Aaron McKee - The Relenting and Unrelenting God - Class 2 - The God Of All Grace (Dan. 9v1-18)

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   This is class two. Overall subject is the relenting and unrelenting God. Our speaker is Brother Aaron McKee and Class 2 is entitled The God of All Grace.

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   In 1751 a boat was being destroyed off the coast of England and on this vessel lived a a man who to this point in his life lived quite a an unsavory existence. In fact, he’s the owner of this vessel and the vessel was a slave ship. And he’s so convicted in the fury of this raging storm and in conscience and in heart to change his ways, to mend his deeds to that by miracle the storm begins to to clear. He makes his way to land.

3. 1:15

   Well, he makes landfall. He sells the ships, he enters a ministry, and he dedicates his life to God. 25 years later, now a minister, now reflecting on God’s ability to to restore him from that situation, to esteem him better than his works. He writes a sermon on New Year’s Day, this poem for his congregation, writing words we know well, penning words that that stretch to this very day. Twas grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved.

4. 1:52

   How precious did that grace grace appear the hour I first believed? Brothers and sisters, many in the ages of history have marvelled in the glories of God’s character of grace. From David, who would write in First Chronicles. Who am I Lord, and and what is my house? You bring me thus far to to Jacob, who would say I’m not worthy the least of your mercies to the centurion who proclaimed of Christ I’m not worthy.

5. 2:27

   You come to my house. Many marvelled God could esteem them better than their works. This afternoon, brothers and sisters, we will do the same. We will explore this character of God dedicated to grace. Prince sisters, but we will do so by moving beyond the fact that our God is merciful, beyond the fact he is a loving and caring God, which he demonstrates time and again throughout his word.

6. 2:54

   And instead we will ask why? Why does our God well let you know what? What prompts, what moves the grace of God throughout Scripture? And in asking that question, Bron sisters, we will move beyond what God does towards who God is, the essence of what grace means to God, How how this character expresses itself.

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   Here we’ll consider a grace that is loyal and faithful, secured in his promise word. Here we’ll consider a grace that bears the cost of mercy that that self sacrificing that reaches to the broken. Here we’ll consider grace responding to truth, reaching to the humble, granting to the sincere, and ultimately, brothers, sisters, we are going to bring our thoughts to the charge given to Moses by the Lord, to be gracious as I am gracious as God.

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   We are going to end on what Grace works in us, the transformation it seeks and the teaching qualities it possesses to all who receive it. But we’ll start our consideration by thinking back on Exodus 32. Let’s go there for a moment. Run sisters and we start here because while there are many places our minds might take us from sisters and and considering why grace is granted and the record of Scripture. I I put to you there are a few moments so comprehensive, few so concise as what we see in the record of this chapter. In this chapter a number of things prompt the grace of God. We see verse 13 of chapter 32.

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   Remember Abraham, says Moses, Remember Isaac in Israel, he’s saying in the face of their sin, who you swore by your name here, Moses petition God’s covenants, that grace may come, we see verse 32. Yeah, now forgive their sins as Moses, if not, take me. Also we see Moses intercessor petition God’s grace that that grace may come.

10. 5:12

    We see chapter 33 verse 6, the people mourn they they strip themselves of their ornaments, they burn them in fire. They show humility of heart that grace may come and finally, verse 19, what does God say? I am gracious to who I am gracious. Moses underscoring he is a God of grace and that’s why grace came in total Bron sisters 4 points emerge four points that all throughout Scripture are this this framework a pattern for how the grace of God is often reaching out as an outstretched hand to man.

11. 5:46

    And when we see these brothers and sisters all throughout the records of Scripture. Yeah, we we see him in the the account of Nehemiah 9 Nehemiah 9 is another moment of of national repentance very similar to what’s happening in in the accounts of Exodus. What do we see in Nehemiah 9 verse one, they assemble as Israel and fasting and sackcloth and dust. They show humility of heart.

