Grace: Greater than all our sin

#1 · May 17, 2002, 10:13 am

Quote from Forum Archives on May 17, 2002, 10:13 am
Posted by: warrenm <warrenm@...>

The following sermon is to be credited to Jim Cymbala as I gathered the bulk of this from a chapter in his book. Freah Faith. The material here is not exclusively from his book as I have added illustrations and commentaries. Credit Jim but glorify God.

Greater Grace: Grace in the lineage of Jesus as found in Judah

Matthew 1:1-3 and Genesis 38

Matt 1:1-3a

1A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham: 2Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar…NIV

Genesis 38

1And it came about at that time, that Judah departed from his brothers, and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua; and he took her and went in to her. 3So she conceived and bore a son and he named him Er. 4Then she conceived again and bore a son and named him Onan. 5And she bore still another son and named him Shelah; and it was at Chezib that she bore him.

6Now Judah took a wife for Er his first-born, and her name was Tamar. 7But Er, Judah's first-born, was evil in the sight of the LORD, so the LORD took his life. 8Then Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother." 9And Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so it came about that when he went in to his brother's wife, he wasted his seed on the ground, in order not to give offspring to his brother. 10But what he did was displeasing in the sight of the LORD; so He took his life also. 11Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Remain a widow in your father's house until my son Shelah grows up"; for he thought, "I am afraid that he too may die like his brothers." So Tamar went and lived in her father's house.

12Now after a considerable time Shua's daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and when the time of mourning was ended, Judah went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. 13And it was told to Tamar, "Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep." 14So she removed her widow's garments and covered herself with a veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gateway of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and she had not been given to him as a wife. 15When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, for she had covered her face. 16So he turned aside to her by the road, and said, "Here now, let me come in to you"; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, "What will you give me, that you may come in to me?" 17He said, therefore, "I will send you a kid from the flock." She said, moreover, "Will you give a pledge until you send it?" 18And he said, "What pledge shall I give you?" And she said, "Your seal and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand." So he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him. 19Then she arose and departed, and removed her veil and put on her widow's garments.

20When Judah sent the kid by his friend the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman's hand, he did not find her. 21And he asked the men of her place, saying, "Where is the temple prostitute who was by the road at Enaim?" But they said, "There has been no temple prostitute here." 22So he returned to Judah, and said, "I did not find her; and furthermore, the men of the place said, 'There has been no temple prostitute here.'" 23Then Judah said, "Let her keep them, lest we become a laughingstock. After all, I sent this kid, but you did not find her."

24Now it was about three months later that Judah was informed, "Your daughter-in-law Tamar has played the harlot, and behold, she is also with child by harlotry." Then Judah said, "Bring her out and let her be burned!" 25It was while she was being brought out that she sent to her father-in-law, saying, "I am with child by the man to whom these things belong." And she said," Please examine and see, whose signet ring and cords and staff are these? " 26And Judah recognized them, and said, "She is more righteous than I, inasmuch as I did not give her to my son Shelah." And he did not have relations with her again.

27And it came about at the time she was giving birth, that behold, there were twins in her womb. 28Moreover, it took place while she was giving birth, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, "This one came out first." 29But it came about as he drew back his hand, that behold, his brother came out. Then she said, "What a breach you have made for yourself!" So he was named Perez. 30And afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand; and he was named Zerah. NAS

{Note: it is essential to do the background info from Genesis 38 in order to make the point of being benefactors of God's grace rather than His law. I trust you will become familiar with this, otherwise, the message may not make sense to you.}

Judah's first mistake was marrying a Canaanite woman. Esau, his uncle, had already been down that road. (Genesis 26:34-35) You get into a real mess when you marry outside those who serve the one true God.

Judah's dad, Jacob, was told under no uncertain term to avoid marrying a Canaanite woman. Judah disregarded the counsel of his grandparents entirely.

Judah's boys grew up getting mixed messages about the true God. Er was so wicked that the Lord killed him in his early adulthood. (Gen. 38:7)

Why would God put a story like this in the Bible? It reads like an edition of the National Enquirer. Why did God use Judah when He could have spoken of Benjamin or one of the other sons of Jacob and placed him in that lineage account?

