“In the parable of the prodigal son, Jesus says to us, ‘Would you please be open to the possibility that the gospel, real Christianity, is something very different from religion?’”
“Jesus said - ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”
The Gospel of Grace
What do we mean when we say, The Gospel of Grace? It means that we believe that the wondrous gift of God - the death and resurrection of His very own Son - is the only means of our salvation. It means that the heart of our soul is deeply broken at the knowledge that Jesus suffered and died for me (the Gospel) - that through Christ’s death and resurrection alone we have been brought from death to life. We add nothing and we bring nothing - it is a free gift (the Grace).
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” Galatians 2:20-21 ESV
We were dead in our transgressions, but God intervened.
We were in bondage to sin, but God intervened.
We were objects of wrath, but God intervened.
Our condition was hopeless, but praise be to God, He intervened - by grace we are saved.
The Gospel of Grace frees our:
relationships - we can be real and transparent about our sin, failure, struggles, and everything because we are fully loved and redeemed by Christ alone. By this our Community is Transforming.
worship - our praise is filled with humble thanksgiving and love for Christ and His church.
ministry - we serve not out of compulsion to be seen by others, but with the same sacrificial love that we have been richly given. This is how we are Neighbor Loving.
Riverside Church is part of the Presbyterian Church in America ( PCA )