We’ve all had to deal with coming back to God and repenting for repeated sins. Discover how God’s love for you is so great that despite the number of times you’ve stumbled, He is always there to extend His mercy to you. Regardless of your sin, you cannot exceed the grace of God.
Sermon Outline
Sin doesn’t disappear when we come to faith. At times, we might have to fight against it more forcefully than before our salvation. But thankfully, the Lord has made provision for our failures, no matter how many times we miss the mark.
Key Passage: Romans 5:20-21; Romans 6:1-2
Supporting Passages: Ezekiel 18:4; Matthew 18:21-34; Matthew 23:33; Luke 19:1-10; John 4:1-26; John 8:1-11; Romans 5:13-15; Romans 5:17; Romans 6:12-13; Romans 6:18; Romans 6:23
All of us have had sins we bring back to God repeatedly. And that’s why we need to understand the endless depths of His forgiveness.
► “The law was not given in order to save us. The law was given to expose us.”
For those in Christ …
Increased sin causes grace to abound all the more (Rom. 5:20-21).
Choosing to continue in sin because of this is not our nature (6:1-2).
For all people …
Sin has been present since Adam and leads to death (5:13-14).
God gave each of us a conscience to provide instinctive knowledge. It is an unwritten law of right and wrong.
The Ten Commandments provide us with explicit knowledge of right and wrong.
The law teaches us about sin; it exposes us and drives us to Christ for salvation.
Neither confession nor repentance alone can deal with sin. Forgiveness requires the blood of Jesus.
► “If you are attending a church where the cross, the blood, and the atoning death of Jesus Christ are never mentioned, get out. The theology is not sound.”
Grace is …
God’s provision for our sin.
God’s kindness toward humanity, in spite of the fact that we do not deserve it.
Always through Christ Jesus, always through the cross, and always through the blood of Christ (Rom. 5:15, 17, 21).
► “If you truly desire to just keep sinning and confessing, more than likely you’ve never been saved.”
As believers, we must understand that …
We cannot ever sin beyond the ability of grace to cover our transgressions.
God will not demand that our forgiveness be greater than His (Matt. 18:21-34).
Grace is the foundation and predecessor of all aspects of forgiveness.
Our debt of sin was forgiven at the cross.
Forgiveness became a reality the moment we received Jesus as Savior.
Grace is never “cheap,” because it cost the life of God’s Son.
God disciplines those who violate His commands.
God desires to deliver us from the power of sin; we need not let it reign over us (Rom. 6:12-13).
In Christ, we’ve become children of God.
The Father expresses His grace by sending the Holy Spirit to live within us.
God’s immeasurable grace shows us His great love toward us and should inspire our gratitude, love, and desire to obey.
After Watching
In Romans 6:18, Paul uses a strange phrase to describe believers: “slaves of righteousness.” As children of God, how are we both free and bound?
The Greek verb aphiémi, often translated as “forgive,” conveys the idea of sending away, releasing, or letting go. If you’re struggling to accept God’s forgiveness, try imagining your sins being sent away from you, like paper boats on a current—never to return.