God places the account of Judah's transgressions in here to remind us that we too can self-destruct if left to our own devices. {Illustration of how we like to hide stories like these about our family members.} The Smith's were proud of their family tradition. Their ancestors had come to America on the Mayflower. They had included Senators and Wall Street wizards. They decided to compile a family history, a legacy for their children and grandchildren. They hired a fine author. Only one problem arose - how to handle that great-uncle George, who was executed in the electric chair.
The author said he could handle the story tactfully.
The book appeared. It said "Great-uncle George occupied a chair of applied electronics at an important government institution, was attached to his position by the strongest of ties, and his
death came as a great shock." {resource is from an email received from a friend.}

God has given clear testimony about our moral standing with him. Note for instance, Romans 3:10 which says, As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one. And there is Isaiah 53:6, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."

Romans 7:18 says, "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not."

Unfortunately we are very good at condemning others for the very things we also do. We can all be self-righteous and pompous. We are not only weak but judgmental as well. Wouldn't it be better to stop giving opinions about everyone else and do a better job of humbly looking after our own hearts?

We have lost sight of the reason God included Judah's story in the Bible. We are drifting away from the New Testament's message of God's amazing grace to change and redeem soiled people; instead we are moralizing and expressing self-righteous disdain over the horrible lives others are living around us. Instead of putting down man, let's exalt Jesus!

We are giving people only the law, when what they crave is the love and grace of God. Consider with me 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. 9Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God. NAS

The early Christian church had its own share of 'Judahs,' but "where sin increased, grace increased all the more." Romans 5:20

God's specialty is forgiving and putting away people's sins from his sight. He delights in taking failures such as Judah and weaving them into the ancestry of His own Son, Jesus Christ. The genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:3 continues through Judah and then goes not to his legitimate son, Shelah—but to Perez, Tamar's boy, the child of incest. It is as if God were saying. "Forever I want my people to know that I not only forgive mess-ups, but I can take them and touch them and heal them—put them in the line that leads to Christ."

What Satan means for evil, God is able to change and work out for good. Genesis 50:20

Jacob's 12 sons:

Leah became the mother of Jacob's firstborn, Reuben, and three other sons, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, following in succession. Rachel, having borne no children, gave to Jacob her maid, Bilhah, who bore Dan and Naphtali. Two other sons, Gad and Asher, were born of Leah's maid, Zilpah. Leah then bore two more sons, Issachar and Zebulun, and a daughter, Dinah. At length Rachel became the mother of a son, whom she called Joseph (29:1-30:24). A number of years later Benjamin was born. (From The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright (c) 1988.)

If God brings you to it -
He will bring you through it.
Preacher Jones

Posted by: warrenm <warrenm@...>

The following sermon is to be credited to Jim Cymbala as I gathered the bulk of this from a chapter in his book. Freah Faith. The material here is not exclusively from his book as I have added illustrations and commentaries. Credit Jim but glorify God.

Greater Grace: Grace in the lineage of Jesus as found in Judah

Matthew 1:1-3 and Genesis 38

Matt 1:1-3a

1A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham: 2Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar…NIV

Genesis 38

1And it came about at that time, that Judah departed from his brothers, and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2And Judah saw there a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua; and he took her and went in to her. 3So she conceived and bore a son and he named him Er. 4Then she conceived again and bore a son and named him Onan. 5And she bore still another son and named him Shelah; and it was at Chezib that she bore him.

6Now Judah took a wife for Er his first-born, and her name was Tamar. 7But Er, Judah's first-born, was evil in the sight of the LORD, so the LORD took his life. 8Then Judah said to Onan, "Go in to your brother's wife, and perform your duty as a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother." 9And Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so it came about that when he went in to his brother's wife, he wasted his seed on the ground, in order not to give offspring to his brother. 10But what he did was displeasing in the sight of the LORD; so He took his life also. 11Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Remain a widow in your father's house until my son Shelah grows up"; for he thought, "I am afraid that he too may die like his brothers." So Tamar went and lived in her father's house.

12Now after a considerable time Shua's daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and when the time of mourning was ended, Judah went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. 13And it was told to Tamar, "Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep." 14So she removed her widow's garments and covered herself with a veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gateway of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah had grown up, and she had not been given to him as a wife. 15When Judah saw her, he thought she was a harlot, for she had covered her face. 16So he turned aside to her by the road, and said, "Here now, let me come in to you"; for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, "What will you give me, that you may come in to me?" 17He said, therefore, "I will send you a kid from the flock." She said, moreover, "Will you give a pledge until you send it?" 18And he said, "What pledge shall I give you?" And she said, "Your seal and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand." So he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him. 19Then she arose and departed, and removed her veil and put on her widow's garments.

20When Judah sent the kid by his friend the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman's hand, he did not find her. 21And he asked the men of her place, saying, "Where is the temple prostitute who was by the road at Enaim?" But they said, "There has been no temple prostitute here." 22So he returned to Judah, and said, "I did not find her; and furthermore, the men of the place said, 'There has been no temple prostitute here.'" 23Then Judah said, "Let her keep them, lest we become a laughingstock. After all, I sent this kid, but you did not find her."

