Sin - its Origin & Remedy

 SALVATION MESSAGESIN - ITS ORIGIN AND REMEDY Copyright 1985,1993,2001,2007 Crossroads Full Gospel International Ministries All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, photocopied, recorded or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. Short extracts may be used for review purposes. Except otherwise stated, Bible quotes come from the King James Version. 1611 Elizabethan English is updated in some cases to reflect present terminology, without changing the true meaning of the word. Extracts from “The Expositor's Study Bible” are identified as E.S.B. Copyright © 2005 Published by, and the sole property of, Jimmy Swaggart Ministries, Baton Rouge, LA, and extracts from the Swaggart Bible Commentary series are identified as S.B.C. Copyright © World Evangelism Press® Extracts from the Amplified Bible are identified as Amp. Old Testament Copyright © 1962, 1964 by Zondervan Corporation. New Testament Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Extracts from the New International Version are identified as N.I.V. Copyright 1973,1978,1984 by The International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. Also used: The New Testament: An Expanded Translation (Wuest) translated by Kenneth S. Wuest. Copyright © 1961 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan. Bracketed comments following some scriptures assist the reader in understanding the intended meaning of these verses We acknowledge the additional works of the various Scholars and Bible Commentaries used in conjunction with the College material. This is not to say that we agree with all their theology, but we certainly value their contribution to the Body of Christ. Published by: Crossroads Publications 10681 Princes Highway Warrnambool Victoria 3280 Australia CONTENTS SIN - ITS ORIGIN AND REMEDY 1 MAN’S SEPARATION FROM GOD 1 HOW WAS SIN (DEATH) PASSED ON TO ALL MANKIND ? 2 THE ONE SIN OF ADAM 4 THE IMPUTATION OF ADAM'S SIN 8 THE PENALTY OF SIN IS DEATH 14 SIN SEPARATES 15 REDEMPTION THROUGH IMPUTATION 19 SIN - ITS ORIGIN AND REMEDY MAN’S SEPARATION FROM GOD Mankind’s original spiritual father was God. Adam, however, as man’s federal head, sinned against God, thereby transferring mankind’s spiritual parentage, in a legal sense, to Satan. This caused spiritual death to come upon all mankind, resulting in mankind’s separation from God. Therefore every baby born into this world, being a child of Adam, is cursed because of the Fall with spiritual death. In order to become a son of God (Galatians 3:26), each child of Adam must be “born again.” ROMANS 5:12 Wherefore, as through one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death (separation from God) passed upon all men, for that all have sinned The sin that caused death was one of disobedience. Adam took from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil after God had forbidden him to do so, as Genesis 2:17 states: GENESIS 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die (spiritually). So through this one man’s sin, spiritual death entered the human race and would reign in all Adam’s descendants. As we have learned in previous studies, however, God in His love and mercy sent Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden before they could eat of the Tree of Life. This prevented them from becoming irrevocably separated from God (Genesis 3:22-24). “. . .Mankind’s original spiritual father was God. Adam, however, as man’s federal head, sinned against God, thereby transferring mankind’s spiritual parentage, in a legal sense, to Satan. . .” It is interesting to note that originally Adam was a perfect human being, not subject to ageing, sickness or death. He would not have died, physically or spiritually, if he had not allowed sin to enter and gain dominion. Adam, before he sinned, had the potential to live forever as a perfect human being. Through an act of his own will, however, he disobeyed God, causing his body and all his seed (children) to become mortal (subject to death). In doing so, he allowed Satan to become his master, thereby polluting himself not only spiritually, but also physically, with the presence of death. So by his act of rebellion, Adam not only died spiritually, but also as a consequence, incurred the penalty of death to his physical body. The Word tells us that Adam died at the age of 930 years (Genesis 5:5). The greatest consequence of Adam’s sin, however, was that when he stepped out of God’s presence and entered into a place of spiritual darkness, he took the whole human race, as yet unborn, with him. All in this position are devoid of God’s indwelling presence, and this thwarts any opportunity for them to have spiritual life and an eternal relationship with their Creator by their own efforts. HOW WAS SIN (DEATH) PASSED ON TO ALL MANKIND ? Let’s look at the Book of Romans: ROMANS 5:12 Wherefore, as through one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death through sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned (are born separated from God): ROMANS 3:23 For all have sinned (all are born in a state of sin, also called spiritual death - and therefore are sinners), and fall short of the glory of God (are deprived of God’s saving presence); These scriptures are telling us that the consequence of Adam’s sin was passed on to all mankind. This consequence was death, both spiritual and natural. It meant that all were subsequently born under the curse that Adam, as man’s federal head, brought not only upon himself but to all his offspring. Man can never elevate himself from this condition and position of spiritual death. Originally born to live in his physical body forever, man is now born to die. Genetically our blood now carries the curse that results in death, and this curse of death remains in our blood even after we have been born again. While our spirit-man is delivered from the curse through redemption, thus giving us eternal life, this blessing does not extend to our flesh. This means that while our body of flesh will die, our cleansed and regenerated spirit will live forever with God. Amen. It is evident that a person in darkness was conceived and birthed in that state of darkness. It is therefore not our personal sin that has caused us to be born in spiritual darkness, for we were conceived in that darkness (Psalms 51:5, Jeremiah 17:9). This simply means that we were born without God's presence within us. Man, by his deeds, however, will prove during his lifetime that he will also sin against God's standards, thus proving he is a sinner by nature (Mark 7:20-23). “ . . .The greatest consequence of Adam’s sin, however, was that when he stepped out of God’s presence and entered into a place of spiritual darkness, he took the whole human race, as yet unborn, with him. . .” THE ONE SIN OF ADAM The significance of Adam’s sin lay not so much in the sin itself but in what his sin caused, which was separation from God’s kingdom. This is because through his act of disobedience, Adam stepped out of and away from God’s Lordship in his life. Essentially therefore he was saying, “I don’t want You to be my Lord. I want to be my own lord and exercise self-rule in my own life”. As a result of this decision and its horrific consequences, Adam severed his intimate spiritual tie with God, and entered into eternal spiritual darkness. Through his rebellion he stepped outside of God’s manifested presence that had given him an enriched spiritual life. His foundation, and that of all his descendants, was then changed. Instead of having the light of God within, he was lowered into a state of spiritual darkness, devoid of the indwelling light of God. Man was then never able to raise himself from this diminished and degenerated position, for it is beyond man’s power to rise, by his own efforts, to a higher spiritual state. That which was at the root of this spiritual corruption could only be dealt with through judgement, namely at the Cross of Calvary, where an unthinkable price was paid to redeem mankind from the state and condition of sin. The curse of death or sin was therefore passed down through the genetic bloodline, for the life (or death) is in the blood, as Deuteronomy 12:23 tells us: DEUTERONOMY 12:23 Only be sure that you eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and you may not eat the life with the flesh. LEVITICUS 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood . . . Before the Fall, Adam’s blood was sinless. After Adam sinned, however, his blood became polluted, in the sense that there was no light or life of God in it. Because Adam was the federal head of mankind, the result of his sin of disobedience was then passed down to all his offspring through the bloodline. This result was that both spiritual and natural death came upon all mankind. For this reason, we, as Adam’s descendants, are all born into a state of sin - for the life, or conversely death, is in the blood. This consequence resulted from Adam’s sin, for “as through one man sin entered into the world.” (Romans 5:12). Adam fell in the Garden of Eden. From this point he was then living on a plane of existence that meant he was dead spiritually and thus separated from God’s manifested presence in his spirit, the presence that brings connection and relationship. It also meant that Adam would now age and die physically. Today death continues to prove that we in the flesh are still under the curse. From that plane then all are born to die physically, and from the beginning of life, to be separated spiritually from God. From this plane there was also no way back to the original plane of existence that gave great blessing through relationship with God and the indwelling of His presence. “. . . In doing so, he allowed Satan to become his master, thereby polluting himself not only spiritually, but also physically, with the presence of death. . .” Jesus’ Blood Was Sinless We have learned that the life or death is in the blood, and that mankind inherited Adam’s fallen nature through the polluted Adamic bloodline. Because we are all, of necessity, descendants of Adam, we are also all partakers of the curse of original sin (the state of sin). The scriptures declare, however, that Jesus, born of Mary, was sinless. 2 CORINTHIANS 5:21 For He (God) has made Him (Jesus) to be sin (a sin offering) for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. 1 JOHN 3:5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin. How could this be so? The Catholic Church in attempting to answer this intriguing question has long postulated that Mary was sinless. This belief is clearly refuted by the Word of God which declares that “. . . There is none righteous, no not one” (Romans 3:10), “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Jesus was not born without sin because of His mother’s sinless state - this view is simply without any scriptural credibility. Joseph was not Jesus’ father, for Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. ISAIAH 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel. MATTHEW 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as His mother Mary was espoused (engaged) to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. MATTHEW 1:19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example (expose her to public disgrace), was minded to put her away privily (to break the engagement quietly). MATTHEW 1:20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto yourself Mary as your wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.” Note: Some Christians take the view that Jesus was born without the curse of original sin because He was conceived fully by the Holy Spirit. In other words, just as Joseph’s sperm was not involved, neither was Mary’s egg. Conception was brought about completely by the Holy Spirit, and Mary’s womb served as an incubator or “house” in which baby Jesus developed for nine months. In regard to this belief, Mary was then in the position of a surrogate mother rather than a natural one because her egg was not a part of the process. So God was Jesus’ father and Jesus did not inherit the stain of original sin. In addition to this, for the whole time Jesus was here on earth, He walked as a perfect man Who committed no sin. Indeed the Word of God tells us that Jesus never sinned once in all that He did. HEBREWS 4:15 For we have not an High Priest Who cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Thus Jesus neither inherited sin nor committed sin during His whole lifetime here on earth. This was of vital importance in regard to the acceptance of His Blood as the ransom payment for mankind. HEBREWS 1:9 You (Jesus the man) have loved righteousness, and hated iniquity (wickedness); therefore God, even Your God (Your Father), has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your fellows (has put You above all). 