Good day
In the previous message we saw how, when Adam sinned by disobeying God, he died spiritually and was separated from the life of God and how we too have all fallen into this category.
I then ended the previous message off with the following point:
"The consequences of sin/lawlessness is that it places us in an unrighteous state. The bible says in 1 John 5:17 that all unrighteousness/wrongdoing is sin and in 1 Corinthians 6:8-9 it says that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. Meaning that if we want to inherit the kingdom of God then we need to be considered righteous. Righteousness refers to our right-standing before God, the character or quality of being right, just or innocent, the condition acceptable to God or the state of being approved of God.
Now there are some religions that promote practices and doing good works as a means of earning right-standing with God. They encourage their followers to adhere to certain rules and regulations so that they can work their way into God's "good books" ... However, religious practices can never grant right standing with God to anyone. This is not a case of doing enough good deeds to cover up or try and eradicate the bad deeds - like someone who planned to rob a bank and had all the steps in place of how they're going to do so, how they're going to escape, where they're going to store the money, etc. but then they get caught after doing so and now they plead to the judge to find a way where they can offer to do some good to get out of their pending judgement ... the problem is that the individual remains guilty.
So how do you remedy something like this? How do you take someone who is declared guilty of their sins and worthy of punishment and declare them innocent by just wiping their slate clean or removing all record of their sins? How do you remove the wrongdoings/transgressions/sins and present them as innocent as though they were never guilty of it in the first place. Is something like this even possible?"
Let's see the answer to this predicament:
Romans 5:6-19 (NLT)
When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. Yes, people sinned even before the law was given. But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break. Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did. Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come. But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.
John 1:29 (NKJV)
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward Him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
1 John 3:4-5 (NKJV)
Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. But you know that He (Jesus Christ) appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin.
Colossians 1:13-14 (NKJV)
He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:19-20 (NKJV)
For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
1 John 2:2 (AMP)
My little children (believers, dear ones), I am writing you these things so that you will not sin and violate God’s law. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate [who will intercede for us] with the Father: Jesus Christ the righteous [the upright, the just One, who conforms to the Father’s will in every way—purpose, thought, and action]. And He [that same Jesus] is the propitiation for our sins [the atoning sacrifice that holds back the wrath of God that would otherwise be directed at us because of our sinful nature—our worldliness, our lifestyle]; and not for ours alone, but also for [the sins of all believers throughout] the whole world.
1 Corinthians 15:21–23 (NKJV)
For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
1 Corinthians 15:45 (AMP)
So it is written [in Scripture], “The first man, Adam, became a living soul (an individual);” the last Adam (Christ) became a life-giving spirit [restoring the dead to life].
I then ended the previous message off with the following point:
"The consequences of sin/lawlessness is that it places us in an unrighteous state. The bible says in 1 John 5:17 that all unrighteousness/wrongdoing is sin and in 1 Corinthians 6:8-9 it says that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. Meaning that if we want to inherit the kingdom of God then we need to be considered righteous. Righteousness refers to our right-standing before God, the character or quality of being right, just or innocent, the condition acceptable to God or the state of being approved of God.
Now there are some religions that promote practices and doing good works as a means of earning right-standing with God. They encourage their followers to adhere to certain rules and regulations so that they can work their way into God's "good books" ... However, religious practices can never grant right standing with God to anyone. This is not a case of doing enough good deeds to cover up or try and eradicate the bad deeds - like someone who planned to rob a bank and had all the steps in place of how they're going to do so, how they're going to escape, where they're going to store the money, etc. but then they get caught after doing so and now they plead to the judge to find a way where they can offer to do some good to get out of their pending judgement ... the problem is that the individual remains guilty.
So how do you remedy something like this? How do you take someone who is declared guilty of their sins and worthy of punishment and declare them innocent by just wiping their slate clean or removing all record of their sins? How do you remove the wrongdoings/transgressions/sins and present them as innocent as though they were never guilty of it in the first place. Is something like this even possible?"
Let's see the answer to this predicament:
Romans 5:6-19 (NLT)
When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. Yes, people sinned even before the law was given. But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break. Still, everyone died—from the time of Adam to the time of Moses—even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did. Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come. But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.
