Grace for the Guilty: Remembering Christ at the Table

Aug 09, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: We Too Were Once Foolish

The gospel begins with radical honesty about our shared brokenness. Paul includes himself in the catalog of human failure: malice, envy, slavery to passions, and hatred. This "we too" confession dismantles spiritual superiority, reminding believers they share the same sinful roots as those they’re called to reach. Redemption starts when we stop separating "us" from "them" and recognize our common need. The table of grace welcomes those who’ve stopped pretending they earned a seat. [37:10]

"For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved by various passions and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, detesting one another."
(Titus 3:3, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you subtly believed your spiritual journey makes you fundamentally different from "sinners"? How might embracing your "we too" story change how you love your neighbor?

Day 2: Mercy Withholds What We Deserve

Human justice systems parole prisoners, but divine mercy does far more. It doesn’t merely reduce sentences—it cancels eternal debts. The guilty receive not leniency but full pardon, the condemned made heirs. This mercy isn’t triggered by good behavior but flows from God’s stubborn love for rebels. At the Lord’s table, the bread and cup declare that wrath was swallowed so mercy could feast. [40:58]

"He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit."
(Titus 3:5, ESV)

Reflection: When have you struggled to believe God’s mercy covers your worst moments? How might living as a pardoned heir free you from shame’s grip?

Day 3: Regeneration, Not Self-Improvement

Christianity isn’t a moral upgrade—it’s resurrection. The Holy Spirit doesn’t help us turn over new leaves; He plants new trees. Washing and renewal in Titus 3:5 describe a forensic miracle: corpses made alive, rebels recreated as worshippers. The Lord’s Supper celebrates this irreversible transformation, where even Quran-memorizing imams become Christ’s ambassadors. Moral effort fails; resurrection lasts. [42:58]

"Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'"
(John 14:6, ESV)

Reflection: Where are you still trying to “self-improve” instead of relying on Christ’s finished work? What dead part of your story needs His resurrection power today?

Day 4: The Firefighter’s Narrow Rescue

Grace’s exclusivity offenders modern sensibilities—until the house burns. Christ’s claim to be the only way isn’t arrogance; it’s the firefighter’s urgent truth. The cross isn’t one exit among many but the singular hole cut through hell’s flames. Like the rescued Muslim imam, salvation comes not by comparing religious paths but grabbing the outstretched hand. Narrowness becomes beautiful when it’s your only hope. [51:47]

"And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
(Acts 4:12, ESV)

Reflection: What cultural pressures make you hesitant to share Christ’s exclusivity? How does remembering salvation as rescue change your urgency?

Day 5: Communion’s Threefold Gaze

The Lord’s Supper turns believers inward (examining hearts), backward (remembering Calvary), and around (joining the global church). This meal transcends language and culture—persecuted saints in Iran, house churches in China, and Kenyan believers all share the same symbols. The bread whispers to every tribe: your story of grace is part of a eternal chorus. [56:43]

"After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, 'This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.'"
(1 Corinthians 11:25, ESV)

Reflection: When taking communion, which gaze feels hardest for you—inward, backward, or around? How might embracing all three deepen your worship?

Sermon Summary

Titus 3 gives a short, clear picture of the gospel that saves. Paul writes to Titus and includes himself when he says, “we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved.” The guilty are not just “those people out there.” The church needs a real “we too” movement, because every sinner has lived in rebellion, malice, envy, hatred, and detesting one another.

Grace is God’s gift to the guilty. The table of the Lord is not the table of works, excuses, or self-righteousness. It is the table of grace. Human mercy can release a prisoner, but only God’s grace can justify a sinner, not just declared forgiven, but declared righteous in the eyes of God.

Paul says God saved sinners “not by works of righteousness” that had been done, but according to His mercy. A sinner contributes nothing to salvation except the sin that made it necessary. Christianity is not turning over a new leaf. Christianity is receiving a new life. God washes through regeneration and renews by the Holy Spirit, making dead sinners alive in Christ.

Grace is available to anyone who believes. God’s love for mankind reaches every nation, every tribe, every tongue, every language, every skin color, every background, and every former religion. The young man raised to become an imam, troubled by the lack of assurance in Islam, found Christ through the New Testament and now uses his knowledge of Islam to tell others about Jesus. That story says again what Romans 10:13 says: anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Grace also comes exclusively through Christ. Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” and the way is narrow because the way is singular. The burning building does not need more options when the firefighter says, “This is the only way out.” The miracle is not that the way is narrow. The miracle is that God made a way out at all.

The Lord’s Supper makes that grace visible. The bread and cup call the church to look inward in repentance, look back to the cross, and look around at believers across the world and across the centuries. The table proclaims the Lord’s death until He comes.

