Saved By Grace (Ephesians)

Appleton Gospel Church

Saved By Grace: What does it actually mean to be “saved” in a Christian sense? The Biblical picture of life in this broken world is bleak — that apart from Christ, we are spiritually dead. Is there any hope? Yes! The gospel says that because of God's love and mercy, salvation is offered as a gracious gift to be received by faith. The gospel changes everything. Recorded on May 12, 2024, on Ephesians 2:1-10 by Pastor David Parks. Our series, Ephesians: The Gospel in Life, serves as an epilogue to Finding Life in Jesus’ Name from John’s gospel. The Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians reveals much about how the life found by faith in Jesus actually works. This series will touch on themes of grace, identity, purpose, family, the church, spiritual warfare, and more. If you’re considering the life of Jesus or if you’re ready to follow him today, this series is for you. Sermon Transcript Well, for the next few months, we’ll be working through a sermon series called The Gospel in Life from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians in the Bible. If you missed either of the first few sermons, you can always go back and watch or listen to the podcast to catch up if you’d like. But today, we’re going to try and stare into the sun for the next 30 minutes or so. Today, from one of the most important passages in the whole Bible, we’re going to consider the heart of Christian salvation. What does it actually mean to be “saved” in a Christian sense? Just what is it that God saves us from? How has he saved us? And what has he saved us for? Well, in case you’re thinking, “I don’t really need this message. I’m already a Christian.” just remember, Paul is writing to Christians, to his brothers and sisters in Christ, in Ephesus. They’d already heard and believed the gospel. But today, in Ephesians 2, we’ll see that everybody needs the gospel, even Christians. We never graduate from our need for the gospel. If you have a Bible/app, please take it and open it to Ephesians 2:1. Ephesians 2:1–2 (NIV), “1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” “As for you” probably refers to the gentile Christians in the church at Ephesus, but he’s not leaving himself or Paul’s fellow Jews from the need for the gospel, as we’ll see shortly. But here, Paul starts with the bad news. “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins.” What does this mean? Well, a transgression simply means crossing a line that shouldn’t be crossed. You commit a transgression when you drive your car through a guardrail on the highway — that never ends well. A moral transgression would be crossing a line that God has drawn, breaking a command of God, such as lying, cheating, stealing, coveting what isn’t yours, dishonoring your parents, and so on. These are all transgressions, but sin is very similar. The word for sin was originally an archery term meaning falling short of the mark. In Christian thought, sin means falling short of God’s standard for what is right in thought, word, or deed. Jesus taught that the whole Law could be summed up in two commands: first, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And the second, to love your neighbor as yourself. So sin means falling short in some way in our love for God or our love for others. Now, everyone knows that transgressions and sins are bad. God made human beings with a conscience. You don’t have to be a Bible scholar to know right from wrong. But here’s the real problem: Paul says that if you cross a line you shouldn’t cross or if you fall short of what’s right, it’s not just that you’re guilty, and it’s not just that you ought to be ashamed — it’s that you’re dead. You might be physically alive, but you’re spiritually dead. You’re a cut flower. You might even look quite youthful/beautiful on the...