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Sharon Reformed Presbyterian Church · Sermon study sheet

Iowa RP Family Camp 2019 - Talk 2

Joel Wood · July 29, 2019

Scripture passage not listed

sharonrpc.org/sermons/iowa-rp-family-camp-2019-15211920145975

Summary

  • Ephesians 2:4-10 begins with God's rich mercy and great love toward people who were spiritually dead and unable to save themselves.
  • God's everlasting love and faithfulness, not human covenant faithfulness or personal achievement, form the root of Christian joy and peace.
  • Christ succeeds where Adam failed, obeying under temptation and accomplishing the life, death, and resurrection his people need.
  • Believers are made alive, raised, and seated with Christ entirely by grace through faith, leaving no room for boasting or self-payment for sin.
  • Those saved are God's workmanship, created in Christ for good works that give purpose and identity without becoming the cause of salvation.
  • Baptism announces God's covenant claim and promise, calling young and old to embrace Christ and walk in the grace freely given.

Reflection and discussion

  • Is my peace rooted in God's faithfulness or in the quality of my own religious performance?
  • Do I accept Scripture's verdict that apart from grace I am dead and unable to save myself?
  • Where am I tempted to treat suffering, religious effort, or moral achievement as payment for sin?
  • How does being raised and seated with Christ change my understanding of identity and purpose?
  • Am I receiving baptism as God's covenant testimony and responding with faith, or reducing it to my statement about myself?
  • Which good work has God placed before me as fruit of his workmanship?

Key terms

Grace
God's unearned favor toward guilty and helpless sinners, freely saving them in Christ.
Union with Christ
The believer's Spirit-worked participation in Christ so that his life, resurrection, and heavenly standing define theirs.
God's workmanship
The saved person as God's creation and craftsmanship rather than a self-made spiritual achievement.
Good works
God-prepared obedience flowing from salvation and giving Christian life purpose, never purchasing grace.

Notes and prayer