1 PETER 2:22 Who did no sin, neither was guile (deceit, hypocrisy) found in His mouth: 2 CORINTHIANS 5:21 For He has made Him to be sin (a sin offering) for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. So because of the Divine circumstances of Jesus’ conception, Jesus’ Blood remained unpolluted by sin and He alone of all people born into the world was not born into a state of spiritual death. He alone did not inherit the fallen nature of Adam. As we know, however, all Adam’s progeny inherited the same polluted blood and with this, the spiritual position which God calls “death.” THE IMPUTATION OF ADAM'S SIN What is imputed sin? “In the Garden of Eden, when Adam sinned by eating fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, that act of disobedience produced a grave, two-fold effect on the rest of humanity. The first effect was original sin and the second was imputed sin. Adam, as the head of the human race, caused every person after him to be born into a fallen condition or sinful state. This effect of Adam’s sin is known as original sin and is often referred to as inherited sin. All human beings have inherited a sinful nature through Adam’s original act of disobedience (Romans 5:12–14). In addition to receiving a fallen nature, all people who came after Adam have been credited with the guilt of Adam’s sin (Romans 5:18). That is the meaning of imputed sin. An imputation is an attribution or a crediting of something. Imputed sin is Adam’s guilt attributed to or credited to us. All humans are counted as having sinned in Adam and thus deserving the same punishment for sin as Adam. Imputed sin affects our standing before God (we are guilty, condemned), whereas original sin affects our character (we are morally ruined). Both original and imputed sin make us subject to God’s judgment. “. . .Both original and imputed sin make us subject to God’s judgment. . .” The term impute is used both legally and financially and means “to designate any action, word, or thing as credited to another person’s account.” Biblically, Adam’s sin was imputed to all his descendants, and they are to be dealt with as guilty. It does not mean they are personally guilty of Adam’s sin, only that his sin was credited to their account, and thus every person participates in the guilt and penalty of that original transgression. The penalty for sin is death. We are subject to spiritual death, or separation from God in this present life, due to imputed sin: “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1–3). If we persist in this state of separation from God, the result is the second death, which is eternal (Revelation 20:11–15). Physical death is also a penalty for imputed sin: “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). The guilt of Adam’s sin was directly charged or imputed to the whole human family so that all people are now subject to death (Romans 6:23). The apostle Paul teaches imputed sin in various passages: “The many died by the trespass of the one man,” “One trespass resulted in condemnation for all people,” “Through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners” (Romans 5:15, 18, 19), and “In Adam all die” (1 Corinthians 15:22). The good news regarding original and imputed sin is that God already had a remedy, a sovereign plan of salvation, even before Adam sinned in the Garden. The remedy for imputed sin is the atoning work of Jesus Christ: “For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:19). The moment a sinner believes in Jesus and accepts His gift of salvation, the righteousness of Christ is credited to his or her account: “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). Believers possess imputed righteousness. “. . .The good news regarding original and imputed sin is that God already had a remedy, a sovereign plan of salvation, even before Adam sinned in the Garden. . .” As all people are in Adam, so all believers are in Christ. Being in Christ means that His righteousness is now ours. Through Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross, the sin of humanity was imputed to Christ. Jesus took on Himself the penalty for our sin: “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification” (Romans 4:25). Believers are not yet perfected in righteousness. Nonetheless, they are clothed in the imputed righteousness of Christ: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus answered the demands of justice for our sin and satisfied the requirements of the Law (Romans 3:25–26; Colossians 2:14).1 The doctrine of the imputation The doctrine of the imputation of Adam's sin means that when Adam first sinned, that sin (and its blame) was rightly regarded by God to be our sin as well. John Piper writes: The problem with the human race is not most deeply that everybody does various kinds of sins— those sins are real, they are huge and they are enough to condemn us. Paul is very concerned about them. But the deepest problem is that behind all our depravity and all our guilt and all our sinning, there is a deep mysterious connection with Adam whose sin became our sin and whose judgment became our judgment. (John Piper, "Adam, Christ, and Justification: Part 1") God ordains that that there be a union of some kind that makes Adam's sin to be our sin so that our condemnation is just. ("Adam, Christ, and Justification: Part 5") The biblical basis for this doctrine of imputed sin is discussed thoroughly in John Piper's five sermons on Romans 5:12-21. Here we will simply seek to summarize some of the primary evidence from this text. “. . .But the deepest problem is that behind all our depravity and all our guilt and all our sinning, there is a deep mysterious connection with Adam whose sin became our sin and whose judgment became our judgment. . .” Sin Entered the World Through One Man First, Paul states in 5:12 that all sinned in Adam: "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned." Paul seems to be equating the "because all sinned" with "through one man sin entered into the world." Sin is Not Imputed Where There is no Law Second, in verses 13-14 Paul adds a clarification which confirms that he does indeed have the imputation of Adam's sin in view in the phrase "because all sinned" rather than our individual sins. He states: "For until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come." In other words, Paul concedes that personal sin was prevalent in the world before Moses ("until the Law sin was in the world..."). But he adds that these personal sins were not the ultimate reason people died in that time period: "But sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses." As Piper summarizes: People died even though their own individual sins against the Mosaic law were not the reason for dying; they weren't counted. Instead, the reason all died is because all sinned in Adam. Adam's sin was imputed to them. (John Piper, "Adam, Christ, and Justification: Part 2") Death Reigned Even Over Those Who Did Not Sin Like Adam Third, Paul's statement at the end of verse 14 further clarifies that he does not have personal sins in view as the reason for human death: "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam." Piper notes: In other words, yes Paul concedes that there are other kinds of laws before the Mosaic Law, and yes people broke those laws, and yes, one could argue that these sins are the root cause of death and condemnation in the world. But, Paul says, there is a problem with that view, because death reigned "even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam." There are those who died without seeing a law and choosing to sin against it. Who are they? I think the group of people begging for an explanation is infants. Infants died. They could not understand personal revelation. They could not read the law on their hearts and choose to obey or disobey it. Yet they died. Why? Paul answers: the sin of Adam and the imputation of that sin to the human race. In other words, death reigned over all humans, even over those who did not sin against a known and understood law. Therefore, the conclusion is, to use the words of verse 18: "through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men." So the purpose of verses 13 and 14 are to clarify verse 12 in this way: At the end of verse 12 the words, "death spread to all men, because all sinned" mean that "death spread to all because all sinned in Adam." Death is not first and most deeply because of our own individual sinning, but because of what happened in Adam. (Ibid) Paul's Emphasis Upon the One Transgression Fourth, at least five times in the following verses Paul says that death comes upon all humans because of the one sin of Adam: Verse 15: by the transgression of the one the many died Verse 16: the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation Verse 17: by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one Verse 18: through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men We are all condemned not ultimately because of our individual sins, but because of one sin (verse 18). We die not ultimately because of personal sins, but because of Adam's one transgression (verse 17). It is not ultimately from our personal sins that we die, but rather "by the transgression of the one the many died." Paul states over and over again that it is because of one sin that death and condemnation belong to us all. In other words, we are connected to Adam such that his one sin is regarded as our sin and we are worthy of condemnation for it. “. . .Justification does not concern a change in our characters, the infusion of something inherent in us. Rather, it involves a change in our standing before God. . .“ The Direct Statement of Verse 19 Fifth, verse 19 provides us with a direct statement of imputation: For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. Paul here says that we are made sinners by the sin of Adam. Due to his disobedience, we are regarded as sinners. We cannot take "made sinners" here to be referring to original sin in which we become inherently sinful because it is paralleled with "made righteous." The phrase "made righteous" in this context is referring to the great truth of justification. Justification does not concern a change in our characters, the infusion of something inherent in us. Rather, it involves a change in our standing before God. In justification, God declares us righteous because He imputes to us the righteousness of Christ--not because He makes us internally righteous (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21). Thus, when Paul says "made righteous" here, he means "imputed with righteousness" not "infused with righteousness." Since "made sinners" is paralleled with "made righteous," it must also be referring to imputation. Thus, Paul is saying that we are all made sinners in the sense that we are imputed with Adam's sin. 2 THE PENALTY OF SIN IS DEATH Background Reading: James 1:14-15 A major physical result of Adam’s sin was that his body was eventually overtaken by physical death. Originally man sinned and therefore man must die. Not only is man born into a state of sin, he possesses a sin nature and he sins. He is therefore a sinner by birth and through his actions. Death was the judgement for sin since “. . . the wages of sin is death . . .” (Romans 6:23). Death therefore is the great leveller, the inevitable outcome of each person’s life. In this age, none, Saint or sinner, rich or poor, can escape the final and ultimate conclusion that they must one day die. Death then becomes the evidence that silences every attempt to transfer man’s guilt, even partially, to Satan or anyone else. Death is the proof and confirmation of sin. ROMANS 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let’s examine the meaning of the word “death” in this scripture. Whenever the Lord is speaking of death in this context, He is not only referring to physical death, He is also speaking of spiritual death. “. . .Not only is man born into a state of sin, he possesses a sin nature and he sins. He is therefore a sinner by birth and through his actions. . .” In the beginning Adam had perfect communication with God. It was not long before he lost this, through sinning, because “the wages of sin is death” (separation from God). As we have learned, through Adam’s sin, death also entered his physical body as well. It was then passed on to all his offspring, which is everyone who has ever been born into this world. God did not create man to die, but to live forever in a perfect body. Through sin, God’s creation became marred and subject to death. This was never God’s intention - but His plan of redemption was the way of escape, the way to restore to man what he had lost, both spiritually and physically. The new birth restores man to spiritual life. With the Rapture, redeemed man will also regain that which he lost physically - and more - for the glorified body is far superior to the perfect body which Adam and Eve possessed. SIN SEPARATES God has shown us in His Word that if there is sin in man’s spirit, He cannot bless him or fellowship with him in the way He desires. ISAIAH 59:2 But your iniquities have separated (caused separation) between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear. ROMANS 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: ROMANS 6:23 For the wages of sin is death (separation from God); but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. “. . .Death then becomes the evidence that silences every attempt to transfer man’s guilt, even partially, to Satan or anyone else. Death is the proof and confirmation of sin. . .” The literal meanings of the Hebrew and Greek words variously translated as “sin” and “sinner” describe the true nature of sin in its many forms. Sin is: 1. Transgression: this word signifies willful deviation from, and therefore rebellion against, God’s laws (Psalm 51:1; Hosea 7:13). 2. Iniquity: signifies an offence, whether intentional or not, against God’s laws (Romans 1:21-23). 3. Missing the mark: a failure to meet the Divine standard and so not share in the prize, can also be defined simply as sin (Romans 3:23). 4. Trespass: an unfaithful treacherous act (2 Chronicles 26:18). 5. Lawlessness or spiritual anarchy: a total disregard for God’s laws (1 Timothy 1:9). 6. Unbelief: or an insult to God’s credibility, is also rendered as disobedience (Hebrews 3:12,19). Sin originated with Satan, entered the world through Adam and became universal, resulting in spiritual death for all mankind. Briefly, sin can be an action (deed, word or thought) or a state (position). We are born into a state of sin because we are descendants of Adam. And we commit actions of sin when we violate God’s commandments and laws. So sin can be referenced to: 1. The state of sin into which we are all born (separation from God, also called “spiritual death”). Another term used in this context is “original sin.” 2. Actions (deeds, thoughts etc.) which violate God’s Word and commands, and are thus acts of unfaithfulness to our commitment to Jesus. 