Key Takeaways

1. Grace is God’s gift to the guilty [32:51] Titus 3 does not allow sin to stay vague or safely located in “those people out there.” Paul’s “we too” brings every believer back to the same ground, guilty before God and unable to pretend innocence. Grace becomes precious only when guilt is no longer minimized, excused, or dressed up as mere weakness. [32:51]
2. Faith receives what works cannot earn [38:17] God’s salvation does not answer human effort with a reward. God’s mercy answers human rebellion with cleansing, regeneration, and renewal by the Holy Spirit. Moral improvement may make a person easier to live with, but only new life in Christ can answer the wrath of a righteous God. [38:17]
3. Anyone may call on Jesus [44:15] God’s love for mankind is not tribal, local, or locked inside one culture. The gospel reaches the Muslim village, the immigrant community, the dangerous mission field, and the house across the street. The promise is wide enough for anyone, yet serious enough to demand that Christians actually tell the good news. [44:15]
4. Christ is the only rescue [49:08] The exclusivity of Jesus is not spiritual arrogance, but divine rescue in a burning house. Fallen humanity does not need more religious options as much as one sure way out. The narrowness of the gospel is matched by the mercy of God, who sent His Son to be that way. [49:08]
5. The table trains holy remembrance [54:03] The Lord’s Supper is not mainly bread and juice, but a visible remembrance of the cross. The table calls for repentance, gratitude, and a clear-eyed look at the body of Christ across time and around the world. Every believer who takes the bread and cup proclaims that Christ died, Christ saves, and Christ is coming.

## [54:03]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[23:54] - Encouragement From Global Missions
[25:11] - The Core Missionary Task
[26:12] - No One Beyond Redemption
[28:39] - Human Mercy And God’s Grace
[30:33] - Titus 3 And The Gospel
[32:23] - The Table Of Grace
[33:09] - Guilty Before God
[38:17] - Saved By Mercy, Not Works
[42:58] - Grace For Anyone Who Believes
[49:08] - Grace Comes Only Through Christ
[53:06] - Heirs Of Eternal Life
[54:03] - Three Ways The Lord’s Supper Looks
[57:17] - The Bread In Remembrance
[62:06] - Proclaiming Until He Comes

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Titus 3:3-7
“For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” [31:00]

Romans 10:13
“For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” [44:22]

John 14:6
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” [49:24]

1 Corinthians 11:23-26
“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” [57:17]

Observation questions

In Titus 3:3, what words does Paul use to describe what “we ourselves were once” like before God saved us? [33:48]
According to Titus 3:4-7, what actions are credited to God in saving sinners, and what things are specifically said not to save them? [38:17]
In Romans 10:13, who is included in the promise of salvation, and how broad is that promise? [44:15]
In 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, what does the bread and cup call believers to remember and proclaim? [01:02:22]

Interpretation questions

Paul says, “we ourselves were once” these things. Why does that little phrase matter so much for the way Christians think about sin, guilt, and other people? [37:07]
Titus 3 says God saved sinners “not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy.” How does that challenge the common idea that a person can become right with God by being decent, religious, or improved? [41:18]
Romans 10:13 says everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, while John 14:6 says no one comes to the Father except through Jesus. How do those two truths fit together: open to anyone, yet only through Christ? [48:53]
The Lord’s Supper points believers to look inward, look back, and look around. What does each of those directions help a Christian remember or do? [54:21]

Application questions

It is easy to think mainly about “those people out there” and forget “we too.” Where is there a tendency in this season of life to minimize personal guilt or compare favorably to others instead of confessing sin honestly before God? [37:21]
A sinner contributes nothing to salvation except the sin that made it necessary. Is there any place where confidence has been resting in church involvement, moral effort, family background, or religious habits instead of in the mercy of God through Christ? [38:42]
Christianity is not turning over a new leaf but receiving a new life. Where has there been a settling for outward improvement while avoiding deeper repentance and renewal by the Holy Spirit? [41:18]
Grace is available to anyone who believes. Who is one person, group, or kind of person that may quietly seem unlikely, too far gone, or too different to respond to Christ? What would it look like to believe the promise of Romans 10:13 for them? [47:54]
Jesus is not one option among many; He is the only rescue. When that truth feels narrow or uncomfortable in conversation, what fears or hesitations usually rise up? [51:02]
If Christ is the only way of rescue, then Christians should tell people nearby and support the telling of people far away. Who across the street, around the corner, or in everyday life needs a clear gospel conversation from someone in this group? [52:33]
The Lord’s Supper calls believers to look inward in repentance, look back to the cross, and look around at the body of Christ. Which of those comes least naturally right now, and what might need to change so that remembrance becomes more honest, grateful, and worshipful? [56:40]

Sermon Clips

86s

#NewLifeNotNewLeaf

“``Christianity is not turning over a new leaf. Christianity is receiving a new life. Yeah. It's not just doing better. It's it's not it's not saying, you know what? I'm gonna quit lying so much. gonna quit getting drunk so often. I I I'm gonna stop cheating on my wife most of the time. No. That's that's slight moral improvement. That's culturally acceptable morality, but it will not appease the wrath of a righteous God. I have to have is a new life, and that new life is made possible because of the mercy of God that he, in verse five, washes us with regeneration and renews us by the holy spirit. That is the moment of justification, that he washes us. Now that doesn't that's not referring to water baptism. That's referring to the cleansing power of the blood of Christ.”