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    Verse 7 Nehemiah says you are a God who chose Abraham and made covenants with us. We see covenant mercies. Verse 28 the leaders and Levites act as intercessors. Verse 17 Nehemiah says you are a God, gracious and merciful to the thousandth. He petitions a character of grace, and while not every example of relenting, it is as comprehensive run sisters, as what we see in Nehemiah and Exodus. I put to you every moment of God’s mercy is expressed for one of these reasons and when we ask ourselves why, why is God relenting for these things where we come to better understand what grace and this character looks like to God. So let’s start with his covenant mercies. Brothers, sisters, you know

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    there are many times in the record of Scripture that we hear this common refrain. We see it in Deuteronomy 7 verse 9. Know the Lord your God is faithful, keeping covenants and love, says Moses. Curious, isn’t it? He says covenants and love. He he links these two things somehow together. And he’s not alone in that, Brun sisters.

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    In fact, we see covenants in love either implicitly or explicitly linked together many times throughout the record of his word. We see it in Exodus. I heard their groanings has gone, and remembered my covenant with Abraham. We see it in Daniel 9. O awesome God, who keeps covenants and steadfast love. We read. We see it in Genesis 9.

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    I’ll establish my covenant with you, never to destroy all life by water. An act of covenant secures an act of grace. We see it in Isaiah 37. Brothers and sisters, for the sake of David, my covenant, I will defend the city. We see it in the words of Solomon. O awesome God of Israel, there is no God like you keeping covenants and love.

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    All throughout our Bibles, Brun sisters, grace is extended through the words of God’s promise. All throughout Scripture, the grace of God is secured in his covenant. And Brun sisters, we should note the extent to which it’s secured.

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    Maybe we think to the kings of Israel. You think to Abijah, the idolatry of his day. What did God say to him in First Kings 15? For David’s sake, Abijah, I will give you a son for my covenant. I will show you grace. We see it in your whorem. Despite the evilest day, for David’s sake, I will not destroy Judah. We see it in Solomon.

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    Despite the idolatry of his day, For David’s sake, he says, I will not take your Kingdom. And this underscores a simple, crucial, essential avenue of what grace means to Godbren, sisters. And that’s that it is deeply and unwaveringly committed. You know, brothers, sisters, I, I, I don’t know about you, but, but sometimes I, I think we can perceive grace as something Moody or whimsical, as God’s emotion or or exception to his rules where he’s relenting in spite of his faithfulness. That can’t be farther from truth. Brothers, sisters, all throughout Scripture, the grace of God is an expression of faithfulness. It is the preeminent aspect of character revealed to Moses on the top of Sinai.

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    It is legal and deeply rational, where even in failures it is reaching, or even in darkness it’s presenting. And we see this type of grace, one sisters, manifest all throughout Scripture. We see it in the accounts of Second Samuel, the accounts of of Chapter 9. We recall Brun sisters in the context of Jonathan and David’s relationship. They make a covenant and First Samuel 20. And what did David say?

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    I will never cut off love from the House of Jonathan forever, no matter the unknowable, no matter the hardships, the ups and downs, the betrayals, no matter what may come. He makes that pledge in the second Samuel. David acts on this covenant. He takes Mephibosheth, then he cares for him, brings him to his house.

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    And what does he say in verse 9, Bronze Sisters? I do this that I might show the kindness of God to Him. David relates covenant mercies to how God works in our lives. When, sisters, and how did he show it? How did he reveal it? Not because of merit, not because it’s earned, not because of worth, but because like God, he is faithful to His Word. Like David, brothers and sisters, we are convicted to show the same.

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    Like David, we are bound in covenant to each other through the waters of baptism. We enter as a body of Christ this commitment, and it requires we reflect the same durable grace. You know so often that the impulse draws us to treat grace as temporary, as withdrawn in the face of failure. In our Lord we are challenged with grace that loves through struggle, as a spouse in a marriage that doesn’t look away from wrong, but is is present in consequence. Not because it’s merited, not because it’s earned, but because we are committed.

