grace

A Primer on the Gospel, part 3

May 12, 2025 by Poimen

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.” (Ephesians 2:4-5).

BUT GOD. These are perhaps two of the most beautiful words in the Bible. The verses that precede this describe the spiritual condition of the human race. It isn’t pretty. Mankind has a serious problem that affects the whole of creation (Romans 8:18-25). The problem is sin. This includes behavior and the human heart’s innate posture toward God, our creator (Romans 8:7; 1:23, 25; 3:18). Sin is always, first and foremost, against God, and it affects us inwardly, outwardly, and above all else, upwardly. Sin bears immediate and eternal consequences we cannot escape… unless God Himself provides a way out. And this brings us to the beautiful words, BUT GOD. This verse reveals at least three things about God and what He did to remedy our problem.

First, God is “rich in mercy.” “Mercy” is withholding retribution where it is justly deserved. It is the basis of forgiveness to the guilty. Mercy is one of the many attributes of God that make up who He is. He is “rich in mercy,” intent on forgiving His people of their sin against Him and releasing them from all guilt.

Second, God has loved us with great love. This love is not conditioned on our lovability. Rather, “even when we were dead in our trespasses,” He loved us (Cf., Romans 5:6-11). God’s love is volitional. He CHOOSES to love the sinner. Had He not, we would be without hope. Unlike us, God’s love is not driven by His passions but by His divine purpose to have a people for His own sake.

Finally, God’s love is actively manifested toward His creation. It is manifested toward His people. Grounded in His mercy and driven by His divine purpose to love, God made us alive together with Christ. This is the act of grace that delivers us from the bondage and the penalty of sin. God unites the believer with Jesus Christ in a way that He becomes our substitute before God, and what is true of Christ is a reality for the saint. As our substitute, He was made… to be sin for us, who knew no sin (2 Corinthians 5:21). He bore our sin and took it to the cross to suffer the wrath of God that we justly deserve (Isaiah 53:4-6). God showed mercy to us because His justice was satisfied in Christ. In addition, as He lived on this earth, He was tempted in every respect as we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15-16). The righteousness that He possesses and that He lived while in this world, fulfilling God’s commands, was forensically imputed to our account (Romans 5:12-21). So the Christians standing before God is a standing of righteousness, not his own, but the righteousness of Christ because of His union with Him. If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

The final question we’ll answer next week is, “How do I come to be included in this salvation?”

A Primer on the Gospel, part 4

February Suggested Book of the Month

January 29, 2020 by Poimen

The following book review was provided by Angie Stanley. You can find more of Angie’s reviews and writings at In the Meantime.

Assured, by Greg Gilbert

Struggling with doubts about one’s salvation is quite commonplace among believers. Indeed, if we are honest, I think many of us would agree that we have asked ourselves the question: “Am I truly saved?”

As a teenager, I had several conversations with my mom about my assurance of salvation. While I don’t remember all the details of those often-late-night conversations, I do remember my mom pointing me back to Scripture and reminding me of what God says. Even now as an adult, there are still occasional moments of doubt.

Assured: Discover Grace, Let Go of Guilt, and Rest in Your Salvation by Greg Gilbert is a helpful little discussion about how to deal with these moments of doubt. Its goal is to drive us back to Scripture and remind us of what our salvation truly rests on.

Four Sources of Assurance

The majority of the book centers around a discussion of four sources for our assurance: the Gospel of Jesus Christ, God’s promises, the Holy Spirit, and the fruits of obedience in our lives. It is important to note that these sources of assurance fit into different categories concerning how they function. Concerning the gospel and God’s promises, Gilbert categorizes them as driving sources of assurance, the Holy Spirit is a supernatural source of assurance, and the fruits of obedience are a confirming source of assurance. I found this categorization to be a very helpful evaluation.

The chapter covering the gospel of Christ and how that guarantees our assurance of salvation is perhaps the most powerful chapter of the book. Gilbert discusses passages of Scripture such as Hebrews 10:19-22 and Romans 5:1-2, 6-8 to address what exactly Christ’s death on the cross accomplished for us.
In the same chapter, Gilbert also addresses the question of faith–what if our faith isn’t strong enough or the right kind of faith? This particular question is the very question that has nagged at my heart over the years. I found Gilbert’s practical response to these questions to be helpful in reminding me that my salvation does not depend on what I have done but on what Christ has done!

If you don’t read anything else in the book, read at least the first two chapters!

