The gospel of Jesus Christ is good news…
and Grace is the thread that weaves through the story.
“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.”
The familiar words of this hymn echo the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. All humanity needs good news because we share a common experience with the writer of these lyrics; We are lost, blind, and sin-stained. The good news of the amazing grace of Jesus deals with all three and sets us on a path of freedom, wholeness, and restoration.
The Bible, God’s Word, tells the story of grace for all humankind. It shows us how Jesus came to overcome sin’s penalty and power that left us helpless and hopeless.
The working of God’s grace does more than bestow favor. Grace replaces the influences of sin, darkness and shame, with God’s divine influences of light and holiness. Grace, then, is not only benefical to those that receive it, but flows through us to reach out to others.
BE Awakened
Responding to the grace of God begins with an awakening… a seeing. But what do we “see?” We see our sin in light of His glory. We sense His love that wants to erase the shame we know too well. We experience the beginnings of His divine influence on our hearts. We’ve been moved from ignorance to a divine knowledge that opens a door we never knew.
BE Rescued
This awakening creates a need to embrace what God is offering us… life and light in Him through the death of Jesus on the cross. We see how He took our death upon Himself to give us life. We find ourselves asking, “what must I do to be saved?” Through faith, the act by which we believe, confess and repent, we are saved!
BE Sanctified
As we move on in our lives with Jesus, having been set free from the penalty of sin, we are led to a path of continual growth. We lose our life to find it and carry our cross with Jesus daily. We walk in holiness, even though we are still given to mistakes, ignorance, temptation and a number of other troubles. Daily we are led to become more and more like Jesus