SGC Shaping Virtues
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Justification means that God has declared guilty sinners to be righteous through faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This justification is “by his grace as a gift” (Romans 3:24) and, once given, can’t be lost or taken away because it rests on Jesus’ finished work and not our ongoing performance. Thus, those who are freely saved through the gospel are also called, empowered, and motivated to please the one who saved them.
The gospel saves us into a life of service, first to God and then to others as an expression of that service. “For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:5).
The gospel of Jesus Christ is an act of cosmic generosity on God’s part, revealing the riches of his love, grace, and mercy.
To encourage means to give support, confidence, or hope. God delights to strengthen and sustain his people through the ministry of encouragement.
The manifold blessings of the gospel are ours as an undeserved and free gift from our gracious God. The only appropriate response to such generous grace is gratitude. “I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart” (Psalm 86:12). A thankful heart is cultivated as we remember, understand, and appreciate the many benefits of the gospel.
In Philippians 4:4, Paul exhorts believers to “Rejoice in the Lord always.” But how are we to do that when life in a fallen world is often full of difficulties, disappointments, and suffering? The answers lie in the reality that in the gospel, we have a source of joy that cannot be touched by any circumstance in this life, no matter how bad.
The Lord promises to bless the one “who is humble and contrite in spirit” (Isaiah 66:2). Humility is foundational to all our other shaping virtues, because without humility we will experience neither the desire nor the grace necessary to cultivate them.
Over the last few years the Sovereign Grace Leadership Team has worked on this project that we’ve now called The Shaping Virtues of Sovereign Grace.
When the gospel of Jesus Christ is embraced, it produces a culture marked by the fruit of the gospel. All churches that have come to know the grace of God should prioritize and pursue those qualities that are in keeping with the message of grace. In Sovereign Grace, the explicit gospel-focus that has marked our history has led us to value seven particular Shaping Virtues: humility, joy, gratitude, encouragement, generosity, servanthood, and godliness.