The Good News About Grace

James 2:10
“The person who keeps every law of God but makes one little slip is just as guilty
as the person who has broken every law there is.”  James 2:10 (TLB)
1. WHAT IS GUILT?
“My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.”  Psalm 38:4
(NIV)
Guilt is a warning light.
We try to ignore it or pretend it’s not there.
THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF GUILT:
•  Genuine guilt
•  False guilt
“You began your life in Christ by the Spirit.  Now are you trying to make it
complete by your own power?  That is foolish.”  Galatians 3:3
THREE TESTS TO DETERMINE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
TRUE AND FALSE GUILT
•  Is the focus on people or God?
Dr. Paul Tournier:  “False guilt is that which comes as the results of judgments
and the suggestions of men.”
•  Is it vague or is it specific?
Satan is foggy – God is specific.
•  Is it rules or relationships?
I broke the rules – or – I hurt someone.
The rules become more important than the relationships.

False guilt blinds us to the miraculous work of God and it binds us to the
meticulous rules of men.
2. OUR WAYS OF HANDLING GUILT
“…they sewed fig leaves together and made something to cover themselves …
they hid from the Lord God … I was afraid because I was naked … she gave me
fruit from the tree, so I ate it.”  Genesis 3:7-12 (NCV)
THREE WAYS WE NORMALLY RESPOND
•  We often respond with shame.
•  Hiding
•  Blame
3. GOD’S WAY OF HANDLING GUILT:  GRACE
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and
purify us from all unrighteousness.”  I John 1:9
1.  Confess your sins.
When it comes to sin we do one of two things – cover up or face up.
“God you know what I have done wrong.  I cannot hide my guilt from you.”
Psalm 69:5 (NCV)
TO WHOM DO WE CONFESS?
•  TO GOD
•  TO OTHERS
Telling God means more than just admitting.  The literal meaning of this word is
“saying the same thing about it that God says.”
“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so God can heal you.”
James 5:16
2.  Trust God’s Character
“…He is faithful and just …”
“Let us come near to God with a sincere heart and a sure faith, because we have
been made free from a guilty conscience.”  Heb. 10:22 (NCV)
3.  Accept God’s Forgiveness

“…and cleanse us from all unrighteousness…”
“People who believe in God’s Son are not judged guilty.”  John 3:18 (TLB)
God not only wants to free you of your guilt, He wants to use you in a new way.
That’s the good news about Grace.
“I finally admitted all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide them.  I said to
myself, I will confess them to the Lord and you forgave me.  All my guilt is gone.”
Psalm 32:5 (TLB)

“God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally
finished.”  Phil.  1:6 (NLT)
As your pastor, I don’t want to just get you into heaven – I want to help you finish
the race of life well.
“My purpose in writing is to encourage you and assure you that the grace of God
is with you no matter what happens.”  I Peter 5:11 (NLT)
Sustaining Grace is the power to keep on going when I feel like giving up.
GOD’S SUSTAINING GRACE…
1.  … HELPS ME KEEP STANDING WHEN I’M TEMPTED.
“Watch out for attacks from the devil, your great enemy.  He prowls around like a
roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. Take a firm stand against him
and so be strong in the faith.”  I Peter 5:8
Moral choices are called temptations.
You will never outgrow temptation.
“This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses for He faced all of the
same temptations we do, yet He did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne
of our gracious Lord. There we will receive His mercy and we will find grace to
help us when we need it.”  Heb 4:15 (NLT)
If Jesus was tempted and he never sinned, it means it’s not a sin to be tempted.
It’s a sin to give in to temptation.
ONE MAJOR AREA OF TEMPTATION – SEXUAL TEMPTATION
People confuse attraction with lust – they are not the same thing.
Lust is when you take a thought and begin to dwell on it in your mind and you
begin to mentally have an affair with that person; you begin to fantasize with that
person and to imagine, “What would it be like with that person?”

“The temptations that you have are the same ones that all people have.  But you
can trust God.  He will not let you be tempted more than you can stand.  When
you are tempted, God will also give you a way to escape. Then you will be able
to stand it.”  I Cor. 10:13 (ICB)
If temptations are common to man, that means there are common solutions.
2.  … HELPS ME KEEP STANDING WHEN I’M TIRED.
Sometimes I’m not tempted – I’m just tired.
“Let us not grow weary in doing right for we will reap a harvest of blessing if we
do not give up.”  2 Thess. 3:13
“It is God who gives us the ability to stand firm for Christ.  He has commissioned
us and He has identified us as His own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts.”
2 Cor. 1:21-22 (NLT)
“For God is at work within you, giving you the will and the power to achieve His
purpose.”  Phil. 2:13 (Ph)
The Christian life is not a matter of your willpower, but a matter of God’s will and
God’s power in your life.
3.  … HELPS ME KEEP STANDING WHEN I’M TROUBLED.
The most difficult kinds of trouble to handle are the troubles, the problems in life,
that are unplanned, unrelenting, and undeserved.
WHAT DO YOU DO?
•  Stop doing the “if only” game
•  Start focusing on Christ
“So don’t worry, because I am with you.  Don’t be afraid, because I am your God.
I will make you strong and will help you. I will support you with my right hand that
saves you.”  Isaiah 41:10 (NCV)
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU CAN’T FIX AN UNFIXABLE PROBLEM?
You throw yourself on the Sustaining Grace of God.
HOW DO I RECEIVE GOD’S SUSTAINING GRACE?
•  Call out to God