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    Covenant mercy, brother and sisters, refrains grace not as something that you give to the repentant in your life, but as reaching to the broken people that are around you.

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    We consider the second avenue of grace and we know Brun sisters that all throughout Scripture, the the grace of God, he, he builds his relationship with man around intercession, doesn’t he? And there’s so many ways we see this Brun sisters. We see it and and Levites and kings and prophets. And it’s so common, in fact, that I think if if you’re anything like me, it’s something we take for granted, It’s a role. It’s a structure of scripture that that that that we just intake or it’s something that because it’s so common, we we see as perhaps trivial or limit to a select few. We see brothers, sisters, it is anything but trivial and anything but limited.

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    We see this in Ezekiel 22, verse 30, where in the face of Israel sins, what does God say? He says I looked for an intercessor and asked for anyone, anyone among you Israel to stand in the breach and marvel. There was none anyone says God in this verse. Bron sisters. It’s the clear expectation that all of us emulate this behaviour, play this role for the people in our lives. And there is much we could say, Bron sisters about why God’s grace values an intercessor.

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    You know, we might think to the to the cries of Abraham for Sodom. Your mind might go to the tears of Abigail. It might think to the prayers of Daniel who didn’t pull away from Israel, but he what did he say in his prayer that our brother read forgive our sins, or Nehemiah, who said of Israel’s sins, forgive our faults.

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    And we can know that while it takes many forms, articulates different ways. True intercession, brothers and sisters, is never separating from others failures. It walks with people through trial, it draws near them and failure not, not not speaking from afar. You know, we could note that in the prayers of Elijah, petitions of Jeremiah, cries of prophets who will for years intercede with no turning or sign of hope or any indication that what they do is of any benefit. That true intercession, it is never one and done. It’s never just declaring a wrong and then pulling ourselves away.

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    It’s a constant, persistent effort to be in people’s lives. But if there’s one analogy, one point that hits to the center, I think of why, of why grace responds to intercession. Brun sisters. We see it in the words of David, word spoken of Moses, words that speak to what we’ve been reading on Sinai. It’s the words of Psalm 106.

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    He says God would have destroyed us had not Moses, his chosen 1, stood in the breach. What David draws us to understand, Brun sisters in the symbolism of a breach of a city, walls that have been ripped open and an enemy is rushing to the point of vulnerability and an individual puts themselves there in the midst of that. That rushing dangerous way for everything and everyone inside, whatever that is to the person

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    is that at the heart of intercession is self sacrifice. It’s suffering for one another. It’s standing exposed between God and sin and saying as Moses did, if you will not forgive them, take me God. It’s saying as Paul did to an estimates, let his debt be on my account. It’s saying as David prayed, let their sin be on my account.

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    It’s saying as Abigail spoke to David, hold me responsible for my husband. True intercession, brothers, sisters, bears the cost of grace. It is sensitive to the quality of our God who lives by a moral order. It bears the burdens of others on our shoulders. So grace may come and if there’s any question why it’s significant, brothers, sisters, why God moves towards it, why he puts man in this position artificially throughout Scripture to try to get us to think this way. We see it in the words of Psalm 59. What does it say?

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    I look, said the Lord for an intercessor. There was no one, so my own hand brought salvation. What you see in this verse from the sisters is a fundamental truth about the character of who our God is, and that’s simply that He is an intercessor. Romans 8 speaks in this way. The Spirit of God intercedes for the weakness of man from the moment in the garden, as God steps forward, calling out to us to start this process of restoring what was broken, at a loss to Himself, He shows us this is who He is.

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    He relents because it emulates His sacrificial grace. Brun sisters. He relents because he recognizes Himself in this action. We consider the 3rd Ave. of grace and in so doing reflect on, you know, what is perhaps the most prevalent, the most power, the most beautiful and the most challenging aspect of grace. Friend, sisters, and that’s humility.