3. The sin nature which empowers us to commit the sin we have willed to do. After sin entered mankind, God could not have anything to do with man in a deep spiritual sense. God wanted to be close to man as He had been originally, but He could not, because God cannot fellowship, in a true sense, with a person who is in a state of sin. Our spirit must be without sin before God can receive us into His Kingdom and therefore His presence. This can only happen as we receive Jesus as Lord and Saviour, and become clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Spiritually speaking, therefore, death is darkness and life is light. Life comes from God for God is Light, and those who have life have the Light of God in and around their spirit-man (1 John 5:12). “. . .Sin originated with Satan, entered the world through Adam and became universal, resulting in spiritual death for all mankind. . .” Most basically defined, sin is anything that does not conform to the character and nature of God. Sin is not only doing that which is wrong, in thought, word or deed, sin is also not doing that which is right, morally and spiritually. This means that there are sins of commission - wrongdoing - and sins of omission - not doing right. Without God in your life, positionally and experientially, you will sin. Only through Jesus Christ, by the ministry of the Holy Spirit, can we avoid sin and walk in righteousness. God’s will shows us the path of righteousness in which no sin lies. However we must seek, find and embrace His will for in it alone does His grace become available to us. Sin blocks His grace from being imparted. When we, as Christians, want the darkness of sin, we frustrate His grace from being imparted to us (Galatians 2:21). When Christians sin without repentance, they invite darkness of some degree or measure into their lives. This darkness becomes an obstacle to fellowship with God, even though their relationship with Him continues. As stated, sin will frustrate the grace of God, for He cannot give Divine enablement when His children desire to hold onto the sin and darkness they are in. For the unsaved, the wage of sin is death (spiritual death). For the saved, the wage of sin is darkness (and bondage). As we have said, sin is anything that does not conform to the character and nature of God. This means we need the grace of the Divine Nature to energize our human nature so that we do not sin - for no one can conform to God’s righteous standard without His help. We need God in us, energizing us as we flow in the Holy Spirit. Any sin we commit must be put under the Blood of Calvary through repentance so that God can forgive and cleanse us. Repentance allows heaven’s graces to be imparted so that our sin can be dealt with. What gives God the legal right to forgive and cleanse us, so that the sin is never again to be held to our account, is the finished work of the Cross - the Atonement. The penalty for our sin has been paid. Not only this but God has made us partakers of His Divine Nature so we can both will and do of His good pleasure - so we can live righteously. We can never do this in our own strength. If good works are done in our own strength, according to our own leading, this is flesh and so is sin - because we could and would claim the glory for such works (Galatians 5:17). We are to be led and empowered by the Holy Spirit in all we do (Romans 8:1; Galatians 2:20). As the scriptures tell us: ROMANS 14:23 . . . whatever does not originate and proceed from faith (the union of belief and trust - the Divine Nature is thus involved here) is sin - that is, whatever is done without a conviction of its approval by God is sinful. (Amp.) Rossier speaks of this verse as follows: “Paul encouraged new converts by bringing up another crucial principle - any action is sin if it does not stem from faith. In other words, a person’s conscience feels “condemned” (kekritai) if the action does not arise out “of faith” (ek pisteos). If a person experiences a hesitation and yet acts in spite of that hesitation, then a sense of condemnation exists. Therefore, even though other people may do something, if you do not feel comfortable with it yourself, do not do it!” 3 In all the major decisions we make in life, we should seek the Word of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit. As Dake says, “Any thing done to violate the faith principle by which one is saved, and by which he lives (Romans 1:17; Hebrews 10:38), is sin. One must know beyond all doubt or hesitation in his mind that what he allows is in perfect accord with the Word of God before he acts.” 4 “. . .Sin is not only doing that which is wrong, in thought, word or deed, sin is also not doing that which is right, morally and spiritually. . .” Thus we must choose light rather than darkness - day by day, minute by minute, so that although we are in the Light, we will walk experientially in righteousness (light) rather than the unrighteousness of the flesh (darkness). As the Word tells us: 1 JOHN 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. All this takes place as the grace of God is imparted to us in an experiential sense. Positionally, however, when a sinner physically dies, their grace period of physical life comes to an end. They will then face the same judgement as their father Satan - eternal death. Each person is therefore given the period of their own lifetime in which to repent and receive Jesus as Lord. This is the message of the Gospel - as we have said, there is no “second chance” beyond the grave (Hebrews 9:27). REDEMPTION THROUGH IMPUTATION Background Reading: Romans Chapter 4 2 CORINTHIANS 5:21 For He has made Him to be sin (a sin offering) for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. We know that Jesus’ Blood was sinless, and He was “without blemish and without spot” (1 Pete 1:19) and so a perfect offering. As we have indicated, the statement in the above verse (2 Corinthians 5:21) “He has made Him to be sin for us” means that Christ bore our punishment, not our sin. The Greek word for “sin” in this verse can also be translated as “sin offering” or a “sacrifice for sin.” One writer comments further in regard to this issue: “The phrase, “Who knew so sin” (2 Corinthians 5:21), refers to the fact and graphically so, that He was not guilty. He was perfectly pure. This idea is thus expressed by Peter when he wrote, “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22). As well, Hebrews 7:26 says, “He was ‘holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners’.” In all respects, in every way, and in all conceivable senses, the Lord Jesus was pure and holy. If He had not been, He would not have been qualified to make an Atonement. Hence, the Sacred writers are everywhere at great pains to keep this idea prominent, for on this depends the whole superstructure of the Plan of Salvation. The phrase, “knew no sin,” is an expression of great beauty and dignity. It indicates His entire and perfect purity. He was altogether unacquainted with sin; He was a stranger to transgressions; He was conscious of no sin, He committed none. He had a mind and heart perfectly free from pollution, and His entire life was perfectly pure and holy in the Sight of God.” 5 (underlines added) Scripture thus attests to the fact of Christ’s sinlessness. He became eligible, through His sinlessness and His worth as the acceptable sacrifice, to become the Lamb of God, Who would pay the penalty for the sins of the whole of mankind (John 1:29). Through identification and substitution, Christ took our place, before a just and loving God, at Calvary, the altar of sacrifice. Our Lord Jesus did not redeem us by His Deity, but through the Incarnation of God becoming man. As the sin offering, Christ bore the weight of the wrath of God’s judgement upon mankind’s sin, and it was the shedding of His precious Blood which paid the price for our redemption (1 Peter 1:18-19). This was Christ’s work upon the Cross, and this is what He accomplished - the payment of the ransom price. Now the sinner need only look to the Cross for the message of salvation, finding their answer to the greatest of life’s questions in the substitutionary death of Christ on their behalf, and the shedding of His precious Blood (Romans 5:8; Colossians 1:14). This is the basis of the Gospel message, and will always be the foundation stone of the Christian faith. There is no other means of redemption, for the price was paid at Calvary when the sinless Blood of Christ our Passover Lamb was shed for the sin of the whole world (1 Corinthians 5:7). “. . .Through identification and substitution, Christ took our place, before a just and loving God, at Calvary, the altar of sacrifice. Our Lord Jesus did not redeem us by His Deity, but through the Incarnation of God becoming man. . .” Jesus became the substitute in our place by identifying with us. As a result, He, though sinless, had to be treated as though He were sin. Without this substitution, Christ taking our place, and we identifying with Him, there could be no salvation. Christ identified with mankind’s sin regarding its penalty, and man identifies with Christ’s righteousness through faith. It has been said that “our sins were the judicial ground of the sufferings of Christ, so that those sufferings were a satisfaction of justice; and His righteousness is the judicial ground of our acceptance with God, so that our pardon is an act of justice. This is a justification, or a declaration that justice is satisfied.” 6 (underlines added) Greek scholar Dr Bernard Rossier also writes in regard to this important verse in Corinthians: 2 CORINTHIANS 5:21 For He has made Him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. “The monumental privilege and responsibility of being ambassadors rests on our shoulders precisely because God “made” (epoiesen) him “sin” (hamartian) “for us” (huper hemon). People have all kinds of ideas about what this concise but cogent statement means. In order to understand it scripturally, we must first look at the qualifier that begins the sentence and therefore occupies the position of most emphasis. “The one not knowing sin” (ton me gnonta hamartion) begins the verse in the original Greek and it governs the remainder of the verse. Christ was completely conscious of His own absolute sinlessness (John 8:46). He had no personal acquaintance with sin. This applies to the fact that He was born without a sinful nature (Matthew 1:18), and to the fact that He never committed one single act of sin (Hebrews 4:15). He came as “the last Adam” (I Corinthians 15:45), and Adam was not created with a sinful nature; therefore, Christ came on the same basis that Adam did. The difference lies in the indubitable fact that Adam sinned by disobeying God, but Jesus never disobeyed God in any way whatsoever. Hence, the statement “He made him to be sin” must refer to the imputation of our sins to the sinless sacrifice. The one who knew no sin was treated as sin for us. “. . .Our sins were the judicial ground of the sufferings of Christ, so that those sufferings were a satisfaction of justice; and His righteousness is the judicial ground of our acceptance with God, so that our pardon is an act of justice. . .” In another contrast, Paul said that Christ became a curse for us (Galatians 3:13). He vicariously suffered the consequences of our sin (Isaiah 53). This extends even to the ultimate separation of a soul from the presence of God (Mark 15:34). God had to forsake Him in order for the supreme price to be paid. Without that payment, all of us would face eternal separation from God in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15). Because Christ’s sacrifice was an infinite one, there is no way we can possibly fathom all that He suffered by having our sins imputed to Him. He did all this, though, “in order that we might become [the] righteousness of God in him” (hina hemeis gend -metha diakaiosune theou en auto). In other words, our sins were imputed to Him so His righteousness would be imputed to us. Thank God for His grace!” 7 (underlines added) In relation to the imputation of our sins to Christ, let us also examine the use of what was termed the “scapegoat” in Old Testament ceremonial practice. Jesus became our “scapegoat,” for the physical type-pattern was borne out in Him in a spiritual sense at Calvary. The word “scapegoat” comes from the scriptures (Leviticus 16:7-10; 20-22), where we are told of two goats which were to be used on behalf of the people and their sin on the Day of Atonement. The two goats combined constituted one sin offering. For this reason they were to be presented to the Lord together, as one offering, at the door of the Tabernacle of the Congregation. One goat was to be sacrificed “for the Lord,” and typified Christ’s death at Calvary. The other, the scapegoat, was to be sent away into the wilderness, being called the “goat of departure.” This took place after the High Priest laid hands on the head of the scapegoat, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, and imputing them to this goat. This was to symbolize the imputation of our sin to Christ on the cross, the scapegoat therefore typifying our sins being imputed to Christ and thus removed. Two goats were needed to provide a proper type-pattern of the great Atonement at Calvary - to which all of this pointed, and which it all symbolized. Both were needed to demonstrate what Calvary accomplished for mankind, for one goat could not typify all. “The goat that died typified the death of Christ which addressed the root cause of sin; the scapegoat (the other goat) represented all acts of sin removed and taken away” (Leviticus 16:9) (E.S.B.) LEVITICUS 16:20 And when he (Aaron, the High Priest) has made an end of reconciling the Holy Place, and the Tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat: LEVITICUS 16:21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them (signifying imputation) upon the head of the goat, and shall send him (the goat) away by the hand of a fit man (the man who had been appointed to do the job) into the wilderness: “. . .Two goats were needed to provide a proper type-pattern of the great Atonement at Calvary - the goat that died typified the death of Christ which addressed the root cause of sin; the scapegoat represented