All the Links of the Golden Chain of Salvation
The sermon emphasizes the importance of free grace as the foundation of salvation and the source of all spiritual blessings.
Thomas Brooks emphasizes that all aspects of salvation are rooted in free grace, illustrating how believers are freely loved, chosen, accepted, adopted, reconciled, justified, and saved by God's grace. He argues that this grace is the foundation of all spiritual and eternal mercies, providing comfort and strength to Christians in their daily lives. Brooks warns against measuring God's love based on personal merit, as it would lead to despair, but reassures that it is solely through grace that believers find hope and support in their spiritual journey.
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All the links of the golden chain of salvation are
made up of free grace! The people of God are . . .
freely loved, Deut. 7:6-8;
freely chosen, John 15:16-19, Eph. 1:4;
freely accepted, Eph. 1:6;
freely adopted, Eph. 1:5, Gal. 4:5-6;
freely reconciled, 2 Cor. 5:18-20;
freely justified, Romans 3:24;
freely saved, Eph. 2:5, 8.
All the golden rounds in Jacob's ladder--which reaches
from heaven to earth--are all made up of free grace.
Free grace is the foundation of all spiritual and eternal
mercies. Free grace is the solid bottom and foundation
of all a Christian's comfort in this world. Were we to
measure the love of God to us by . . .
our fruitfulness,
our holiness,
our humbleness,
our spiritualness,
our heavenly-mindedness, or
our gracious behavior towards Him
--how would our hope, our confidence every
moment be staggered--if not vanquished!
But all is of grace, of free grace. O sirs! it is free grace . . .
which will strengthen you in all your duties,
which will sweeten all your mercies,
which will support you under all your changes,
which will arm you against all temptations.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Foundation of Salvation
- A. Free grace is the foundation of all spiritual and eternal mercies
- B. Free grace is the solid bottom and foundation of all a Christian's comfort
- II. The Nature of Free Grace
- A. It is the source of all spiritual blessings
- B. It is the ground of all hope and confidence
- III. The Benefits of Free Grace
- A. It strengthens us in our duties
- B. It sweetens our mercies
- C. It supports us under changes
- D. It arms us against temptations
Key Quotes
“Were we to measure the love of God to us by our fruitfulness, our holiness, our humbleness, our spiritualness, our heavenly-mindedness, or our gracious behavior towards Him--how would our hope, our confidence every moment be staggered--if not vanquished!” — Thomas Brooks
“Free grace is the solid bottom and foundation of all a Christian's comfort in this world.” — Thomas Brooks
“All the links of the golden chain of salvation are made up of free grace!” — Thomas Brooks
Application Points
- We should not measure the love of God to us by our outward appearances, but by His free and unconditional love.
- Free grace is the source of all our strength, comfort, and hope in times of trial and temptation.
- We should rely on free grace to support us in all our duties, mercies, and changes.