~~~ Deliverance by Grace ~~

Now I will continue to show that deliverance comes only by Grace, not by law.

Genesis 6: 5. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

6. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

7. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.

8. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

***************

Now this is the very first time ‘grace�?is mentioned in the Word of God. Noah was the first person said to have found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

So what was this to Noah? See that the whole earth was wicked and filled with violence. They only thought of evil all the time. There was no love of God left, to speak of.

So there was enough evil and violence in the earth, that it made God sorry He had made man. So God decided to destroy the whole creation of man-kind and the other dust creatures he had made.

One family of all the earth was saved at the time of that great flood. This was the man who had found GRACE. Only by finding Grace was Noah’s family forgiven any sins they had done and delivered from being destroyed in that flood. Grace delivered him. For only by grace can we receive mercy. On in mercy can we be forgiven sins. Without this, we will be destroyed with the wicked.

The next time a great destruction is about to take place is down in Sodom and neighbor towns. You know the story, how the evil was so great and the just man, Lot was so vexed every day with all this evil which he saw around him. The angels of the Lord came and told him and his family to flee, they were going to destroy that evil place with fire.

*******************************

Gen. 19: 15. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.

16. And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.

17. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

18. And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord:

19. Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:

Now see that the only reason Lot and his family was spared this destruction is the same reason Noah and his family was spared --- they had found GRACE in the eyes of the Lord.

Grace saved them. Only by Grace is deliverance from the punishment of sin. Only in grace is any mercy which is forgiveness.

************************

By: Jo Smith