Considerations to keep in mind

After covering these difference sources for our assurance in the first part of the book, the last three chapters discuss some specific considerations to keep in mind: mistakes we make in evaluating our good works, a besetting sin that continues to plague us, and some of the “trees” of the forest that we tend to focus on when we should instead be focusing on the magnificent view of the “forest” of God’s promises and the gospel.

Who might benefit from this book?I believe several different groups of people will find Assured to be helpful:

Maybe you’re constantly wondering if you are indeed a Christian. Assured will help you evaluate why you might be having these nagging doubts.
Perhaps you’re confident and resting in your salvation. Assured will renew your awe and wonder at the extent of what Christ has done to guarantee your salvation until the day you are face to face with Christ Himself!
Perhaps you’re in a ministry where you teach, mentor, or even counsel other believers. I believe Assured could prove to be a helpful resource to have on hand as you serve other believers.

Assured is a powerful little book that will lift your eyes to the Savior and cause you to rejoice in the marvelous gift of salvation that He has given us!

January Suggested Book of the Month

January 1, 2020 by Poimen

All of Grace, by C. H. Spurgeon

C. H. Spurgeon’s subtitle for this book conveys its intended purpose: “An earnest word for those who are seeking salvation by the Lord Jesus Christ.” It was originally published in 1894, by Charles Haddon Spurgeon and republished in 2010 as one of the Moody Classics from Moody Publishers.

Mr. Spurgeon used little subtlety expressing his desire for his readers. He states in the opening chapter, “He who spoke and wrote this message will be greatly disappointed if it does not lead many to the Lord Jesus. It is sent forth in childlike dependence upon the power of God the Holy Spirt, to use it in the conversion of millions, if He so pleases.” One would assume this same approach permeated his life, ministry and preaching as well. It would be a mistake to believe this volume beneficial to the unregenerate alone. Its subject matter explores the glories of the gospel that will refresh the soul of every believer, no matter how long He has been in Christ. It is a must read for every Christian, and then to be read again through the course of life.

The first five chapters unfold the wonders of God’s provision for mankind to be justified by faith. To the reader who recognizes his vacant soul, Spurgeon begins, “This book does not come to make a demand upon you, but to bring you something. We are not going to talk about law and duty and punishment, but about love and goodness and forgiveness and mercy and eternal life.” He explains, “He [God] makes those just who are unjust, forgives those who deserve no favor. Did you think that salvation was for the good and that God’s grace was for the pure and holy who are free from sin?… all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags, and, therefore, the Lord Jesus did not come into the world to look after goodness and righteousness with him, but to bestow them upon persons who have none of them.” From personal experience he states, “I came to understand that salvation was possible through vicarious sacrifice, and that provision had been made in the first constitution and arrangement of things for such a substitution.” “The Law of God was more vindicated by the death of Christ than it would have been had all transgressors been sent to hell.”

Beginning in chapter seven, the author addresses the whole of Christian living. He addresses the believer’s deliverance from sinning and the implications of living by grace through faith. Throughout, Mr. Spurgeon points the reader away from self to the person and work of our Savior, Jesus Christ. “Our life is found in ‘looking unto Jesus’ (Hebrews 12:2), not in looking to our own faith. By faith all things become possible to us, yet the power is not in the faith but in the God upon whom faith relies.” In these chapters, Spurgeon takes precious opportunity to explain the function of faith in the believer’s life explaining that “it enables a man both to live and to die without fear; it prepares both for action and for suffering. Hence, the Lord selects it as a most convenient medium for conveying grace to us and thereby securing us for glory.”

Finally, in the closing chapters, Spurgeon addresses the perseverance of the saints, assuring the believer that God’s work in justifying the saint by faith establishes the foundation upon which the Christian rests for his eternal destiny. “If you are indeed a believer,” he writes, “you are one with Jesus, and therefore you are secure… Christ and the believing sinner are in the same boat; unless Jesus sinks, the believer will never drown.”

C. H. Spurgeon’s book, “All of Grace,” is a wonderful document that shows the beauty and glory of God’s gospel in Christ Jesus. Every person seeking salvation and every person already redeemed should read it on a regular basis for the encouragement and assurance attained only through the rehearsal of the gospel.

The best retail price we found for “All of Grace,” by C. H. Spurgeon (Moody Publishers) is from Christian Book Distributers for $6.99. However, it is FREELY available in various forms from multiple online resources. Here are a few you might consider: Monergism.com, Christian Classics Ethereal Library and YouTube. You may also pick up a copy for purchase from our book shelf at Calvary.