Man’s Status and God’s free gift of Salvation

Psalm 51:5 New International Version (NIV)

5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

Many people nowadays don’t appreciate things that they have in their lives. Either they don’t see the importance of it, or they do not understand what it is for.

A good illustration of this is giving a smartphone to a villager. He might not directly appreciate the item since he doesn’t fully know what that is for.

That is the same concept many people have today. They don’t feel and sense the importance of God in their lives since they don’t know who He really is and what are the things He did for our lives. This is the same reason why we need to study Man’s status and God’s free gift of Salvation so we can learn how to appreciate God through our worship to Him and walk according to what He has done to our lives.

According to Genesis 3 account, due to the disobedience of Adam and Eve to the commandments of God, SIN was introduced to the world, which affected the whole of humanity which bared the inner corruption in man’s heart to disobey God and follow his own will and direction to their life.

Sin in the original Bible Greek and Jewish context means “missing the mark,” which defines that missing the standard of God. Due to this reason, man was separated from God because God is Holy.

Leviticus 20:7 New International Version (NIV)

7 “‘Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God.

This is also the reason why we cannot fully experience God’s great plan for our lives.

Why do you think sin hinders us from fully experiencing God's great plan for our lives?

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What is Man’s Status:

1) We are all sinners

Romans 3:23New International Version (NIV)

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

Ecclesiastes 7:20 New Living Translation (NLT)

20 Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins

2)We are sinners at birth

Psalm 51:5 New International Version (NIV)

5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

3) Sin keeps us away from God

Romans 6:23 New Living Translation (NLT)

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Death here refers to spiritual separation from God.

4) We are nothing without God

Since sin keeps us away from God, we lose our sense of purpose and direction in life. That is the reason why we cannot experience life to the full.

John 15:5 New International Version (NIV)

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing.

God’s Free Gift of Salvation:

Since we are God’s creation, created in His image and likeness, He dearly loves us and doesn’t want us to be eternally separated from Him.

John 3:16 New International Version (NIV)

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

But since He is a Holy God, He cannot just take us to be with Him; rather, He needs to redeem us from our sins. To be able to do this, He needs to pay the ultimate price by dying on the cross for our sins, since the penalty of sin is death, and according to His Law, “without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”

Hebrews 9:22 New International Version (NIV)

22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Romans 5:8 New International Version (NIV)

8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Because of His Death on the cross for our sins, He became the only way for man to reconcile to God and to receive His free gift of Salvation (eternal life).

Romans 6:23 New Living Translation (NLT)

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

John 14:6 New International Version (NIV)

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

The Bible clearly says that eternal life is a gift. This means we need to receive the gift to be able to have it. How can we receive the free gift of Salvation?

We receive it by faith alone in Jesus Christ

Ephesians 2:8-9 New International Version (NIV)

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

Our Faith is initially expressed by:

1) Our confession of our faith in Jesus Christ

Romans 10:9-10 New International Version (NIV)

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

2) Believing in what Jesus did at the cross of Calvary and for who He is

Acts 16:31 New International Version (NIV)

31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

3) Inviting Him to be the Lord and Savior of our Life

Revelation 3:20 New International Version (NIV)

20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

Understanding and receiving the free gift of salvation and fathership of God to our life, makes us new and free from the holds of sin in our life.

2 Corinthians 5:17 New International Version (NIV)

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here!

Now that you know our status and do you want to receive God's free gift of salvation to your life through Jesus Christ?

Put your notes and reflections on this lesson

All quotations from scripture in this training material unless otherwise indicated are taken from the

NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION

LESSON 3: Man’s Status and God’s free gift of Salvation