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    Don’t we see grace and humility linked all throughout our Bibles? We we think to the words of Joel Ren your hearts and not your garments that God may relent. We we think to Hezekiah, Lord, he prays. Remember how I walked before you with my whole heart. And God relents to Manasseh, who when captured of the Assyrians sought favour with God, humbling self and God relented to Ahab, who in tears after Naboth’s death, after he he convicted that man to death. Put on sackcloth weeps.

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    And what does God say? See how he humbled himself before me. I will not bring disaster in his day. All throughout Scripture. Brothers, sisters, the grace of God moves towards humility all throughout Scripture. He relents for this quality in the heart of man. And there is much we could say, brothers, sisters, much we could discuss this morning about this quality of our God. We can know the extent of it.

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    Where in Ahab, despite the sin he had done, the sin he would continue to do, by no means was he a reformed man after after God gave him that grace. Humility in his heart in that moment was sufficient for His grace.

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    What a powerful lesson, Brun sisters, we can note that that in that example we are challenged to do the same, to remove conditions that that man so often imposes on grace. You know, we might think to Peter and James, who both independently state that God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble. And we can reflect, brothers, sisters, that that where pride is, grace cannot be.

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    And not because it isn’t there, not because the hand of God doesn’t extend it, but because pride lies to us. Pride blinds us to sing we’ve needed. Pride makes us the latest scenes. Who said in their heart, I am rich, lacking in nothing, not realizing, says Christ, you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked. Pride makes you the Pharisee in Christ’s parable. Who said in their hearts, thank God I am not as that Sinner we think to the words of Christ to Nicodemus Brun sisters. God so love to the world he gave his son. That is the unmeasurable depth of grace quality of his character He extends to man.

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    The only thing that can keep you from that, Brun sisters, is ourselves. But if there’s one thing, one singular reason, grace draws to humility, Bronze sisters, I suggest we see it in the words on our screen. These are the words of David, the words of Psalm 51. What does he say of his God? This is a quality he came to know intricately of God. Behold, you delight in inward truth. What David touches on brothers, sisters in that statement is a repeated fundamental, central understanding and knowing what grace means to God.

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    And that’s simply that all throughout Scripture it is granted on substance and not image. All throughout Scripture. Bruns sisters, we see that lesson, don’t we? God emphasizes this meshes of grace given not from from partiality, not for appearance, not for external merit, but to those who’ve recognized in themselves a need for it, those who desire.

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    We see it in the task collector of Luke 7 who goes justify before God rather than the Pharisee. We see it in that that woman before Simon who when no one in that room thought her deserving of grace. Christ says your heart has made you worthy your desire makes you worthy of this character of God. Your sins are forgiven and she goes justified before God rather than the the seemingly righteous Pharisee Grace is given brothers and sisters to those who ask and what we see in this aspect of grace is the greatest challenge to man’s concept of grace born sisters because you see even at our best we attach conditions to grace don’t we.

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    I give grace when I feel safe or appreciated. You know I I I I give grace when when somebody apologized for their wrong. I show grace because I thought that that brother or sister was of good repute. So so they warrant it because surely the righteous merit and the unrighteous don’t. What’s implied in that thinking, brother and sisters, is that grace is something to be earned.

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    Many in our Bibles wrestled and struggled in that perception to reserving grace for the for the deserving. The Pharisees resented Christ for this, for showing grace to the to the undeserving. The elder brother of the prodigal son resented grace shown his brother, considering it undeserving. What did he say all these years? I’ve slaved for you, he said to his father, and you didn’t give me anything. I earned it.

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    He didn’t. Laborers in the vineyard resented Grace, given those who came later, because surely they, they didn’t earn it as I did. It’s all too often Brun sisters, we think the same. Why Grace shouldn’t go to that neighbor down the street? Why? Why shouldn’t go to this, this brother or sister in the ecclesia? Because I acted right.