24Now it was about three months later that Judah was informed, "Your daughter-in-law Tamar has played the harlot, and behold, she is also with child by harlotry." Then Judah said, "Bring her out and let her be burned!" 25It was while she was being brought out that she sent to her father-in-law, saying, "I am with child by the man to whom these things belong." And she said," Please examine and see, whose signet ring and cords and staff are these? " 26And Judah recognized them, and said, "She is more righteous than I, inasmuch as I did not give her to my son Shelah." And he did not have relations with her again.

27And it came about at the time she was giving birth, that behold, there were twins in her womb. 28Moreover, it took place while she was giving birth, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, "This one came out first." 29But it came about as he drew back his hand, that behold, his brother came out. Then she said, "What a breach you have made for yourself!" So he was named Perez. 30And afterward his brother came out who had the scarlet thread on his hand; and he was named Zerah. NAS

{Note: it is essential to do the background info from Genesis 38 in order to make the point of being benefactors of God's grace rather than His law. I trust you will become familiar with this, otherwise, the message may not make sense to you.}

Judah's first mistake was marrying a Canaanite woman. Esau, his uncle, had already been down that road. (Genesis 26:34-35) You get into a real mess when you marry outside those who serve the one true God.

Judah's dad, Jacob, was told under no uncertain term to avoid marrying a Canaanite woman. Judah disregarded the counsel of his grandparents entirely.

Judah's boys grew up getting mixed messages about the true God. Er was so wicked that the Lord killed him in his early adulthood. (Gen. 38:7)

Why would God put a story like this in the Bible? It reads like an edition of the National Enquirer. Why did God use Judah when He could have spoken of Benjamin or one of the other sons of Jacob and placed him in that lineage account?

God places the account of Judah's transgressions in here to remind us that we too can self-destruct if left to our own devices. {Illustration of how we like to hide stories like these about our family members.} The Smith's were proud of their family tradition. Their ancestors had come to America on the Mayflower. They had included Senators and Wall Street wizards. They decided to compile a family history, a legacy for their children and grandchildren. They hired a fine author. Only one problem arose - how to handle that great-uncle George, who was executed in the electric chair.
The author said he could handle the story tactfully.
The book appeared. It said "Great-uncle George occupied a chair of applied electronics at an important government institution, was attached to his position by the strongest of ties, and his
death came as a great shock." {resource is from an email received from a friend.}

God has given clear testimony about our moral standing with him. Note for instance, Romans 3:10 which says, As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one. And there is Isaiah 53:6, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."

Romans 7:18 says, "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not."

Unfortunately we are very good at condemning others for the very things we also do. We can all be self-righteous and pompous. We are not only weak but judgmental as well. Wouldn't it be better to stop giving opinions about everyone else and do a better job of humbly looking after our own hearts?

We have lost sight of the reason God included Judah's story in the Bible. We are drifting away from the New Testament's message of God's amazing grace to change and redeem soiled people; instead we are moralizing and expressing self-righteous disdain over the horrible lives others are living around us. Instead of putting down man, let's exalt Jesus!

We are giving people only the law, when what they crave is the love and grace of God. Consider with me 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. 9Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God. NAS

The early Christian church had its own share of 'Judahs,' but "where sin increased, grace increased all the more." Romans 5:20

God's specialty is forgiving and putting away people's sins from his sight. He delights in taking failures such as Judah and weaving them into the ancestry of His own Son, Jesus Christ. The genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:3 continues through Judah and then goes not to his legitimate son, Shelah—but to Perez, Tamar's boy, the child of incest. It is as if God were saying. "Forever I want my people to know that I not only forgive mess-ups, but I can take them and touch them and heal them—put them in the line that leads to Christ."

What Satan means for evil, God is able to change and work out for good. Genesis 50:20

Jacob's 12 sons:

Leah became the mother of Jacob's firstborn, Reuben, and three other sons, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, following in succession. Rachel, having borne no children, gave to Jacob her maid, Bilhah, who bore Dan and Naphtali. Two other sons, Gad and Asher, were born of Leah's maid, Zilpah. Leah then bore two more sons, Issachar and Zebulun, and a daughter, Dinah. At length Rachel became the mother of a son, whom she called Joseph (29:1-30:24). A number of years later Benjamin was born. (From The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright (c) 1988.)

If God brings you to it -
He will bring you through it.
Preacher Jones