Simply By Grace Podcast

Almost 2000 years ago, a very frightened man asked "what must I do to be saved?" The apostle Paul gave a very simple answer...yet theologians have been arguing about it for centuries. It takes a theologian to do that right?  But what does it mean to be saved?  The issue involves the gospel itself. What is the condition for eternal salvation?

Paul said "believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved."

Compare that to an answer from a modern day preacher where after his message, one of his listeners came up to him and the preacher asked him, "is there any reason you should not become a Christian tonight?"  The man responded "No".  The preacher's response was "well, let me give you a few."  So for the next few minutes the preacher began to explain that there was a cost to become a Christian and that he needed to surrender his whole life, his future, his ambitions, his relationships, his possessions, and everything he was to God. Only if he was prepared to do this could Christ then begin to give him eternal life.

The preacher leaned in and asked "so, can you still think of a reason not to become a Christian tonight?" The man responded "well, now I can think of some."  The preacher said, "Well, don't become a Christian until you're ready to surrender to Jesus Christ and you've dealt with every one of those reasons."

So what is the Biblical truth?  

In this weeks' podcast Charlie deals directly with this question.

Does a lost sinner have to hate his family to get saved? Does a lost sinner have to give up everything to the poor, deny self, take up a cross to follow Jesus just to be saved? Does a sinner have to abide in Jesus in order to get saved or stay saved? Is following Jesus the same as coming unto Jesus? According to lordship salvation, a sinner must commit, obey, and promise to do good works in order to be saved. Is this what the Bible teaches about receiving Jesus Christ as Savior and the free grace that He offers? This confuses justification with sanctification and front loads the gospel with good works in order to be saved. There are many differences between salvation and discipleship:

• Salvation is a one time event

In this podcast we discuss the clear differences between salvation and discipleship.

There is life after salvation believe it or not. In fact, the desire God has for the believer is an abundant life. Salvation is just the beginning, not the end. It's the beginning of a whole new life. But how do we mature and have we matured as Christians?

Many people live their entire Christian life living off the milk of the word, not the meat. In first Corinthians chapter three, Paul calls the church in Corinth babies. He fed them milk not meat because that's all they were ready for. (So we have a pathetic picture; Paul was expecting them to mature out of their baby status and move on to chewing solid food.) 

So how do we move from crawling to walking to running as Christians? In this podcast Charlie helps us understand the steps to growth and moving on from stagnation. not only that, but why it's important and why moving on helps us gain that abundant life God has prepared for us.

How do you disciple believers in grace? Sometimes you ask this question of pastors and other believers and you get multiple answers. Many have come up with their own ways while some copy others. But what does the Bible say and what principles should be emphasized? What are the important ingredients and is there more than one way to do this?

In this podcast Charlie answers these questions and more and provides his own experience in doing so.

In this podcast we finish out 2020 and look ahead to what the new year brings. This episode reminds us that Grace Means Go! 

Charlie speaks of his story about how GraceLife came to be and become the focus of his ministry. The idea is to get the gospel out around the world. To share the gospel of grace with the unsaved and the grace of the gospel with the saved. That is to say, for unbelievers that salvation is free and it's simple. For believers, it's living in the family of grace and helping them not get ensnared in works based systems and understand their assurance of salvation, knowing that they are secure in Christ forever. 

Charlie has a passion for clarity of the gospel and I hope you will too. So make your new years' resolution a passion for keeping the gospel clear and sharing it where ever you go!

Charlie turns to 1st Corinthians chapter nine. When we read this passage it kind of gives us an x-ray to the heart of one of the world's greatest evangelists, the apostle Paul. Do we hold up to Paul's standard, are we as faithful to preaching it clearly and with the proper motives as Paul was? 

We hope you enjoy the podcast this Christmas Eve and use this as a springboard into 2021, keeping the gospel clear both in words and in your motives, knowing that to do so is a privilege and a duty. 

There's an old saying, that you really don't know something unless you can teach it. This has never been more true especially with the gospel.

So how well do you know the gospel? Do you share and teach it clearly?  Sometimes believers carry a lot of "intellectual" baggage with them and what may seem clear to them, can be very unclear to the recipients. Other times people have been influenced by other believers and speak using "Christian lingo" which might as well be Greek to the unbeliever. 

So the goal is to preach it, teach it, and share it with clarity. Keeping it simple also has another side effect, which is gaining confidence...you'll realize "I can do this!" 

What does Grace mean and how does it, or should it, shape our lives? In this podcast Charlie emphasizes what is contrary to Grace, the great grace killer. What is it you ask? It's legalism...living under rules as opposed to living under grace. Trying to fix ourselves on the inside by enforcing rules on the outside.

But are we to live this way as believers? One of the key things to remember in the Christian life is living by Grace. You can always legislate behavior but you can't legislate morality. Grace is an inward motivation...not because of the laws or rules, but because of how God has transformed us on the inside. It's easy to get caught up in the rules and laws and put ourselves back into chains. 

So how do we go from legalism to liberty? How do we avoid the legalism pitfall, the great grace killer?  Find out in this weeks' podcast.

This podcast is an exerpt from a series Charlie preached at Burleson Bible Church. In it, he explains what Grace is and how important it is to the people of God. 

Charlie defines Grace and shows that it's not just a theological experience but something that must be lived out. We are commanded in the Bible to be strong in grace, and to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. We should strive to be "grace-full", a people full of grace. When you are full of grace, you will be at peace with your neighbors and those around you. 

So find out how Grace is liberating and essential to the Christian walk and how it all begins with God.