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    I made the right calls in life. They didn’t. They, they didn’t. They didn’t live as as pious as as as righteous as I did. They didn’t take the Scriptures as seriously as me. So often we see grace like Jonah. Who could accept it for those he deemed worthy himself, his people, the the things he loved.

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    Surely they were certainly they were deserving in the mercy of God. Surely not the wicked Gentile. Surely they don’t deserve God’s grace. That is why I made haste to flee. He says he indicts himself as this being his problem. In their examples from sisters is a warning that grace can be something we grow to resent. It’s a warning that this life can mean that that grace can be an enigma to those who don’t show it. It can be offensive when we don’t understand it. And it’s this very concept of undeserved grace, friend, sisters, that that will bring us to the final point that the last avenue of of why grace is is granted in the records of Scripture.

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    And we see it in the words of Daniel, the words our our brother read of Chapter 9, where in a moment of intercession, in a moment where the Scriptures proclaim to Daniel that that the return of the Exiles was imminent. What does he say? How does he petition God? He says do this Lord, not because we are righteous, not because it has been earned, but because you are merciful.

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    What Daniel forces us to reconcile Bron sisters is that while God might relent in Scripture because of covenants, while he inclined his ear for intercessors, and he will comfort the humble in the honesty of their hearts. The Amazing Grace of God is that none of these actions, Bron sisters, ever earn you His grace.

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    None of these things that we’ve considered does anything to make you deserving of it. He is gracious because this is who he is. I knew you were gracious, says Moses. I am God and not man, so I relent, he said to Hosea, who is like you, pardoning iniquity and passing transgression, writes Micah.

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    I am merciful and gracious to the thousandth, he said of Moses. This, brothers and sisters, is the wellspring from which all grace flows. When God says to Moses in Exodus, I am gracious to who I will be gracious, what he’s not saying is, is my grace is arbitrary. Moses. He’s saying in every case it is free, unmerited, unearned.

51. 25:28

    Grace is the prerogative of goblin sisters. This is the aspect of grace that challenges us to forgive as He has forgiven us. Now we’ve talked this morning on many things about this, this merciful quality of God. Brothers, sisters, we, we noted the, the loyalty and steadfastness of it. We talked about grace through, through intercessors, how how he responds because it mirrors his character and his selflessness and his compassion.

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    We, we spoke of humility, how it allows for grace and, and reflects God’s desire for sincerity over partiality. But Bronze Sisters, we’ll, we’ll, we’ll close our thoughts on two points, 2 fundamental things when it comes to understanding this relenting character of our God. The 1st is that learning to accept grace is crucial.

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    Yeah, that that that might sound like the easy part. Brothers and sisters, it is far from easy. It is so easy to impart punishment on ourselves, so, so easy to when we have, we have done wrong, condemn ourselves to it and, and let the, the, the weight of those wrongs, those sins weigh us down in life, keep us inactive from from showing the character of God or whatever pit of sin we’re in.

54. 27:10

    Think this is surely too far from God’s standard and, and retribution will come and, and that this was too great a mistake and, and surely God won’t let it slide. What does Christ say to the Pharisee of Luke 18 Brothers, sisters who loved me more, Simon the one forgive him much or little. Our capacity to accept the depths of God’s grace for and sisters, it is directly related to our relationship with God, directly related to how much you will be willing to give others. In his words we are reminded if you only accept the level little, you will only give a little. In his words, we are reminded that to to be accepting of grace is to learn how to give it.

55. 27:50

    We’re reminded that we only love because He first showed us how to love. But the final point we’ll note are in the words of Paul. Do you presume, O man, you who practice evil, that you will escape the justice of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his forbearance, not understanding, he says, that grace was meant to lead you to repentance. You know, I find it interesting, brothers, sisters, that often when somebody might talk a little bit too much about grace, there’s a common response.

