You will run out of sin before God runs out of grace.

Steve Brown:
You will run out of sin before God runs out of grace. Let’s talk, on Key Life.

Matthew Porter:
If you’ve suffered too long under a do more, try harder religion, Key Life is here to proclaim that Jesus sets the captives free. Steve invited Jerry Parries to teach us this week. Jerry is an author and the pastor of Christian Family Worship Center, House of Grace

Steve Brown:
Thank you Matthew. Hi Jerry.

Jerry Parries: Hey, how you doing, Steve?

Steve Brown:
If you’re just joining us, Jerry Parries is joining us, for this Christmas week. We’re talking about themes at Christmas.

Jerry Parries: Yeah.

Steve Brown:
And Jerry, a long time ago, I heard him say, and I’ve quoted him. The first two times I’ve said my friend Jerry Parries said, and then the next time I say, as someone has said, and the next time I quoted it, I said, as I always say, but what Jerry Parries said, and I love this statement, that you will run out of sin before God runs out of grace.

Jerry Parries: Yes.

Steve Brown:
And you say, sin, it’s Christmas. Are you going to, no, you can’t talk about Christmas without talking about sin, can you?

Jerry Parries: No, you can’t. You can’t. In fact, as we’re doing this program this week on the purpose of Christmas, we want to talk about that because, when you read Matthew’s one, chapter 1:21. And the angel is talking to Mary, the Scripture says.

And she shall bring forth a son and you shall call his name Jesus.

And here is the purpose that he has come.

For he will save his people from their sins.

Steve Brown:
So, you can’t take sin away from Christmas.

Jerry Parries: No.

Steve Brown:
That’s what Christmas is for.

Jerry Parries: That’s what Christmas is all about. When you remember. When you are reminded of Christmas, it should remind you that Christ came to take away our sins, to ease the burden of us from the burden and the penalty of sin. And so, I oftentimes say, you know, God took all of his anger out on Jesus so that he can release all of his love on us. For where sin abounds, grace does much more abound. So, Christ came, to remove our sins. When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he famously said.

Behold, the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.

That was the purpose of Jesus coming.

Steve Brown:
He was born to die.

Jerry Parries: Yes. Yes. For this cause came I.

Steve Brown:
Oh man, you know, and that’s why. You know, it sounds like it’s a down message, you know, you’re talking about sin and darkness and rebellion and all of that at Christmas. It sounds like a downer at Christmas, but it’s really not, because the message of Christmas, and it’s the message that is clearly proclaimed in the Christian faith, is that you’re forgiven.

Jerry Parries: Yes, yes. And what better gift to get than to know that your sins have been forgiven, to be able to open up a box and get a whiff of the Holy Spirit to come out and say your sins are washed away.

Steve Brown:
All of them, forgiven.

Jerry Parries: Your past, your present, your future, that would be the best gift you could ever get on Christmas.

Steve Brown:
That really is. And it’s a great joy.

Jerry Parries: Oh yes.

Steve Brown:

And you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

You know, I have a friend, he’s in heaven now, his name was Rusty, and he was with his granddaughter, and she did something that was, he didn’t want her to do, and he said, honey, don’t do that. And she said, I’m sorry granddaddy. And he went back to reading his paper, and she did it again. And he said, honey, I told you don’t do that. And she said, I’m sorry, granddaddy. And he went back to the paper, and five minutes later, his granddaughter did it again. And he finally said, I told you not to do that. And she said, I’m sorry, granddaddy. And he said, sorry is not enough. And then he told me, I heard the voice of Jesus saying, that’s funny, it was enough for me.

Jerry Parries: Absolutely. Absolutely.

Steve Brown:
It did because of the blood of Christ and the imputation of Christ’s righteousness. You know, we were in my study before we came in here to record, and you and I were talking about the state of the world, and some very dark things that we’re facing right now. And you said that you’d read a passage of Scripture about, by his wounds we’re healed. And then you talked about the difference between iniquities and something else.

Jerry Parries: Yeah. Yeah.

He was wounded for our transgressions.

Steve Brown:
And there’s a difference between transgression and iniquities.

Jerry Parries: Yeah. Transgressions are just kind of regular sins. Iniquity is gross, awful, the most heinous of sins that a person, if you could think of the most heinous sin or crime, I don’t care what, what, how bad it is, that’s iniquity. If you go look that up in the dictionary, it says the most gross immorality, you know, something that is just absolutely horrifying. Jesus died for that, and that means that even though you dislike your enemies and hate different people who have done different things for you or from you or to you, Jesus still died for them. And it just makes you say on this Christmas, you know, it is to remind us that even though you may dislike a person or dislike a thing, God still died for them as well.

Steve Brown:
You have sometimes hear, and I’m sure you do, that people think, no, I’m too evil. I mean, God doesn’t want to have anything to do with me. Or I used to believe, but I went off the deep end, and I’ll never get back, and he’s had it with me.

Jerry Parries: Right.