all acts of sin removed and taken away. . .” The blood of the first goat was shed, pointing to Calvary and to Jesus, the One who died on the Cross for us. The second goat being taken into the wilderness and left there represented the sin of the people being imputed to him and then cast into the sea of God’s forgetfulness. This was a visible sign to the people that their sins had been dealt with. PSALM 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. MICAH 7:19 . . . You (oh God) will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Jesus’ sacrifice provided all this for us in a true spiritual sense as He fulfilled spiritually that which both goats typified. Firstly our sins were imputed to Him, the sinless One. Then He laid down His life as the sacrifice for these sins, shedding His Blood and paying the ultimate price of death. Now our sins, as we repent of them, are washed away by Jesus’ Blood, never to be remembered. Amen. Jesus fulfilled in a complete sense all the type-patterns in the Old Testament which pointed to Calvary. These type-patterns were, according to God’s foreknowledge, a result of Calvary, even though they were forerunners. He came, as He said, not “to destroy (the Law and the Prophets) but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17-18). Jesus was never anything other than holy and pure, even on the Cross. He never became blackened by our sin. Rather our sin was imputed (or legally attributed) to Him, and He became our representative in order that we might become “the righteousness of God in Him.” Jesus became, in another sense, “a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). Our sin was therefore imputed to Him so that His righteousness could be imputed to us. We become justified, as though we had never sinned, because He became “a sin offering” for us, being treated as though He was a sinner. Both positions are legal positions, for Jesus never experienced sin or entered into an actual state of sin. He was “clothed” with our sin so we could be “clothed” with His righteousness. This is the basis of the great exchange which took place at Calvary. The one difference which exists in this analogy is that when Jesus was “clothed” with our sin, He was not tainted in any way by it. We, however, received the cleansing of our spirit by His Blood when we were “clothed” with His righteousness. “. . .Jesus was never anything other than holy and pure, even on the Cross. He never became blackened by our sin. Rather our sin was imputed (or legally attributed) to Him. . .” In order for Christ to become our sin offering, and the sin of the world to be imputed to Him as our sinless substitute, Jesus had to be forsaken by the Father and the Holy Spirit - for God cannot associate with sin (or even, it appears, the Sin Bearer when He bore the punishment of the sin of the world). We witness the withdrawal of the Father and the Holy Spirit from Jesus in His agonized words, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Mark 15:34). These same Words had been prophesied centuries before, along with other obvious references to the crucifixion, and are found in Psalm 22. At this point Jesus the man was forsaken by God the Father and God the Holy Spirit for the first time in His life. They had to abandon Him for the ultimate price to be paid. Jesus’ spirit, however, was not polluted with sin at this time, as the spirit of unregenerate man is polluted with sin. Therefore He did not need to be born again, for Jesus was righteous before the Cross, on the Cross and after the Cross. Jesus willingly laid His life down for the purpose of death (John 10:17-18). He then died of a ruptured heart, and in this way His precious Blood was shed, causing His physical death. He died, however, not an unregenerate sinner but a righteous man, the holy Lamb of God. In the study of Biblical theology, the doctrine of spiritual imputation shows that sin or righteousness can be imputed or charged to another’s account in a legal sense. Applying this doctrine to Jesus and His sacrifice as the sin offering, we find that He did not have to become sin, but remained sinless in order to bear the punishment for our guilt which was imputed to Him. In other words, Jesus did not bear the wickedness and filth of our sinful nature, but He did bear the terrible punishment that should have been poured out upon us. Therefore, although innocent, Jesus paid the penalty for our sin, the penalty that we ourselves should have suffered, namely death. However if man does pay this penalty for his own sin, then eternal separation from the Father, ultimately in the Lake of Fire, will result - for man, of and by himself, has nothing else with which to satisfy justice. “. . .In the study of Biblical theology, the doctrine of spiritual imputation shows that sin or righteousness can be imputed or charged to another’s account in a legal sense. . .” Our punishment was dealt out to Him. Our sins, in regard to moral character, are our own. They are not imputed to us, and only in a legal sense could they become someone else’s. However, Jesus Christ as the substitutionary sacrifice could take upon Himself the punishment for our sins. We are speaking here of legal liabilities which Christ assumed on our behalf, not the transfer of actual transgressions. So the transfer of our sins to Jesus Christ was not a transfer of actual transgressions. This did not occur and could not occur, even though Christ made Himself liable to endure the penalty for our sins. To have been anything other than innocent would have violated the Old Testament type (Exodus 12:5; 1 Peter 1:18-19) and would have disqualified Him, as far as God was concerned, from becoming an acceptable substitute for us. At all times Jesus was holy, and never at any time did our sin taint His being. If our sin had affected Him in any way, He would have become ineligible to pay the price. Legally speaking, imputation of sin also allows for imputation of righteousness, that is if the sacrifice involved is righteous, without sin, and deemed worthy to meet the requirements of perfect justice. To be merely without sin would not be enough. Otherwise the Blood of baby Jesus could have paid the price. Testing the value, or verifying the worth of Jesus as a substitutionary sacrifice, was necessary. Subjected to every testing, Jesus had faith to begin with and to end with, and never deviated from trusting in God’s Word, and obeying the will of the Father. Thus He proved Himself worthy to stand in the gap between God and man, and to bridge the gulf by the giving of His own life. Therefore the work of Calvary required not only a sinless sacrifice, but a sacrifice which had been tested until its worth was determined and verified. Although Christ was always sinless, His value as the sacrifice had to meet the demands of perfect justice. As a boy, a teenager and a man, He was sinless. But the worth of the sacrifice had to be sufficient to pay the enormous debt of mankind’s sin. At the age of thirty three, with around three years ministry behind Him and a lifetime of testing, Jesus confronted the ultimate test - Calvary. In the heat of battle He maintained faith in His Father’s Word - in the face of injustice, torture, rejection and the Father’s desertion. Here in the final furnace of affliction He was to prove that indeed He was worthy to act as the sacrifice - to become our substitute and to pay the terrible price required. PSALM 22:1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? why are You so far from helping Me, and from the words of My roaring? (. . Jesus cried this Word while hanging on the Cross [Matthew 27:46]. This portrayal glorifies Him as the Sin-Offering. It presents a sinless Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, forsaken by God, but only in the sense that God allowed Him to die. Such a fact is unique in history and will never need to be repeated. This sinless Man – Himself God manifest in the flesh – was made to be a Sin-Offering, in effect, the penalty of sin, which, in this case, was physical death [II Corinthians 5:21], and thereby pierced with a sword of Divine Wrath [Zechariah 13:7]. In that judgement, God dealt infinitely with sin, and in so dealing with it in the Person of His Beloved Son, showed His wrath against sin and His love for the sinner. Thus, He vindicated Himself and, as well, redeemed man. God revealed Himself at Calvary as in no other place or way. What the depth of horror was to which the sinless soul of Jesus sank under the Wrath of God as the Sin-Offering is unfathomable for men or angels; therefore, our efforts to explain these sufferings will, of necessity, fall short of that which He really experienced.) (E.S.B.) “. . .The work of Calvary required not only a sinless sacrifice, but a sacrifice which had been tested until its worth was determined and verified. His value as the sacrifice had to meet the demands of perfect justice. . .” In summary, as regards to the subject of identification, Christ identified with man when He was born of a virgin, becoming, as He called Himself, the Son of Man. In this way, having no original sin or incumbent sin nature, He became the second Adam. After being tested and proven as a man, and remaining sinless, Jesus was eligible to become man’s substitutionary sacrifice. Hence “He became sin” (the sin offering) in that He identified, in a legal sense, with man’s sin by means of that sin being imputed, or legally attributed, to Him. Then He could stand in our place and take, for all of mankind, the punishment for our sin - which was death. When “the Word became flesh,” Christ identified with man - and this was a conditional or experiential position. However His substitutionary role in providing for mankind’s salvation was a legal position. As far as the Law of God was concerned, once Jesus entered into this legal position, God’s punishment was metered out to Him as a man, exactly the same as it would have been for any sinner. Such was the legal substitutionary position into which Christ entered, even though He did not sin. Hence the penalty of death was required. Such was the worth of His sacrifice, however, that through Him, and the shedding of His sinless Blood, all of mankind could be saved. Now all those who identify with Christ through repentance and acceptance of His Lordship are not just positionally saved in their spirit-man. By means of God’s grace they are also conditionally saved through God, the Holy Spirit, coming to dwell in the heart of the Believer. Man is thus sanctified and all the darkness into which he was born is replaced by God’s saving presence. Christ conditionally identified with man through the Incarnation. Then He positionally identified with man as the substitutionary sacrifice, so that our sins could be imputed to Him. Because He suffered vicariously on our behalf, man can now positionally and conditionally be identified “in Christ.” By this means, God can now legally impute Christ’s righteousness to us, and, if we are legally righteous in Christ, then God has also made us conditionally righteous in Christ in our spirit-man. While the costly redemption price has been paid, those who remain outside of Christ remain dead to God, being sinners doomed to the second death - the Lake of Fire. The price has been paid but the individual must accept this price and its significance for them personally. “. . .Christ conditionally identified with man through the Incarnation. Then He positionally identified with man as the substitutionary sacrifice, so that our sins could be imputed to Him. . .” While all Believers are conditionally sanctified in their spirit-man, which is cleansed from all sin, the outward man also continues to need renewal day by day. In other words, so that ongoing transformation can take place, our minds need the grace of God’s Word on a daily basis. Change then takes place by God’s grace, the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and human effort. This is a joint effort as man yields to God and cooperates with Him, so receiving the grace needed to change. As Christians we should be forever working towards making our experiential condition the same as our position in Christ, and so becoming more and more like Him. Again, even though our spirit-man is conditionally sanctified by the Blood of the Lamb, our minds are not sanctified until the Holy Spirit brings renewal, all by His grace which has been afforded to us through the Cross of Christ. May you have the victory in Christ. Amen! For further information or teaching material to help you grow in the Christian faith, please visit: CROSSROADS INTERNATIONAL FULL GOSPEL MINISTRIES crossroadsministries.org.au NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTESNOTES THE SALVATION MESSAGE Congratulations on receiving Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour. In doing so, you have made the most important decision of your life! This small study is only a very brief outline of the salvation message, to start you on your way in the Christian walk. All the points are important to grasp, so study it carefully, expanding the booklet where you can. Know, however, that Christianity is more than escapism. It is founded on and nurtured through a relationship between the Father and His son or daughter. Christianity is about the grace of God through which we have been saved, and the grace we need daily to walk the way He wants us to walk, faithful to Him. It was once said by a great philosopher, “Irrespective as to how much education one may possess, if one does not truly have a Bible education as well, one is not truly educated.” To this we could add that Bible education is the foundation on which man builds his character. Therefore true education is character building. Only the Spirit of God can teach man the eternal truths that pertain to such character development. Only then can man obey the two greatest commandments: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength . . .” (Mark 12:30). “You shall love your neighbour as yourself . . . ” (Mark 12:31). “. . .Christianity is more than escapism. It is founded on and nurtured through a relationship between the Father and His son or daughter. . .” Unless we, by the grace of God, not only believe but also trust in the teachings of the Bible, we will not have been truly educated in the things that matter, the things of eternal value. Background Reading: John 3:1-18 By accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour you have escaped an eternal future of everlasting torment in the Lake of Fire. As a result of your commitment, your name is now written in a book in heaven called the LAMB’S BOOK OF LIFE. As Revelation Ch.20 tells us: REVELATION 20:10 And the devil who deceived them was cast into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone . . . and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever. REVELATION 20:15 . . . And whosoever was not found written in the BOOK OF LIFE was cast into the Lake of Fire (and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever). This shows that there is life after physical death. Though your body will die, you (the spirit-man, the real you) will live on forever - for you are an eternal personality. God’s Word also tells us that we are three-part beings. We each have a spirit and a soul (mind), and we live in a physical body. The body can be thought of as the suitcase which houses the real us while we live on the earth. 