJV:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Apart from realizing God’s acceptance, we’ll never receive His grace. As long as you feel the need to earn righteousness, you frustrate the grace of God. But in understanding total acceptance, you can approach the throne of God with confidence.
Usually, the time we need to come to the throne of grace is not a time when our natural confidence is the highest.
The two times when we most need God’s grace is right before we sin and right after we sin.
Romans 5:1–2 KJV:
1 Therefore being justified [made righteous] by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
If you do not accept that you are righteous, grace cannot come forth to make you live in the power of righteousness.
It’s not enough to have the doctrine; you must believe it in your heart.
When I confess the Word, I’m not trying to get God to do something; I’m trying to get my heart back on track.
“Many times I’ve had temptations that seemed to be powerful, and I would begin to speak the truth about who I am in Jesus Christ, about the righteousness of God in me, about my victory and freedom over sin, and suddenly, guess what? Miraculously, my emotions begin to change.”
“I’ve never been able to give in to sin when I was feeling righteous. Not only did I avoid sin, but also the sin lost its appeal.”
One of the greatest spiritual realities that we’ve received is righteousness.
Jesus Christ’s accomplishments made it possible for us to have a close personal relationship with God.
The more we give up our independence, the richer and fuller our relationship with God will be.
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