John 1:29 (NKJV)
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward Him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
1 John 3:4-5 (NKJV)
Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. But you know that He (Jesus Christ) appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin.
Colossians 1:13-14 (NKJV)
He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:19-20 (NKJV)
For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
1 John 2:2 (AMP)
My little children (believers, dear ones), I am writing you these things so that you will not sin and violate God’s law. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate [who will intercede for us] with the Father: Jesus Christ the righteous [the upright, the just One, who conforms to the Father’s will in every way—purpose, thought, and action]. And He [that same Jesus] is the propitiation for our sins [the atoning sacrifice that holds back the wrath of God that would otherwise be directed at us because of our sinful nature—our worldliness, our lifestyle]; and not for ours alone, but also for [the sins of all believers throughout] the whole world.
1 Corinthians 15:21–23 (NKJV)
For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
1 Corinthians 15:45 (AMP)
So it is written [in Scripture], “The first man, Adam, became a living soul (an individual);” the last Adam (Christ) became a life-giving spirit [restoring the dead to life].
John 5:24 (NKJV)
Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
John 3:14 -17 (AMP)
Just as Moses lifted up the [bronze] serpent in the desert [on a pole], so must the Son of Man be lifted up [on the cross], so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life [after physical death, and will actually live forever]. “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world [that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world], but that the world might be saved through Him.
John 6:38-40 (NKJV)
For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of all those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day. For My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21 (NKJV)
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
From the above passages we can see that even though we are guilty of our sin and therefore find ourselves in an unrighteous state/condition, God made it possible for us to be made righteous through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This righteousness comes as a gift, it's not something we deserve, nor did we earn it by keeping God's laws, or by our good intentions, behaviour or deeds. (Please see below scriptures) ... All we can do is receive this free gift by placing our faith in Jesus Christ and what He has done for us.
Romans 6:23 (NKJV)
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV)
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast.
Galatians 2:16 (NLT)
Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.
Philippians 3:9 (AMP)
and may be found in Him [believing and relying on Him], not having any righteousness of my own derived from [my obedience to] the Law and its rituals, but [possessing] that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.
Titus 3:4-7 (AMP)
But when the goodness and kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared [in human form as the Man, Jesus Christ], He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we have done, but because of His own compassion and mercy, by the cleansing of the new birth (spiritual transformation, regeneration) and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out richly upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we would be justified [made free of the guilt of sin] by His [compassionate, undeserved] grace, and that we would be [acknowledged as acceptable to Him and] made heirs of eternal life [actually experiencing it] according to our hope (His guarantee).
Man could not “earn” right standing with God, because it cannot be earned, nor could man pay for it because it cannot be bought. Righteousness is a gift to mankind by faith in Jesus Christ. Our salvation, our position of righteousness, is entirely based on substitution. Without substitution, our salvation is not possible. Jesus suffered and died as our substitute so that we, in turn, could be made righteous. This is the greatest transaction ever performed in that God took the sin of all of mankind and placed it on Jesus Christ - and then He took Jesus’ righteousness and made it available to all of us.
It's important to point out that even though God offers salvation and the gift of righteousness to all people; it is only received by those who believe and trust in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation.
John 14:6 (NKJV)
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Romans 3:22
This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
John 3:36 (NKJV)
He who believes in the Son has everlasting life, and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.
So how do we receive this free gift?
Romans 10:6–10 (NKJV)
But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down from above) or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The Word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the Word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.
Based on the fact that you've now heard the word concerning righteousness, the next step is to believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and confess with your mouth that He is Lord.
If this is something that you haven't done before, or something you'd like to recommit to, then I invite you to please pray the following prayer:
"Heavenly Father. I thank you for the gift of Jesus. I believe that He paid for my sin and that He rose from the dead so that I could be forgiven. I accept Him now as my Lord and Saviour. From this day on I live to serve you, to worship you, and I know one day I will leave this Earth and spend eternity with You in Heaven, amen."
If you know of someone else that may need to read this message, then please be encouraged to send it onto them. I'd encourage you to send them the below link where the Gospel message is clearly explained in more detail and with the use of illustrations:
https://unlessjesusbuilds.blogspot.com/search/label/The%20Gospel%20Presentation
Next time I'll be sharing some of the benefits that our position of righteousness makes available to us.