1 THESSALONIANS 5:23 . . . And I pray God (that) your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. When a person’s physical body dies, their spirit and soul, the real person, will continue to live on for eternity. Therefore, in a million years time, we will all still be in existence. Where we live for eternity, however, will be determined by whether or not we received Jesus into our lives as Lord and Saviour while we lived on earth. When a person dies, their spirit and soul will go immediately to either heaven or hell, depending on whether they belong to Jesus or not. “. . .There is life after physical death – for you are an eternal personality. . .” Note that the Lord Jesus Christ clearly states that He is THE WAY and NO ONE can come to the Father but by Him. JOHN 14:6 Jesus said unto him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by Me.” He does not say that He is A WAY - as if there are other ways! Definitely not! Jesus is THE ONLY WAY and there is no other way. No Church is THE WAY, no religion is THE WAY, no religious leader is THE WAY, His mother Mary is not THE WAY, good works and self-effort are not THE WAY. Only the crucified, buried, risen and living Christ is THE WAY and NO ONE comes to the Father in heaven except through Him. He also says that anyone who comes to Him, He will never cast out. Therefore the needy sinner who believes in the Lord Jesus and comes to Him with a repentant heart, seeking a Saviour, will always be received. JOHN 6:37 All who the Father gives Me shall come to Me; and he who comes to Me I will in no wise cast out (no one will ever be turned away). THERE IS ONLY ONE TRIUNE GOD There is one true triune God, eternally co-existent in three persons Who form the Holy Trinity: God the Father, God the Word and God the Holy Spirit. These three dwell together in perfect unity, forming one heavenly government called God - and each of these three Divine persons Christians recognize to be God. In other words, each is called God in His own right, and all are equally holy, just, righteous and loving. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Later He also created all the creatures that live upon the earth, and then He created man. The Word of God reveals to us the existence of the Trinity: GENESIS 1:26 And God said, “Let Us (God the Father, God the Word and God the Holy Spirit) make man in Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” 1 JOHN 5:7 For there are three Who bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit: and these three are one (in nature, purpose and unity). God had no beginning and will have no end. We, created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26-28), will also have an unending existence. After we die physically, we will pass to the next life where we will continue to live forever - for eternity (Romans 6:23; John 14:2-3). “. . .Jesus does not say that He is a way - as if there are other ways - Jesus is the only way and there is no other way. . .” As you grow in your new life in Christ, you can come to a greater understanding (revelation) of God and experience greater intimacy with Him - our Creator and Lord. To grow in Christ we need the good food, “the sincere milk” (1 Peter 2:2) of God’s Word. THE BIBLE - OUR ROAD MAP The Bible, otherwise known as the Word of God, is just that - God speaking directly to us. While there are many writers, the Bible has only one Author, that being Almighty God. We, as Christians, learn about God through His written Word, which is divinely inspired and full of Divine truth. 2 TIMOTHY 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness God will communicate with you through His written Word, the Bible. God will reveal Himself to you, or indeed anyone who will take the time to read His Word with an open mind. HEBREWS 4:12 For the Word of God is quick (living) and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (exposing our motives, desires and thoughts for what they are - as God sees them). The truth of God’s Word leads us both to the power of deliverance and the Deliverer of that power. We can, with all confidence, depend on the authoritative written Word of God, for it is impossible for God to lie (Numbers 23:19; Titus 1:2). The Bible is our “Manual of Life,” and tells us of God’s commandments and principles. It is our detailed roadmap which shows us, as Christians, how to live the saved life (Joshua 1:8; John 17:17). It is the foundation of all Christian doctrine and should be the foundation on which our Christian life is built, and the filter through which every thought should be passed. THE ACCOUNTABILITY OF MAN Background Reading: Romans 1:16-20 What YOU do or do not do on this earth, will determine whether you go to heaven or hell after your physical body dies. It is up to each of us to choose where we will spend eternity. WE MAKE THIS CHOICE by either accepting or rejecting God’s free gift of salvation, through Christ Jesus. In fact by not seeking God, Who will direct us to the Cross, we are rebelling against the moral light within our conscience, the moral light which will tell us that there is a God. Having been given this light, we are responsible for seeking and finding (Romans 1:20). Indeed God has not hidden Himself and is easy to find if we truly seek with an open heart. “. . .The truth of God’s Word leads us both to the power of deliverance and the Deliverer of that power. . “ So even by not seeking truth we rebel against our God-given conscience. Man is born separated from God and on the road to eternal death. God throws man a lifeline to enable him to escape the waters of destruction - and this lifeline is Jesus Christ. If man rejects Jesus Christ, all he then does is continue on the road to hell, having either missed or rejected the opportunity to be saved and gain eternal life. The Word tells us that some fear and reject the very thing that would set them free because they love the darkness they are already in, and want to continue in it (John 3:18-20). Nevertheless, man is accountable for his sin and his position. We know this because the scriptures tell us that man is without excuse to believe because the heavens declare that there is a Creator: ROMANS 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; ROMANS 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God has shown it unto them. ROMANS 1:20 For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made (His creation), even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they (all men) are without excuse (to believe there is a God) PSALM 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Indeed men see God’s handiwork as they look at the revelation of nature. As man recognises, with an open heart, that there is a Creator, he then becomes responsible for seeking that Creator and finding a way of communicating with Him. God promises that those who seek will find, and those who ask will receive (Matthew 7:7-8). Indeed the Lord will move heaven and earth to respond to an open heart, and a seeker of truth - to reveal Christ to that person (John 14:6). “. . .God throws man a lifeline to enable him to escape the waters of destruction - and this lifeline is Jesus Christ. . .” Many believe that those who have never heard the Gospel cannot be held accountable for rejecting it. However, the phrase “so that they are without excuse” (Romans 1:20) tells us otherwise. The scriptures declare that man has no defence when it comes to unbelief. Unsaved man in looking at the created world should acknowledge the existence of a Creator, a mighty Being to whom worship and obedience are due. That man denies this truth, represses it or shuns it in horror renders him as being “without excuse.” Men will be judged according to the light they have been given, not the light they have not been given. As Cottrell says, “Whether individuals have or have not heard the gospel is not the issue. Whether they will be saved or lost depends not on what they have not heard, but on what they have heard. They will be judged according to the light they have, not the light they do not have.” And he quotes Morris as saying “Our condemnation in each case lies in the fact that we have sinned against the light we have, not against the light we have never received.” 8 Therefore it is not just because of Adam’s sin that man is condemned. “Some would claim, that God is unfair in condemning men who have been placed in their present position by the fault or act of another, namely Adam. In reply to this argument, it may be said that Scripture nowhere says that men are finally condemned for Adam’s transgression as such. On the contrary, the Gospel reveals to us the Atonement, preordained from the first by the offering of animal Sacrifices, for the avoidance of such final condemnation. So, man was given a way out even from the very beginning, but for the most part has ignored or rejected that Way, Who has always been Christ, which makes the transgression of all who followed Adam as far-reaching as was the original transgression. So man is lost not only because of original sin, but even more so because of his rejection of God’s Solution for that sin (John.3:16). Once again, as Paul said, man is “Without excuse.” ” “ . . . all have sinned against Light which they might have followed.” 9 The Word of God also tells us that every man has been given “the measure of faith” (or access to “the measure of faith”) to believe there is a God (Romans 12:3). Note: This scripture also applies to the saved who are given access to “the measure of faith” required for service and obedience. This “measure of faith” for the heathen is really an inward moral light, contained in the conscience, which gives man the ability to acknowledge a Creator. Sin has not extinguished this gift and man’s natural inclination is to seek out his Creator. Sin will stifle this inward motivation, however, and man can, through his own choosing, simply block off to the existence of a Creator. If man denies this part of himself, he will do himself damage, for only through being open to this light can he discover God. The measure of faith is a measure of awareness of God supplied by God’s grace. Man is therefore responsible for seeking truth, but he will not discover truth on his own terms, only on God’s terms! “. . .Men will be judged according to the light they have been given, not the light they have not been given. . .” God reveals Himself to man as man is open and seeks. Man is responsible for seeking the answers to life, but those answers can only be revealed by the Father. Man cannot discover them any other way. The responsibility of man is therefore to seek the knowledge of God which will lead him to salvation through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. How can he do this, you may ask. God has told us that if we knock on His door, He will reveal truth to us. How? Through prayer. He will open the door and reveal Himself and His Word of promise and hope (Matthew 7:7-8). There is, however, an important condition attached to this promise. When we seek God we must be open, leaving our ideas, opinions and perceptions of how we think things operate, on the shelf. We need to seek God and truth on His terms, not ours, being open to receive what He desires to reveal to us, not what we think we already know! THE WAY OF SALVATION Background Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:1-6 While man is responsible for seeking the God to which his conscience testifies, man still has the power of choice. This means that God, in His love, will never force anyone to receive His free gift of grace. His very nature is love, and love will never force. The free will of man to accept or reject the Gospel is a sacred scriptural principle. Only by a willing acceptance of Jesus’ Lordship can God’s saving grace be obtained, by which we are saved. And this has nothing to do with any “good works” we may have done, as Ephesians 2:8 and 9 tell us: EPHESIANS 2:8 For by grace (God’s unmerited favour) are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: EPHESIANS 2:9 Not of works (man cannot merit salvation), lest any man should boast (try to take the credit). In other words, salvation can never be based on one’s own works. For this reason no-one can take personal pride in it, and the glory belongs to the Lord. Sadly many people think that after this life, because they have lead good lives and harmed nobody, then their “good works” will give them favour with their Creator, and an entrance to heaven. But “good works” cannot save. Otherwise Jesus Christ would not have had to shed His Blood and die on the cross at Calvary. The Bible tells us that: ACTS 