75s

#OnlyWayOut

“Bob, you just sound judgmental when you say that. Imagine with me for a minute that you are in a burning building. You're traveling. It's unfamiliar to you. You don't know the building at all, and all of a sudden, there is a fire. Smoke is beginning to billow. It's clouding the way, and all of a sudden, a light begins to pierce through the smoke, and it comes to you, and you see that it is a firefighter. And he has run into this burning building, and he looks at you and he says these words, is the way out. This is the only way out. Are you gonna look at him and say, you know, that that's really too narrow. That's we need more options. it comes to our spiritual fallen state, the house is on fire. Amen. The miracle is that God made a way out. That's the miracle. That's the good news.”

51s

#SalvationByGrace

“And the only thing that I contributed to my salvation was the sin that made it necessary. I contribute absolutely nothing to my salvation. Nothing. I can't earn it. I can't work for it. I can't do anything that prompts the movement of God in my life. I can't. From the foundation of the world, God knew that Adam and Eve would fall and that we would need redemption. And in his great mercy, he took the initiative to save us.”

62s

#GraceForTheGuilty

“grace is God's gift to the guilty. One of the things that we need to come to grips with and we have to come to grips with in order to understand the gospel is that we are guilty before God. We are guilty of sin and trespass and rebellion against God. It's not that we were trying real hard and didn't measure up. That's part it maybe you were. That's it could be part of it. But many times our sin is not just missing the mark, Sometimes it is open rebellion against God, and we have all done it. We have we have spat in his face. We have determined to go our own way, and Paul says, that's not just one of us. That's not just some of us. That is all of us.”

53s

#WeTooMovement

“I would say to you that in Christianity, in the modern church, we need a we too movement. We need to remember that we too were part of the problem, that we too are sinners, that we too are disobedient. It's not just those people out there. There is this problem in modern Christianity in America, especially. And those of us who are saved, those of us who been blessed to receive the gospel and be saved, that the longer we're saved, the more different we think we are from those people out those people out there. We too.”

51s

#GraceAndMercyDefined

“Grace is when God gives me what I don't deserve. Mercy is when he withholds what I do deserve. And what I deserve is to be lost. What I deserve is death. What I deserve is eternal punishment because I have rebelled against my creator. We too. But what I receive is mercy, is him withholding that which I deserve. See, the Lord's Supper is a remembrance of what God has done in Christ for us.”

42s

#GraceComesThroughJesus

“We believe that every every person on planet Earth who has trusted Jesus will be saved. It is available to anyone who believes. But see, this is important, It comes exclusively through Christ. In verse six, he poured out his spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ, our savior. Grace comes through Jesus, and and I want you to hear me. Grace only comes through Jesus. Amen. Only.”

40s

#LordsSupperSymbol

“The Lord's Supper is not about a piece of bread a small sip of juice. It's not. That's the symbol. The Lord's Supper is about what Jesus did for us on the cross. In a culture two thousand years ago, I'd had no multimedia. Symbols were powerful. Reminders. If you could take something and visually demonstrate and call to mind a story, this was incredibly, incredibly powerful.”

77s

#HeirsOfEternalHope

“The very last phrase of verse seven, he says that we that we've been justified by his grace that we may become heirs of the hope of eternal life. Heirs. We've been brought into a new family. We have a spiritual inheritance of the hope of eternal life. When the Bible says hope, it doesn't mean wish. Maybe it'll happen, maybe it won't. That's wishful thinking. You know? My yard's getting dry. I hope it rains. That's a wish based on the forecast I've seen. Biblical hope is a confident assurance that what is promised will happen. Grace. It's a gift to the guilty. It's received by faith. It's available to anyone who believes. It comes exclusively through Christ, and it's extended throughout eternity. And that is what we celebrate this morning with the Lord's Supper.”

77s

#GodsLoveForAll

“grace is available to anyone who believes. Grace is available to anyone who believes. The bible tells us in this passage that God has a great love for all people. In verse four, but when the kindness of God our savior and his love mankind appeared. His love for mankind. That expression in the Greek New Testament is where we get our word philanthropy. A philanthropist is a person who gives generously to help those who are less fortunate than they are. And God sees us as far less fortunate, as needy, and that's who we are. And he pours out his love upon mankind. That means the whole of humanity, every nation, every tribe, every tongue.”