Steve Brown:
That’s a lie.

Jerry Parries: Oh, that’s, I’ve said this before on our program, but it is worth repeating, especially at Christmas, Jesus, Peter asked Jesus that same question, Peter said to Jesus.

Lord, how often should I forgive my brother that sins against me, seven times? Jesus said, absolutely not. You should forgive him seven times 70 in one day.

That’s 490 times in one day. I want that to sink in for a moment. You are to, you should forgive someone who trespass against you 490 times in one day. Now, if Jesus tell Peter to forgive somebody who screw over him 490 times in one day, how many times do you think Jesus would forgive you? He at least have to do double. He would never ask Peter to do something that he himself would not do. So, that means over 900 times in one day, God will forgive you. That means that you will, there’s the quote.

You will run out of sin before God runs out of grace.

Steve Brown:
Oh, that’s so good. I have a pastor friend. They were doing a building program at his church and he decided it was time to witness to the construction workers. So, he climbed up on the roof and talked to a guy who had the F word tattooed on one arm and the S word tattooed on the other arm and he started talking about Jesus. And this guy said, Reverend, don’t, leave me alone. I’m too evil. Jesus won’t have anything to do with me. And he, and the Reverend said, listen, I’m worse than you are. And he said, no, you’re not. He said, yeah, I am. He said, I’m going to tell you about Jesus, and then I’m going to go over to that Burger King and get a hamburger, and you’re going to be lost for all of eternity, and I’m never going to give you another thought. And the guy said, Mmm, that’s really bad. And he led him to Christ because that’s the message.

Jerry Parries: Yes, yes.

Steve Brown:
The message, I don’t care where you’ve been.

Jerry Parries: Right.

Steve Brown:
I don’t care what you’ve done or who you’ve hurt or what you’re smoking or what you’re drinking, Christmas is about forgiveness.

Jerry Parries: Yes. And even John 3:16, one of our favorite Scriptures in the Christian faith.

For God so loved the world that he gave.

He gave, he gave us the gift of Jesus, that our sins would be forgiven and you’ve got to receive that. I know some of you all are shopping and you’re preparing for Christmas, but the greatest gift that you can get is forgiveness. I’ll tell you a story real quick, Steve, in the Scripture. You remember the guy that they tore the roof down and they lowered him in. And Jesus said to him, rise up your bed, take up your bed and walk. And he says, no, no, no. He told the guy when they lowered him in the ceiling, he said, your sins be forgiven. He says, so that you can believe that the Son of Man have power to forgive sin, take up your bed and walk. Most of us shout because the guy got up and walked, but that wasn’t the greatest miracle.

Steve Brown:
No.

Jerry Parries: The greatest miracle was that your sins are forgiven.

So that you will receive that your sins are forgiven, take up your bed and walk.

The greatest gift that God gives any of us is not a car, not a house, not a husband, not a Ferrari. The greatest gift that God can give you is that your sins be forgiven. And Christmas reminds us that we have been forgiven.

Steve Brown:
Oh, that is so good. You know, sometimes we lose that message. You know, if you ask the average person on the street, what’s the church about? That would probably be the last thing that they would bring up.

Jerry Parries: Absolutely.

Steve Brown:
And that means that we haven’t done our job.

Jerry Parries: Yeah. The church is known for judgment, but God is known for forgiving.

Steve Brown:
That is so true. The church is known for judgment, but God is known for forgiveness. So, rejoice at Christmas. Celebrate and dance and laugh and sing. But remember the reason for it. It isn’t the gift you got. It’s the forgiveness a gracious God gave. You think about that. Amen.

Matthew Porter:
You will run out of sin before God runs out of grace. Thank you gentlemen. That was Steve Brown and Jerry Parries continuing to guide us through a very special Christmas week edition of Key Life. And again, we’ll be doing this through Friday of this week, so don’t miss it. By the way, how is your Christmas preparations going so far? Lots of errands no doubt, planning, buying, wrapping. Well, let me ask, how are you preparing your heart? Now listen, you know us. That is not asked to induce guilt, but as an invitation. And toward that end, there’s a booklet we’d love to mail you for free. It’s called Christmas Meditations, and it’s a collection of Steve’s writings on the real meaning of Christmas, the Incarnation of God in Christ. The booklet also includes Scripture and devotional questions to help you quietly focus and reflect on the impact of Christ’s coming. Get it now by calling us at 1-800-KEY-LIFE that’s 1-800-539-5433. You can also e-mail [email protected] if you’d like to mail your request, go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses. Just ask for your free copy of the booklet called Christmas Meditations. And finally, if you value the work of Key Life, would you support that work through your giving? You could charge a gift on your credit card or include a gift in your envelope. Or gift safely and securely through text, just pick up your phone and text Key Life to 28950 that’s Key Life, one word, two words. It doesn’t matter, text that to 28950. Key Life is a member of ECFA in the States and CCCC in Canada. And we are a listener supported production of Key Life Network.