StoneBridge Community Church
It Is By Grace You Have Been Saved, Through Faith… (Ephesians 2.8-9)
Pastor Jeff Cheadle
Locations & Times
StoneBridge Campus
4832 Cochran St, Simi Valley, CA 93063, USA
Saturday 5:30 PM
Sunday 9:00 AM
Sunday 10:30 AM
Online "Connection Card"
Thanks for joining us today! Follow this link to a simple online "Connection Card" where you can let us know you were here and share any prayer concerns.
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Ephesians 2:1-10
Bob Deffinbaugh, "The Guilt of Men and the Grace of God" Ephesians: The Glory of God in the Church
http://bit.ly/2hp7RZT"The only thing we can contribute to our redemption is the sin from which we need to be redeemed." —William Temple
1. One sure sign of God's saving grace is…
1. One sure sign of God's saving grace is a sense of surprise and relief.
James Herriot
James Alfred "Alf" Wight, (1916 – 1995), known by the pen name James Herriot, was a British veterinary surgeon and writer, who used his many years of experiences as a veterinary surgeon to write a series of books each consisting of stories about animals and their owners. He is best known for these semi-autobiographical works, beginning with All Creatures Great and Small in 1972. The British television series adapted from the books is also titled All Creatures Great and Small.
http://bit.ly/2hvT4wMFor reflection/discussion
Think about a time when you made a major mistake but were treated with grace. What were your feelings at the time? How are surprise and relief a sign of God's saving grace? Are you still surprised and relieved as you think about God's mercy, pardon, and grace toward you? Why or why not?
2. A second sure sign of God's saving grace is…
2. A second sure sign of God's saving grace is a deep sense of gratitude.
Parachuting
The first parachute jump in history was made by Andre-Jacques Garnerin, the inventor of the parachute, on October 22, 1797. Garnerin tested his contraption by leaping from a hydrogen balloon 3,200 feet above Paris. Wikipedia article
http://bit.ly/2vAx4XAFor reflection/discussion
Have you ever found yourself in a hopeless situation, or had an experience in which you couldn't do a thing for yourself? What was your response? What can an unconscious skydiver do for himself or herself? In what way, according to the gospel, is every one of us like an unconscious skydiver? Why is a deep sense of gratitude a sign of God's saving grace? What are you most grateful for in life?
3. A third sure sign of God's saving grace is…
3. A third sure sign of God's saving grace is faith.
Faith =
Faith = knowledge + assent + trust
United States v. George Wilson
"A pardon is a deed, to the validity of which, delivery is essential, and delivery is not complete, without acceptance. It may then be rejected by the person to whom it is tendered; and if it be rejected, we have discovered no power in a court to force it on him. It may be supposed, that no being condemned to death would reject a pardon; but the rule must be the same in capital cases and in misdemeanors." —"United States v. George Wilson" Legal Information Institute, Cornell University Law School website.
http://bit.ly/2fgrfaSFor reflection/discussion
What are your thoughts on the definition of faith as knowledge + assent + trust? Why are knowledge and assent both necessary but not sufficient for faith? Can you think of any reasons that George Wilson rejected Andrew Jackson's Presidential Pardon? Why do you think some people reject God's gift of grace? Why is faith a sure sign of God's saving grace?
4. A fourth sure sign of God's saving grace is…
4. A fourth sure sign of God's saving grace is the new life I'm given in Christ.
For reflection/discussion
We are not saved by good works; we are saved for good works. What are some of the good works which God prepared in advance for us to do? What are two ways we might be tempted to go backward after we have welcomed the gift of God's grace in our lives? Why is the good news of God's love and grace just as important to Christians as to unbelievers? Why is living the new life we're given in Christ a sure sign of God's saving grace in our lives?
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