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    And I’m guilty of this. It’s it’s, well, what about truth as if you can have one without the other. You know, I’m not trying to be dismissive of that. Bron sisters Again, I’m a person who said that myself. But in that is a misperception because that’s coming from a mischaracterization of grace as tolerance or a blank check you receive in moments of wrong. That that that must be balanced with this other part of of truth of God’s character.

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    What Paul highlights in that statement, Bron sisters in that verse is the fundamental challenge to that premise that grace is never the end of truth, nor is that the absence of of responsibility, nor does it begin when the law of God ends. Grace is not tolerance, it is mercy leading us to righteousness. Brothers, sisters, all throughout Scripture God implores us to see this message.

58. 29:29

    We see it in Peter spoken to of Christ God. Christ gives him grace to build him to something better. Paul giving grace to build him to an instrument of God. Samson giving grace to do with it what he could never hope to do without it. Grace is not God overlooking sin, Brun sisters, it is his tool of instruction.

59. 29:49

    It’s overcoming sin by showing us a better way, and then he expects us to walk in it. And that means, Brun sisters, once it’s given, it is never something you leave behind, not a doormat where you walk over and you you wipe your feet clean and you walk inside and and leave its effects in the past.

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    It is something we live with. Paul speaks this way in Romans, where one’s sin reign to death. Even so, grace must reign in us to eternal life. It rains in me, says Paul.

61. 30:21

    It is like a king over me. It, it, it rules everything about who I am, how I think, how I treat others, how I speak about truth. It is not something passive. It is active always. He writes the same in Romans 6. I am not under law, I am under grace. He writes the same in Romans 5, verse 20.

62. 30:38

    Grace reigns in me through righteousness. If we can do that, run, sisters. If you can conceive of grace in this way, it will do some powerful things.

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    Titus 2 verse 11 reads For the grace of God that bringeth salvation to all men hath appeared to men, teaching us to deny ungodliness, that you might live godly lives. Grace, brothers and sisters, teaches you.

64. 31:08

    It’ll teach you to be Paul, who could say by grace I am the person that I am and not in vain. It wasn’t given as something transient in passing, but it made me labour more abundantly. It’ll teach you that that despite your mistakes, the things you’ve done, the things you’ve struggled to forgive yourself for, you are worthy in the eyes of God and you can have endurance and grace that you could not give yourself. It’ll teach you to be Isaiah,

65. 31:36

    who in seeing the awesome righteous truth of God and his might and power, realizing his sins before him, but in the words of God, your sins are forgiven, stands up and goes into Israel. It’ll teach you to be the same, to be strong in grace. It’ll teach you peace and your relationship with God. Bren sisters, that you can draw boldly to the throne of grace, knowing it is always present and it will always settle you in moments of failure.

66. 32:03

    It’ll make you as all those throughout Scripture who quoted the words of Exodus 34 brothers. Sisters who recognized that turning point of Scripture and lived and hoped because no matter the uncertainties of life, no matter whatever chaos would be around them, they knew that God was always merciful. It’ll make you David, who in despairing at the world that saw this destruction, took hope. And what does he say in Psalm 86? You, Lord, are merciful, slow to anger, and abounding and steadfast love and faithfulness.

67. 32:35

    It’ll make you Joel, who hoped in hopeless days that his people would turn to God and was convicted every day in their failure to do that yet and still implored them with the reminders of God’s character. He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love. It’ll make you the authors of Lamentation.

68. 32:56

    Brothers, Sisters who’s standing in the rubbles of Jerusalem would say, even here, Lord, I know you are merciful and abounding in love. We and brothers and sisters, on the words of Peter, words that encompass the power, the care and the transformation of God’s Amazing Grace that has changed the lives of countless others and is being presented to you.

69. 33:30

    You have suffered a little while, says Peter. And indeed we do, brothers and sisters, we live in a flawed world as flawed people. But the God of all grace is calling you to his eternal glory in Christ. And he will himself, through that grace restore, establish, strengthen and settle you. To him be dominion forever and ever, says Peter. Amen.