44s

#ShareTheWay

“We too were disobedient and fallen and sinful. But in his great love for us, he sent his son Jesus to say, I am the way out. But if we believe that I want you to listen to me. If we believe that, and you should because it's in the Bible, not because I said it, then it is our responsibility to tell everyone we know and to help others tell people we don't know, this is the way of rescue. This is the way of salvation.”

38s

#GraceJustifies

“You see, a human mercy can release a prisoner, but only God's grace can justify a sinner. Human mercy can forgive, but only grace can justify a sinner. We're going to look at this passage of scripture not just be declared forgiven, but be declared righteous in the eyes of God. And that's really what the Lord's Supper is about.”

30s

#TableOfGrace

“And I want you to remember when we take the Lord's supper, when we figuratively come to the Lord's table, it is the table of grace. not the table of works. It's not the table of excuses. It's not the table of of self righteousness. It is the table of grace. So let me spell it out for you.”

45s

#ReflectBeforeCommunion

“the Lord's Supper cause should cause us to look three different ways. First of all, it should cause us to look inward, and that is it's a time for reflection and repentance. The apostle Paul warned us not to take the Lord's supper in a flippant, unworthy way, that we should consider the cost of Jesus dying on a cross and be reverent in this moment. And so it is a moment for reflection and perhaps repentance. If there's something in your life that you know you need to turn away from because Jesus died on a cross for that sin, and you keep going back to it. So look inward.”

54s

#GraceForAllNations

“If God could reach into that man's life when he was younger in a predominantly Muslim culture and reveal himself to him. Understand this, that grace is for all people. That's why we're starting a Spanish language service someday when we find that pastor. You keep praying about that. We're close, closer than we've ever been. But we believe that. We believe that anyone and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. We believe, Revelation seven nine, that around the throne in heaven, every nation, every tribe, and every tongue will be there singing, holy, holy, holy to is the Lord God almighty.”

45s

#OnMissionEverywhere

“That's what all of them do. Now they may be in places as English teachers, or they may be in places as medical workers, they may be in places in a variety of different function, but the core missionary task is sharing the gospel. So this morning, we're gonna come back to the message of the core missionary task because we are to be missionaries, and this may not be around the world, but it might be around the corner. It may not be across an ocean, but it may be across the street. We are called to be on mission with God, and our message is the message of the good news, the gospel that saves. And that's what we're gonna talk about, this morning.”

71s

#AssuranceInChrist

“But what troubled him as he memorized the Quran was that in the Quran, even Muhammad that he wasn't sure if he'd go to paradise or not. And he thought, if the prophet doesn't have any assurance that he's gonna go to paradise, How in the world would I ever think that I could attain that? How in the world could could I know? So he had no assurance, and that left him emotionally troubled, spiritually uncertain, and he had no joy, he had no peace, he couldn't sleep at night, and and he's racking his brain trying to wrap his mind around this, and and he he grows more and more hopeless and despondent. And by the providence of God, a person who had secretly converted to Christianity gave him a bible and said, read this. And he did. And he came to faith in Christ by reading the New Testament.”

79s

#NarrowWayJesus

“Some people say, well, that seems so so exclusive. It is. That seems so narrow. It is. But Jesus himself said the way is narrow. It's narrow. It's so narrow, it's singular. and his name is Jesus. You know, in in our world, people just can't grasp that because they don't want to grasp that. We want options. I mean, my wife sent me to the store not long ago to get, bread. That is that is those are poor instructions. I mean, could you be a bit more vague? There's 47 different brands of bread at the store. And do you want sourdough, or do you want white bread, or do you want wheat bread? Do want a 100% whole wheat bread? Or do you want hot dog buns? Do want hamburger buns? Do want sliced bread? Do you want unsliced bread? I mean, you want bagel? What what do you want? We want options. Options sometimes are a good thing, and we want that religiously, spiritually.”

29s

#NotSavedByWorks

“It's not because I gave my money. It's not because I served for forty years in the preschool. It's not because I went on a mission trip. It's sure not because I got baptized. It's not because I was a church member. It's not because I was a pretty good person and my good stuff outweighs my bad stuff. That is not why he saved me.”

53s

#CommunionUnitesUs

“If you were worshiping under a little pavilion that is a church in Kenya this morning, they took bread and cup. You would have known what it represented. And so this morning, look inward in self reflection. Look back at what Jesus has done for you, but we look around, and this ties us as a symbol with every other believer on planet Earth. It also ties us with every believer who has ever lived on planet Earth. Fifteen hundred years ago, they did this. In the New Testament church, they did this and remembered.”

Ask a question about this sermon

First Baptist Church, Wichita Falls Tx. This sermon · AI assistant

What does the acrostic GRACE teach?

What is the Lord's Supper primarily about?

How does justification differ from human mercy?