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else (except Jesus), for there is no other Name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. (N.I.V.) Jesus Himself said: JOHN 14:6 . . . “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by Me.” Therefore our so called “good works” outside Christ cannot earn our salvation. Also, if people try to come to God through Mohammed or Buddah or even Mary, for example, it will not work. The Name of Jesus is the only Name through which we can be saved. There is no other way - no other Saviour, no other Redeemer. All roads do not lead to heaven - there is only one road which does. This is the road that leads from the Cross of Calvary to heaven. This road is a narrow way, but the Light of God’s presence is on it, and God has promised those who come via the Cross, a place in heaven (Matthew 7:13-14; John 14:2). This way, however, involves faith, for to receive anything from God, faith is required. And scripture tells us that faith comes as a result of believing on God’s Word. HEBREWS 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him (God): for he who comes to God must believe that He is (that He exists), and that He is a rewarder of them who diligently seek Him. To every person who yields to the message of the Gospel, by repenting of their sin and making Jesus their Lord and Saviour, God will give the ability to trust in the reality of the Gospel. This reality is Christ crucified, buried and raised from the dead - and us abiding in Him (John 15:5). “. . .Man is therefore responsible for seeking truth, but he will not discover truth on his own terms, only on God’s terms. . .” God has made the way for every person to enter into life - spiritual life, abundant life and eternal life with Him. It is now up to each person to choose to enter into this spiritual life or else remain in spiritual death (1 John 5:11-12). And each person born into this world has only the period of their own lifetime in which to repent - after physical death there is no “second chance” (Hebrews 9:27). Death - The Proof Of Sin Every child of Adam, which includes the whole human race, has been born a darkened sinner unable to redeem themselves, unable to bridge the gap between themselves and God. This is the reason God’s love was manifested at the Cross in Jesus. Man, blinded by sin and crippled by the sin nature, is born needing the saving spiritual Light that heaven gave to the world through Jesus (Luke 1:79). How do we know that man is a sinner in darkness and needs saving from his darkness? The answer is found when one comes to understand that man was created in the beginning to never die. He was created to live forever, growing in the knowledge of God and enjoying His fellowship. We see the first example of this in God seeking to walk with man in the cool of the day in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:8). This would have been a regular occurrence before Adam and Eve sinned and hid themselves in shame from God. Adam lived 930 years, Enos 905 years and Cainan (Kenan) 910 years. Methuselah, the oldest man who ever lived, died just before the flood aged 969 years. After Noah’s flood, the life of man was shortened, and today a person of great age will live to 100. All in all, however, death has reigned since the Fall of man in the Garden. For God to create, in His image, a spiritual being called man, only to then have that being die a few short years later, would go against God’s principles. Let us explain this statement. From God can only come life, never death, for He is only Light and Life. Darkness and death have no part in God and had no part in His original plan (John 1:4; John 8:12). Something that this spiritual entity called man did must have caused a separation from his spiritual life source (God) which caused death to come. God did not create this spiritual being called man to die. The physical death of man proves beyond doubt that something has gone drastically wrong with God’s creation. “. . .All roads do not lead to heaven - there is only one road which does - the road that leads from the Cross of Calvary to heaven. . .” The Bible explains to us that this wrong is sin and that it has darkened man from the time he came into existence, from the time of Adam’s sin. Again death silences every argument that man would use to try and justify himself, or to blame his environment or others for his sinful behaviour. The very presence of physical death declares that man’s sin is real and that it, and the sin nature, are at the root of all his problems. God, in Christ, however, has made the way for man to walk with Him again, and in His will and His power to bring Him glory. Amen. WHY SHOULD PEOPLE ACCEPT JESUS AS THEIR LORD ? Background Reading: Genesis 1:26-28; 2:8-9, 15-25; 3:1-24 Mankind originated when God created a perfect sinless man called Adam, who became the father of all mankind. Before Adam fathered any children, however, he sinned against God. This allowed spiritual death (therefore spiritual darkness) to surround his spirit, and he thus became separated from God. This position of death (or separation from God) has been inherited by all his offspring, as Romans 5:17-18 declares: ROMANS 5:17 For if by one man’s (Adam’s) offence (sin) death reigned (in all) by one (through that one man); (how) much more (will) they who receive abundance of (God’s) grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by (through) One, Jesus Christ. ROMANS 5:18 Therefore as by (through) the offence (sinful action) of one (Adam), judgement came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the (one act of) righteousness (by Jesus) the free gift came upon all men unto justification of (that brings) life (union with God to all who believe and receive Jesus as Lord). God’s written Word tells us that life (or conversely death) is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11). We can understand from this that ALL of Adam’s offspring have genetically inherited his polluted blood, and it is this polluted blood which has caused mankind’s state of spiritual death. ROMANS 3:23 For all have sinned (are born in a state of sin separated from God, and are sinners), and come short of the glory of God (as a consequence are deprived of God’s saving presence); ROMANS 6:23 For the wages of sin is death (spiritual death which is separation from God); but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. The love of God was shown when Jesus died on the cross, becoming the sinless sacrificial Lamb. It was through this act of love that God made the way for us to be cleansed and taken out of our state of sin. The Word of God reveals to us that sin is so serious that: HEBREWS 9:22 . . . without shedding of blood (there) is no remission (forgiveness of sin). Most basically defined, sin is anything that does not conform to the character and nature of God. Sin is not only doing that which is wrong, in thought, word or deed, sin is also not doing that which is right, morally and spiritually. This means that there are sins of commission - wrongdoing - and sins of omission - not doing right. Without God in your life, positionally and experientially, you will sin. As the scriptures tell us, man is born in a state of sin, dominated by the sin nature, and therefore commits sin. Everything fallen man does is steeped in sin and he is unable to rectify this situation. “. . .The physical death of man proves beyond doubt that something has gone drastically wrong with Gods’ creation. . .” Such was the debt and weight of sin that the second member of the Trinity had to become a perfect man and be sacrificed in our place on the altar of Calvary in order to make the way for man’s redemption. What an awesome price! This sinless sacrifice was required to satisfy perfect justice. Nailed to the cross, Christ took the punishment for our sin, and now is the only Mediator between God and man. All must come through Him, for He alone holds the keys of truth - to unlock men’s hearts to His grace, and the gates of heaven to man (Revelation 1:18). It was Jesus Who paid the price for our forgiveness through the shedding of His Blood. Without the shedding of His Blood we could not have been redeemed - restored to God. The Resurrection of Christ then became the ultimate proof to Believer and unbeliever alike of the truth of the Gospel. It shows forth the defeat of the power of death, and guarantees salvation to the Believer. So the way has now been made. It is the responsibility of each individual, however, to respond to God’s love by accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour. Only by doing so can each person escape the bondage of spiritual death and the fearful prospect of an eternity of torment without God in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:15). And justice decrees that the weight of our sins (without Jesus) will determine the measure of that torment. WHAT IS CHRISTIANITY ? Christianity is not a religion, a system of ethics or a set of traditions which are relied upon to produce the goal of pleasing God. For as we have learned, man has no way of earning his own salvation. Rather, Christianity is a personal relationship between born-again Believers and God. And in this relationship, Christians know God to be their Heavenly Father (Romans 8:14-17). Christians are people who have made Jesus Christ their personal Lord and Saviour, and who continue to follow Him through the teachings contained in God’s written Word. Therefore Christianity is not based on practices, rituals or methods but on a relationship which then orders the Believer’s faith-walk (John 14:23; Hebrews 5:9). “. . .The Resurrection of Christ then became the ultimate proof to Believer and unbeliever alike of the truth of the Gospel. . .” As Christians grow in the knowledge and love of God, they can allow this love to flow through them so that they perform righteous works of faith and love (John 15:5). This is one of the Bible’s promises, and in this way, the Father is truly glorified. Indeed as Christians express the love of God and display the power of God in their lives, men and women will be drawn to the Saviour. Believers, with God’s grace at work in and through them, become banners of His love, showing others the truth of the Gospel through their attitudes and actions (John 13:34-35). Indeed the finished work of the Cross defeated the power of sin. This results in a transformed life, a changed character and a new Lord. Only the power of the Blood can produce these radical changes in the heart and life of a man (2 Corinthians 5:17). SPIRITUAL REGENERATION IS NEEDED Background Reading: Romans 5:6-11 Spiritual regeneration is another term for being “born again.” This regeneration takes place because of God’s saving grace. We were born sinners, and because of the sin nature which permeated us from birth, we sinned continually (Jeremiah 17:9, Romans 3:10). Sin’s stain kept our soul in darkness. But upon regeneration (being born again), the Holy Spirit came to dwell within us (1 Corinthians 6:19) and God’s saving presence surrounded our spirit. In this, darkness was driven out of our spirit - for He Who has come is the true Light of the world. He is, in fact, the Father of Lights (James 1:17). JOHN 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a man be born again (regenerated), he cannot see (enter) the Kingdom of God.” Regeneration (to be born again by the Spirit) is the only way the sin problem can be dealt with and the gulf between man and God bridged - for God alone could forgive our sins and give us spiritual life in exchange for spiritual death. JOHN 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him (Jesus) should not perish, but have (with God) everlasting life. Through the action of accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour, man can be reunited with God. However we must be sorry for the sins of the past and turn from them, forsaking our old life to follow Jesus. This is what the word “repentance” means. As we do this, God will give us the power, through His grace, to walk away from our old life and our old ways of sin. “. . .Sin is not only doing that which is wrong, in thought, word or deed, sin is also not doing that which is right, morally and spiritually. . .” There was no other way God could bring mankind back to Himself but by allowing His only begotten Son Jesus to shed His Blood and to die. Jesus, Who was God the Word clothed in flesh, became the perfect sacrifice. Through this, God could then legally bring mankind out from under the authority of darkness, otherwise known as spiritual death. John 1:1 and 1:14 tell us about God the Word taking on human form - being clothed in flesh. JOHN 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (God the Word). JOHN 1:14 And the Word was made flesh (a human being) and dwelt among us . . . These scriptures are speaking of God the Word, the second member of the Holy Trinity. God the Word took on flesh through the virgin birth and became a human being called Jesus. He was called the Son of God and the Son of Man, being truly identified with both God and man. He became, without ceasing to be God (God the Word), a perfect sinless man. He stripped Himself of the right to use His Godly power while on earth, including the knowledge He possessed as God the Word, and forsook His heavenly rights as God. Therefore during Jesus’ earthly ministry, God’s miraculous power was released by the faith that Jesus obtained as a man. Jesus’ life displayed the fruit of the Divine Nature which energized Jesus’ human nature, empowering Him to walk in fellowship with the Father all the days of His earthly life. Indeed He said to His Disciple Phillip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9), His sacrificial love showing forth the Father’s nature and character. Fallen man, however, did not have access to this Divine Nature until after the Cross. Access to the graces and energies of God’s Divine Nature had been denied following Adam’s sin, and the descent of man into spiritual death. At the Cross, man’s redemption was paid for, and man once again gained the right to access God’s Divine Nature through Jesus the Saviour. When God brings man back into spiritual union with Himself, man becomes a partaker of the Divine Nature as he yields to the Spirit of God. “. . .Regeneration (to be born again by the Spirit) is the only way the sin problem can be dealt with and the gulf between man and God bridged. . .” Jesus died on the cross at Calvary and was resurrected by God’s mighty power. Today He is seated at the right hand of God the Father, and all power and authority in heaven and on earth have been given to Him (Matthew 28:18). This is Jesus, our wonderful Saviour, the Prince of Peace, the King of kings, the Lord of lords and our Kinsman Redeemer. Amen. THE BOOK OF LIFE Background Reading: Luke 10:17-20 Your name is now written in the Book of Life because you have: 1. Acknowledged you were a sinner born in a state of sin, and needed God’s saving grace to be set free from the grip of sin and death (Romans 3:23). 