Lisa notes

Excerpt from Transforming Grace

“God says to us, Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. (Isaiah 55:1)

The gospel is addressed to those who have no money or good works. It invites us to come and ‘buy’ salvation without money and without cost.

But note the invitation to come is addressed to those who have no money, not to those who don’t have enough. Grace is not a matter of God’s making up the difference, but of God’s providing all the ‘cost’ of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ.”

– Jerry Bridges

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Every day in October I’m sharing a short quote on grace from a favorite book.

“We never exhaust his supply. ‘Stop asking so much! My grace reservoir is running dry.’ Heaven knows no such words.

God has enough grace to solve every dilemma you face, wipe every tear you cry, and answer every question you ask.

Would we expect anything less from God? Send his Son to die for us and not send his power to sustain us? Paul found such logic impossible: ‘He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?’ (Rom. 8:32 NIV).”

– Max Lucado
Grace: More Than We Deserve, Greater Than We Imagine

My book review here

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– Excerpt from Sheila Walsh, The Shelter of God’s Promises

“I think Peter gets a bit of a bad rap. We talk about his lack of faith, but he was the only one willing to get out of the boat at all.

Peter’s character seems to have been a bit impetuous, loud at times, but fiercely loyal too. The harsh reality that Peter was going to have to face is that our ways are not God’s ways, and God’s grace is made perfect in our weakness, not in what we perceive as our strength.

This is one of the greatest ironies of our faith: at the moment when we realize we have nothing to give Christ and we fall flat on our faces, we bring the gift He has been asking for all along.

That gift is our hearts—not our ideas or skills or preferences.

Just ourselves.”

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Every day in October I’m sharing a short quote on grace from a favorite book.

– Excerpt from Emily P. Freeman, Grace for the Good Girl

I understood at an early age about the first rescue. Jesus came to save sinners. He came for the lost, the broken, the hurt, and the lonely. He came to heal sick people and to raise dead people and to die for the sins of everyone.

Never once did I consider he also came to save me from myself.

I’m a good girl who has done good things and has good intentions for the world around me. What harm could I do to myself?

But then I reconsider, and I think of the effort and the work. And then the shame. I think of the worry that keeps me up at night.

Jesus came to save me from myself. He came to save me from self-effort. He didn’t just die for my sin to give me forgiveness; he rose again to give me life.

And so he beckons me, “Come.”

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Every day in October I’m sharing a short quote on grace from a favorite book.

– Excerpt from Steve McVey, 52 Lies Heard in Church Every Sunday

Salvation is not a matter of you giving your life to Christ. In fact, it has nothing whatsoever to do with what you have given God.

Grace revolves around what He has given us, not what we give to Him! You receive eternal life not because you gave Christ your life. You receive eternal life because He gave you His Life! The distinction might seem subtle, but it’s important.

It is the nature of the religious perspective to focus on what we do instead of what our gracious God has done. . . .

We didn’t start the ball rolling regarding our salvation. He did, and to suggest otherwise diminishes Him and exalts us. 

Salvation is God’s work. Our response to Him is because He initiated the whole thing. We love because He first loved us. Grace means we are merely recipients of what He did through Jesus Christ. He is the initiator, activator, and perpetuator of our salvation. From start to finish, it’s Him. . . .

There’s nothing for us to do except believe it and say, “Thank You very much!”

My book review of 52 Lies Heard in Church Every Sunday

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Every day in October I’m sharing a short quote on grace from a favorite book.