Rhema Ehiemere - No Strings Attached

On your way to your seat, say, «No strings attached, no strings attached.» Can you use a lighter background on this, please? No strings attached. The whole Bible is a story woven by the thick scarlet cord of grace and mercy. When you look through the Bible, that’s really all it’s about—a long fabric of stories woven with the thick scarlet cord of grace and mercy. God expresses His love to us through grace and mercy. That’s the good news; that’s the gospel. Everywhere you look through Scripture, you see grace and mercy. Whether it’s in the Old Testament or the New Testament, it’s always been a tale of God’s promiscuous grace and God’s promiscuous mercy. That doesn’t even make sense. Pastor, can you prove it? I’m glad you asked. Come here, Adam and Eve. Even though Adam and Eve sinned, God was the first to kill an animal and cover them. Even though they covered themselves with fig leaves, this was an attempt to protect them from eternal damnation. This was God’s grace and mercy at work. Come here, Noah. Despite the wickedness of humanity, God still made sure there was an escape route for Noah. This is a picture of God’s grace and mercy. Come here, King David. King David did not just commit adultery with Bathsheba; King David committed murder. King David’s hands were so full of blood that God told him, «No, you cannot build my temple.» Yet God turned around and said, «Hold up, but you’re still my son; you’re still a man after my own heart.» God, can you make up your mind? And still, through that lineage, Jesus is called the Son of David. Look at the grace; look at the mercy of God. He called the thief on the cross. He spent his whole life known as a criminal. Do you know what it means to be crucified with Jesus? Then he turns around with a feeble hand and says, «Can you remember me today in paradise?» Jesus replied, «What did you say? You know what? Today I’m extending an invitation; I’m going to be with you in paradise tonight.» Can you imagine the woman who was caught in the act of adultery? She was about to be stoned, and all of a sudden, Jesus stoops down and begins to write. He looks around and says, «He that is without sin, cast the first stone.» All through Scriptures—oh, did I forget about Paul, formerly called Saul? Maybe he changed his name because—think about it. Look at Paul. Paul was persecuting Christians. Paul was killing Christians. Paul did everything to disqualify himself, yet on the road to Damascus, a light shone from heaven, and Jesus had an encounter with him. He turned around and began to write two-thirds of the New Testament. He was so powerful that he could raise people from the dead; he could cast out demons with just a stroke of his hand, preaching from prison. I’m talking about the mercy; I’m talking about the grace of God all through Scripture. I’m talking about you as well, because you may think I’m talking about other people’s stories. What about you? Well, the Bible says in Ephesians 2:8, «For by grace are you saved through faith, and this is not a result of your works, lest any man should boast.» You are alive because of God’s grace. You survived because of God’s grace. You made it because of God’s grace. When you understand what Jesus did on the cross for you, you stop asking Him to do what He’s already done for you. Your prayer changes when you understand what Jesus did on the cross. It shifts from «God, bless me» to «God, thank you for what you have done.» Listen, can I burst your bubble? God is not going to bless you because He’s already blessed you. God is not going to accept you because He’s already accepted you. God is not going to promote you because He’s already promoted you. God is not going to do all of that on your prayer wall because He’s already done it. It’s called the finished work. Somebody shout, «The grace of God!» What this means is that no weapon formed against me can prosper. Why? Because God thought about it before it even happened. So whatever the enemy throws at you is already 2,000 years late because Jesus considered it before the foundations of the world. The devil is already too late. The struggle is already too late; the pain is already too late; the weakness is already too late. Everything the enemy is trying to do in, through, and for your life is already too late. That’s why you can walk boldly and confidently, not because you know what’s happening in your life, but because you know that God knows what is happening. Even if you don’t know what is happening, the Bible says the just shall live by faith. The Bible says that the steps of a good man are ordered by God. I know we’re still early in the sermon, and that’s fine; you want to get a word, but can we pause for a praise here and just thank God for the grace? Thank God for the mercy of God, because if it had not been for the Lord who was by my side, who was by your side—woo! —we would have been swallowed up, but for the grace and mercy of God. Somebody say yes! You know why some of us are not excited? Because you don’t understand what the grace and mercy of God signifies and symbolizes. Grace is when God gives you what you don’t deserve.