2. Received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour according to Romans 10:9-10: ROMANS 10:9 That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. ROMANS 10:10 For with the heart man believes (faith is exercised) unto righteousness (rightstanding with God); and with the mouth, confession (open acknowledgement) is made unto salvation (action with your faith). Because of this you are made righteous in Christ. You need now to: 3. Continue to follow and serve Jesus as Lord of your whole life, through acting on the direction God has given in His written Word (Hebrews 5:9). 4. Continue to turn your back on all sin through repentance. This involves making a complete “about face” in regard to sin, i.e. making a 180 degree turn. To do anything against God’s commandments, knowingly or unknowingly, is called sinning. (Know, however, that after this quality decision, God will give you, through His grace, the spiritual strength to walk in the righteous standard that He has set). 1 JOHN 1:9 If we confess (acknowledge then forsake) our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (the results of sin). 5. Diligently study God’s Word so you can know and obey all God’s commandments (2 Timothy 2:15). 6. Set aside a special time each day when you can read the Word of God, pray and fellowship with the Lord. This is called your “quiet-time” and is best done at the start of each day, before daily responsibilities and pressures take precedence. Remember, to draw close to God, you need to spend consistent time with Him (Psalm 5:1-3). 7. Rely not on willpower but the empowerment of the Holy Spirit through the Divine Nature both to desire and then to do the things He asks (2 Peter 1:4). CAN YOUR NAME BE TAKEN OUT OF THE BOOK OF LIFE ? YES! - you can lose your salvation after becoming a Christian. The following scriptures show that this is possible: EXODUS 32:33 And the Lord said unto Moses, “Whosoever has sinned (committed mortal sin as in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10) against Me (and does not repent), him will I blot out of My book.” See also - 2 Peter 2:20-22; Luke 8:13; 1 Timothy 4:1; Galatians 5:4. BUT REVELATION 3:5 He who overcomes (sin), the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before My Father, and before His angels. First Corinthians gives us an outline of the types of sins that if practised without repentance will cause people to lose their salvation: 1 CORINTHIANS 6:9-10 Do you not know that the unrighteous (all who reject God’s Son) shall not inherit the Kingdom of God (shall not go to heaven)? Be not deceived: neither fornicators (sexually immoral), nor idolators (idol worshippers), nor adulterers, nor effeminate (sexual perverts), nor abusers of themselves with mankind (homosexual offenders), nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers (slanderers), nor extortioners (swindlers), shall inherit the Kingdom of God. Revelation 21:7 He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be My son (adopted into the family of God and treated as a son forever). REVELATION 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers (the sexually immoral), and sorcerers (those who practise magic arts), and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone (the Lake of Fire): which is the second death (eternal separation from God following the Great White Throne judgement). If former Christians have committed these types of sins, they can repent according to 1 John 1:9. Indeed sins such as these are “sins unto death” (mortal sins) and will cause you to lose your salvation. Note: This scripture in Corinthians is speaking about habitual sinners who do not want to change their ways. Also, where these scriptures (1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Revelation 21:7-8) speak about “liars,” “thieves” and “the covetous” not entering the Kingdom of God or ending in the Lake of Fire, they are referring to those who make thieving, covetousness and lying a lifestyle, living with these vices for gain and with such intent that because of them, they lose their salvation. This is not speaking of small, incidental sins but deliberate, calculated lifestyle sins that impact adversely on others, sin which is practised with intent. Also note that lying in the context of eternal separation from God also pertains to those who lie against the truth, which we are told by the Apostle not to do (James 3:14). This means to deny the way of salvation - repentance from sin and Jesus’ Lordship. Many do this by simply being in a state of unbelief. To believe that one’s good outweighs one’s bad, and that this is sufficient to win favour with God and so to enter heaven, is self-righteousness - and this is to lie against the truth of our sinfulness and need of a Saviour. “. . .Yes you can have your name taken out of the Book of Life – and lose your salvation. . .” Jesus saves from sin, and not in sin. Christians who think they can practise sin with immunity are sadly mistaken - for “such shall not inherit the Kingdom of God.” Even people who give their hearts to the Lord in a service cannot return to the defacto relationship in which they were living. To do so would be to commit the sin of adultery (or fornication) which would then exclude them from the Kingdom, as clearly stated in scripture (1 Corinthians 6:9). We must meet the conditions to be “in Christ” if we are to abide in Him. Sin is sin, and we are saved from it, not saved so we can return to it with impunity. However, be assured that, providing you live within the Biblical boundaries of salvation and continue to have faith in Christ’s finished work on the Cross, nothing can remove you from the Father’s hand (John 10:27-29). This guarantee is valid for eternity, as long as Jesus remains your Lord. Indeed He has prepared a place in heaven for all who receive Him and continue in His love (John 14:1-3). “. . .Jesus saves from sin, and not in sin. Christians who think they can practise sin with immunity are sadly mistaken. . .” Those who reject making Jesus Lord and Saviour (or do not, with an open heart, seek God Who will show them the truth of Calvary) will remain spiritually bankrupt, walking in spiritual darkness. After physical death they will live in everlasting torment. Rejection through ignorance or the avoidance of truth will be no excuse (John 12:48), for man is accountable for his position of sin. ASSURANCE OF SALVATION Background Reading: 1 John 3:1-3; John 10:27-29 If you have made Jesus your Lord and Saviour and are following Him, you can rest assured that you are saved and that you are a child of the living God. Jesus declared in John 5:24: JOHN 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He who hears (and receives) My Word, and believes on Him (the Father) Who sent Me, has everlasting life (with God), and shall not come into condemnation (shall not go to hell); but is passed from death (separation from God) unto life (union with God through Jesus Christ). This scripture gives us great assurance for it declares that we, as Believers, have eternal life and are no longer separated from God, but united with Him forever (as we remain “in Christ”). This is the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! ROMANS 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation (no guilt) to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit (according to His leading and empowerment). ROMANS 8:2 For the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. Some people, on receiving Jesus, sense a dramatic change in their lives and feel very different within themselves. Others, however, are not conscious of any change at all. This does not make one person more saved than another, nor does it mean that God loves one person more than another. Such differences occur because we are all individuals and respond differently to life’s experiences. Therefore we cannot base our salvation on the way we feel, for our emotions can vary from day to day and are by no means reliable indicators of our spiritual position in Christ. We can therefore only base our salvation on what God’s Word declares - for the Word of God is our assurance of salvation, and the only proper foundation for our faith. Eventually, however, Christians, with proper study and openness to the Spirit of Truth, obtain that blessed assurance of their salvation and union with Christ through His precious Blood. Be aware, however, that Satan will try to influence you with thoughts of doubt concerning the reality of your salvation. For example, he may try to convince you that you’re not really saved, or that God doesn’t really love you or that the whole thing is all a figment of your imagination. You need to ignore such suggestions and declare that you are a child of God, saved by grace through Jesus’ sacrifice. God’s Word is the final authority on the matter. Hold fast to your conviction regardless of what the devil, your emotions or other people may try to tell you. Speak out the truths of God’s Word in the face of any uncertainty, and learn to rely on it in every situation. Other scriptures to look over are - John 3:16; Romans 10:9; 10:13; 5:1; Colossians 1:12-13; 1 Timothy 2:4. “. . .We can only base our salvation on what God’s Word declares - for the Word of God is our assurance of salvation. . .” Our Lord said “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). This should settle it if Jesus is your Lord!! WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF MAKING JESUS LORD ? Background Reading: Psalm 23 1. When we took this step we were taken out of the Kingdom of Darkness and placed into the Kingdom of Light (the Kingdom of God). COLOSSIANS 1:13 Who (God) has Delivered (rescued us - all who have received Jesus as Lord) from the power (dominion) of darkness, and has translated (placed) us into the Kingdom of His Son 2. With Jesus as our Lord at the time of our physical death, we will go to heaven rather than hell. This is the guaranteed promise of an eternal future spent with God rather than in everlasting torment (2 Corinthians 5:8). 3. With our names written in the Book of Life, God becomes our eternal Provider. Today He can provide: (a) SPIRITUALLY - The Lord has promised to help us grow and prosper spiritually as we follow the leading of His Word. 3 JOHN 1:2 Beloved, I wish (pray) above all things that you may prosper and be in health (physical prosperity), even as your soul prospers (spiritual prosperity). This verse is telling us that God wants our souls to prosper along with our physical bodies. If our souls are to prosper, our minds must first be renewed by studying God’s Word. In this way we come to know and accept His principles. Then we must willingly act in faith on this renewal of our minds. Some of the fruits which can be produced in our lives as a result are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). These are known as “the fruit of the Spirit.” In other words God desires for us, as His children, to develop, by His grace, in character, displaying these fruits in our lives. In this He is well pleased. (b) PHYSICALLY (Health) - Although it was completely unjust, Jesus’ suffering and death constitute the Sacrifice of Atonement which took place so that mankind could be made whole, spirit, soul and body (Hebrews 13:12). Therefore both His suffering and death together constitute the Sacrifice of Atonement - that has set free all those who believe and trust in Christ and His redemptive work. The Atonement itself was then brought to completion by the Resurrection. “. . .Satan will try to influence you with thoughts of doubt concerning the reality of your salvation. . .” In the context of the Atonement, Christ’s finished work on our behalf, we can now understand that He paid the price for our healing by the stripes (wounds) He endured both prior to and during the crucifixion. This means that we can claim healing by believing and trusting on His Word. ISAIAH 53:4 Surely He (Jesus) has borne our griefs (taken our sickness, weakness and disease), and carried our sorrows: yet we did (ignorantly) esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. ISAIAH 53:5 But He was wounded (pierced) for our transgressions (rebellion), He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace (the punishment that brought us peace) was upon Him (and Him alone); and with His stripes (by His wounds) we are healed (and made whole - if we believe to receive from God). Jesus, the Bible tells us, is the same yesterday, today and forevermore (Hebrews 13:8). He healed people by the power of God when He walked upon the earth, and God’s power is still available today to bring healing into our lives. We receive healing, and any other of God’s promises, by having faith in His Word and praying in the Name of Jesus - with our focus on Calvary and Christ’s finished work. Sin and everything it has brought into this world, including sickness and disease, have been defeated by “Christ’s finished work.” Amen. We need to pray with faith (trust and belief), not wavering but being fully persuaded that God’s