“God gives grace to the humble, so give yourselves completely to God…Draw
close to God and God will draw close to you.”  James 4:6-8 (NCV, NLT)
•  Fill your mind with God’s Word
“I am completely discouraged.  Revive me by your Word.”  Psalm 19:25 (NLT)
•  Accept support from God’s people.
You need a support group.  God never meant for you to go through life on your
own.  You’re not a Lone Ranger.
“By helping each other with your troubles, you truly obey the Law of Christ.”  Gal.
6:2 (NCV)
•  Hold on to God’s Promises
“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  Even
youths grow tired … but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles.  They will run and not grow weary, they will
walk and not faint.”  Isaiah 40:29-31 (NIV)
“So we don’t look at the troubles we can see right now; rather we look forward to
what we have not yet seen.  For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the
joys to come will last forever.”  2 Cor. 4:18 (NLT)
“I begged the Lord three times to take this problem away from me.  But He said
to me, My grace is enough for you.  When you are weak, then My power is made
perfect in you.”  2 Cor. 12:8-9 (ICB)
When you’re going through a problem you can’t fix – don’t give up – LOOK UP

Everyone has hurts, emotional scars or hidden wounds which have usually been
caused by rejection.
“God heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.”  Psalm 147:3 (NIV)
HOW DOES GOD HEAL A BROKEN HEART?
BY CHANGING THE WAY WE THINK
•  About God
•  About pain
•  About ourselves
“Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.”
Romans 12:2 (NLT)
“As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”  Proverbs 23:7
HOW GOD SEES ME BECAUSE OF HIS GRACE
1.  I AM ACCEPTABLE
“…Christ has accepted you.”  Romans 15:7 (NIV)
“You have been chosen by God Himself.”  I Peter 2:9 (LB)
“Even if my mother and father forsake me, the Lord will receive me.”  Psalm
27:10 (NIV)
If God accepts me, and you don’t, that’s your problem.
2.  I AM VALUABLE.
I am valuable because of His grace.
Your value has no relationship to your valuables.

THERE ARE TWO THINGS THAT DETERMINE VALUE IN LIFE
•  Who owns it.
“You belong to God…”  I John 4:4
Everyone is created by God, but everyone does not belong to God.
•  What someone is willing to pay for it.
How much was paid for you?
“You have been bought and paid for by Christ, so you belong to Him.”  I Cor. 7:23
(LB)
God says: You are valuable enough that I will give my own Son to die for you.
“God says, ‘You are precious to me.’”  Isaiah 43:4 (GN)
3.  I AM LOVABLE.
“The mountains and hills may crumble, but my love for you will never end, so
says the Lord who loves you.”  Is. 54:10 (GN)
Two characteristics that make God’s love different from human love:
1.  God’s love is consistent.
2.  God’s love is unconditional.
4.  I AM FORGIVABLE.
“I am the God who forgives your sins and I do this because of who I am. I will not
hold your sins against you.”  Is. 43:25 (GN)
God doesn’t carry grudges.
“…Through what Christ would do for us, God decided to make us holy in His
eyes, without a single fault – we stand before Him covered with His love.”  Eph.
1:4 (LB)
When Jesus died on the cross, which sins did He die for? All of them.
5.  I AM CAPABLE.

“I have strength for all things in Christ who empowers me.  I am ready for
anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses inner strength into me,
that is, I am self sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency.”  Phil. 4:3 (Amp)
Anytime anything besides God is number one in your life, you’re going to be
plagued with insecurity.
“Once you were less than nothing; now you are God’s own.”  2 Peter 2:10 (LB)
“May the God of hope fill you with joy that by the power of the Holy Spirit your
whole life and outlook may be radiant with hope.”  I Peter 2:10 (LB)
SUMMARY:
To a large degree the way you see yourself and the way you feel about yourself
is determined by what you think the most important person in your life thinks
about you.  If that is true, I want to suggest that you make Jesus Christ the most
important person in your life.  He says you are acceptable, valuable, lovable,
forgivable, and capable.