Word is true, and will accomplish what it declares for those who receive its promises. (c) MATERIALLY - The Lord has promised to provide for our needs as we live according to His Word. MALACHI 3:10 “Bring all your tithes (and offerings v.8) into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house, and prove Me now in this,” says the Lord of Hosts, “if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to hold it. MALACHI 3:11 And I will rebuke the devourer (Satan and his forces) for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field . . . ” As we give our tithes and offerings in faith, with a willing heart, and continue to live a surrendered life, trusting in Him in every area of our lives, God has promised to bless us, provide for us and protect our provision. He will then be Jehovah Jireh, our Provider (Matthew 6:25-34). “. . .Jesus, the Bible tells us, is the same yesterday, today and forevermore: Hebrews 13:8. . .” This is only an outline of some of the benefits of making Jesus Lord. Indeed God’s Word contains many more promises and they are available to all who believe according to the Word and surrender their lives according to the Word. TO HAVE VICTORY IN JESUS Background Reading: 1 John 5:1-4 To have victory in Jesus, we need, with God’s grace at work in and through us, to obey all His commandments. So first we must acknowledge the truths in His Word. Then we must choose to act on them, believing for God’s empowerment to live according to His will, not ours. Doing this will bring us into a victorious life in the Christian faith. To just believe that God’s Word is true will not change people’s lives, or indeed be of any benefit. In fact the Bible tells us that even the demons believe in God . . . “and tremble” (James 2:19)! What is needed is that we combine our belief with action - that we purpose to obey the truths contained in God’s Word from our hearts. Only from the vantage point of commitment is God’s power made available to us to live the saved life. This power comes through the Divine Nature that we, in Christ, are partakers of (2 Peter 1:4). Willing acts of obedience will develop a mature, true love in our lives. From this will come lasting spiritual fruits, and so prosperity of our spirit, soul and body. If we live in this love, the lives of those around us will be affected, for they will see the reality of Christ’s love in us as we allow God’s grace to work through us. Amen. Indeed the Word of God tells us that the measure of our love for God will be the level of our obedience. Jesus stated in John 14:21: JOHN 14:21 He who has My commandments, and keeps (obeys) them, he it is who loves Me: and he who loves Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest (reveal) Myself to him. As we, by God’s empowering grace, keep His commandments, we will be pleasing Him - being at one with Him, asking according to His will and having our prayers answered: 1 JOHN 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of Him, because we keep His commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. THE FOUNDATIONAL TRUTHS OF CHRISTIANITY 1. We were all born in a state of sin, and need God’s grace to overcome sin: ROMANS 3:23 For all have sinned (all are born in a state of sin and are sinners), and come short of the glory of God (as a consequence, are deprived of God’s saving presence). See also Romans 6:3-4. 2. The shedding of Jesus’ sinless Blood on the cross was the redemptive price needed to release us from the bondage of sin. However for us to be released from sin’s eternal grip, we needed to repent of (turn our backs on) sin, and receive Jesus as our Lord and Saviour: ROMANS 10:9 That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus (that Jesus is your Lord), and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. ROMANS 10:10 For with the heart man believes unto righteousness (rightstanding with God); and with the mouth confession (open acknowledgement) is made unto salvation (action with our faith). 3. Jesus was raised from the dead by God’s power and is alive forevermore: REVELATION 1:18 I am He Who lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. All power and authority in heaven and on earth have been given to Him by God the Father: MATTHEW 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke unto them, saying, “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” 4. Jesus is God the Word, Who forsook His heavenly privileges and clothed Himself with flesh through the virgin birth: JOHN 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. Jesus’ father was God, and therefore He was a sinless man, as Adam (man’s federal head) was before he committed high treason. 5. Man is responsible for seeking God’s truths so that he may be set free, spiritually and physically. And God has revealed to us in His Word that if we diligently seek truth with an open, sincere and unbiased heart, we will find it: MATTHEW 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: MATTHEW 7:8 For every one who asks receives; and he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks it shall be opened. 6. The chief heartfelt confession the sinner must make is the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Before sinners come to Jesus they cannot, through their own efforts, obtain God’s favour or power to overcome sin: EPHESIANS 2:8 For by grace (God’s unmerited favour) are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: EPHESIANS 2: 9 Not of works (nothing man does can earn him salvation), lest any man should boast. However when Jesus is allowed to be Lord of our lives, we have access to the power of God to help us overcome sin: PHILIPPIANS 4:13 I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me. Because: PHILIPPIANS 2:13 . . . it is God Who works in you (through Divine enablement) both to will and to do of His good pleasure. THE SINNER’S PRAYER Use this prayer as a reference for helping others receive Jesus as Lord and Saviour. Dear Father, scripture tells me that I am separated from You and Your love. I want to put this right and enter into a relationship with You as Your child. I acknowledge I am a sinner. I believe that Jesus died on the cross and shed His Blood for my sin. I also believe that Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of Your Spirit. I am now willing to turn from my way and go Your way, and I ask forgiveness for the things I have done wrong, the sins I have committed. I ask You Jesus into my heart as my personal Lord and Saviour. I will now live for You Lord, with the help of Your grace at work in me, and serve You, day by day. I believe I am now forgiven and washed of all sin. I believe I am now born again and that my name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. I thank You Lord, and pray all this in the precious Name of Jesus. Amen. Remember: You are now a child of God and have the Holy Spirit dwelling within you: 1 CORINTHIANS 6:19 . . . do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have (received) of (from) God, and you are not your own? You have found the greatest treasure life offers, the Lord Jesus Christ. As you continue in your new life in Christ, you can come to know God in a deeper way - as your Father, your healer, your provider, your refuge and your eternal home. Remember too that we will all still exist a billion years from now. Therefore the most important aspect of each person’s brief earthly life is to gain the saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing else gained in our earthly life, no success or wealth or power, can compensate for an eternity spent in the Lake of Fire where the weight of man’s sin is so great that it will keep him there forever. We cannot take with us anything gained outside Christ - indeed temporal riches and fame will be left behind to fade and rot (Matthew 6:19-21). Only the love of God, if taken hold of in this life, will last for eternity in the heart of the Believer. God bless you and may you have the victory in your new life in Christ. Amen. For further information or teaching material to help you grow in the Christian faith, please visit: CROSSROADS INTERNATIONAL FULL GOSPEL MINISTRIES crossroadsministries.org.au REVIEW OF TEACHING BOOKLET Fill in the blanks. 1. To escape eternal torment in a place called the ......................... of ........................., you must have your name written in heaven, in the ........................ ......................... of ......................... . 2. The Bible tells us that we are beings who have ..................... parts, the ......................, the ............................ and the .......................... . After physical death, our spirit-man (spirit and soul) will live on ................................... . 3. There is only one true God, eternally co-existing in three persons called the ......................... ............................ . Each of the three persons in the Godhead, God the ........................., God the .................... and God the ....................... ............................, is recognized as God. 4. Only by receiving God’s free gift can we be .................... . This is done when we receive Jesus as ........................ of our lives. 5. Because we can never be saved by good ......................., we can never take any credit for our ............................... : Ephesians 2:8,9. 6. There is only one pathway to ........................... life, and any religion or philosophy that does not profess ......................... ............................. as Lord is false. 7. To receive anything from God, .......................... is required: Hebrews 11:6. 8. When Adam sinned, he became .............................. from God, and spiritual death surrounded his ........................... . 9. All Adam’s descendants (every child ever born except Jesus) likewise inherited his position of ............................... ........................, also called “original .................. .” 10. Through ....................., we were all born into death, but through ............................. .............................. we enter into life: Romans 5:17-18. 11. The Bible is ...................... Word, inspired by Him, and true (for God cannot ..................). 12. Jesus lived a ................................. life, and became the sacrificial ..................... of God to pay for the .................... of mankind. 13. Jesus paid the price for our forgiveness through the shedding of His ....................... on the Cross: Hebrews 9:22. 14. Christianity is not a set of ................................ to be followed, for we cannot earn our ............................. . Rather it is a ................................ with Jesus Christ, and involves the following of His ..............................: Hebrews 5:9. 15. The only way to deal with the ....................... problem and to get right with our Maker is by accepting Jesus as ........................... and ............................., and forsaking all ..................... . 16. To be spiritually regenerated (reunited with God) is to be ........................ ..............................: John 3:3. 17. ...................... the ......................... became flesh and lived on earth as a perfect sinless man called ............................. . 18. Yes you can lose your ........................................... after becoming a Christian, for your name can be taken out of the Book of Life if you commit ............................ sin: 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. 19. As Christians, we are responsible for ................................ God’s commandments, and living within the guidelines which the ..................... teaches. 20. When we make Jesus Lord of our lives, we escape from the authority of ..............................., and at the point of physical death, we will go to ................................ not ......................: Colossians 1:13. 21. With Jesus as our Lord, God becomes our ............................. . He provides for us spiritually (renewing of our .......................), physically (healing of our ........................), and materially (all our .......................... needs met). 22. To grow in the Lord, you must ....................... God’s commandments with a ........................... heart. 23. If we seek truth with an ........................ heart, we will find it. This is our responsibility: Matthew 7:7-8. 24. By our own efforts we cannot obtain God’s ............................ or gain power to overcome ......................... . Only through allowing ..................... to be Lord can we become right with ......................... and experience the freedom of sins .............................. . 25. Before you can receive Jesus, you need to acknowledge that you are a ........................., needing God’s ............................. . This is why people need to pray the ........................ prayer at the point of salvation. 26. .................................. from all sin is also needed, and a confession of Jesus’ ................................ in your life. 27. Remember that it is the shed ......................... of Jesus that paid the price for our ........................... . SALVATION MESSAGE - Answers 1. Lake, Fire, Lamb’s, Book, Life 2. three, spirit, soul, body, forever 3. Holy Trinity, Father, Word, Holy Spirit 4. saved, Lord 5. works, salvation 6. eternal, Jesus Christ 7. faith 8. separated, spirit 9. spiritual death, sin 10. Adam, Jesus Christ 11. God’s, lie 12. sinless, Lamb, sin 13. blood 14. traditions / rules, salvation, relationship, commandments / teachings 15. sin, Lord, Saviour, sin 16. born again 17. God, Word, Jesus 18. salvation, mortal 19. obeying, Bible / Word 20. darkness, heaven, hell 21. Provider, minds, bodies, financial / material 22. obey, willing 23. open 24. favour, sin, Jesus, God, forgiven 25. sinner, forgiveness, sinner’s 26. repentance, Lordship 27. blood, salvation / redemption