Jesus Christ the Savior

Sin, Nature of Man & His Final Destiny

In the beginning God created Man and Woman in his image – perfect, blameless and without sin. Man in God’s image had the free will to do everything, which included disobeying God too. In his free will he chose to disobey God by eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, that God had specifically told man not to eat - man “missed the mark” of meeting God’s Holy standards. Man allowed sin to permeate into their perfect life and thus made his life an imperfect one on this earth. When sin came into the lives of the first man, Adam, and the first woman, Eve, they realized that they were guilty of breaking God’s holy commandment. To cover their guilt and shame they covered themselves with fig leaves. When God came into the Garden of Eden, God found them hiding from His presence. A Sovereign and All-knowing God knew everything, so God made the first sacrifice to cover their sin - physically with leather skins and spiritually by pardoning them from the outcome of sin that is death. Paul tells us that “sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned. Rom. 5:12.”  Hence, ever since that day, every man, and woman born on this earth are born with an inherent sin nature which they inherited from Adam and Eve and have a mortal body that will die on this earth. David reminds us that we are born in sin, “…I was brought forth in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me. Psalms 51:5.” 

Wayne Grudem defines, “sin is any failure to conform to the moral law of God in act, attitude or nature.(490)”  Even though sin originated from man but having this sin nature also keeps man away from God. Hence, man should never blame God as being responsible for our sin, since it is inherent within man. Rather James clarifies that, “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. James 1:14-15.” When Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden, they lost access to the Tree of Life, and thus became mortal beings. 

Sin comes into the life of a person in three different ways – lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and the pride of life. These three corrupt the nature of man and keeps man away from the holiness of God. Sin not only destroyed man’s life, but it also brought a curse from God on earth, thereby allowing brokenness to permeate into the whole earth. What we see around us is a broken mankind living in a broken world, creating both chaos and destruction to one another’s life and on everything on this earth. John the disciple tells us “Sin is lawlessness. 1 John 3:4.” Indeed, lawlessness creates chaos, death, and destruction. God gave this earth to man and told him to take care of it. However, man allowed lawlessness and destruction to run rampant, since man from birth has been doomed for destruction. 

Many assume that there is a wicked God who enjoys sending innocent people to hell. However, what they fail to comprehend is that God is both Holy and Righteous. No unholiness and no unrighteousness can stay in His Holy presence. Grudem tells us that the primary reason God punishes sin is because, “God’s righteousness demands it.” Jeremiah reminds us about God’s righteousness, “I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord. Jer. 9:24.” However, on the contrary, Paul tells us how unrighteous man is per God’s standards, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good not even one. Rom. 3:10-12.” Therefore, man by default is destined to go to hell rather than heaven, from the day he or she is born from their mother’s womb.  Paul reminds us that not a single person on this earth is capable enough to attain the glory of God, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Rom. 3:23.” Hence, man receives the punishment of sin, because the “wages of sin is death. Rom. 6:23.”  The irony of life on earth is that all mankind is inherently sinful and is destined to die, in short, there is no hope for mankind in their “As-Is” state. 

Atonement – The Basis of Salvation 

It is sad to recognize that all mankind in their “As-Is” state will have no hope, since they have an inherent sin nature, since it leads them to eternal death. So, how and what can mankind hope for? Life on this earth with so much pain and suffering seem worthless, especially without purpose and hope? The answer to this question and mystery, is found in the word Atonement. Bernie A Van De Walle tells us, “Atonement became necessary because sin had separated humanity from God.(30)” The Lexham Dictionary defines atonement as the “Hebrew word for atone (כָּפַר, kaphar) which conveys the idea of covering, both in the sense of covering to hide and covering for someone (i.e., not charging someone with an offense or penalty).” God’s holy standards tell us that the outcome of sin is death. Just like God saved Adam and Eve, from imminent death, by performing a sacrifice of an animal to himself, in the same manner God instituted a religious sacrificial system with the Jewish nation. They were asked to sacrifice an unblemished animal to get atonement for their sins, so that man could obtain reconciliation with the Holy God. The Old Testament law delineated every single detail on atonement within the sacrificial system in Leviticus 4-6 and Leviticus 16. However, the key principle that is highlighted from this sacrificial system is that of a spiritual transaction. In this the person who wants to be redeemed from his sin, brings an unblemished lamb for sacrifice, as his (or her) sin offering and then he would “lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and kill it for a sin offering. Leviticus 4:33.” In this symbolic transaction, the sins of the person would be transferred to the innocent animal, which would then be sacrificed on behalf of the sinful person. The animal will face the wrath of God for the sin committed by the person. This was sacrificial system instituted by God for man to be saved from imminent death, due to the sin in his/her life and have eternal life. 

This Old Testament sacrificial system was established as a “type” of sacrifice by which God was trying to help the Jewish nation understand about true and complete Atonement, which was to happen when the Messiah would come and die for their sins. Ironically, many of the Jews failed to comprehend and accept this magnificent plan of God.  The book of Hebrews tells us that the sacrificial system was, “a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, Hebrews 10:1.” 

Another term that emerges in the New Testament, after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus was “penal substitution.” This term does not exist in the Bible, but this term describes what God allowed to happen to Jesus on the Cross of Calvary. Van De Walle describes this term as, “on the cross Jesus took humanity’s penalty upon himself, freeing humanity from the condemnation of the Mosaic law.(30)” Jesus was that perfect and unblemished lamb for the sacrifice for all mankind-past, present & future. He was both God, having divine attributes, and was a man, born in this painful world. He was God and was sinless since he was born without inherent sin. Paul points about Lord Jesus to the Corinthian church, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21.”  Jesus was born as a baby on this earth and became man, so was a perfect sacrifice for all mankind. All the animal sacrifices in the world could never have been enough to cleanse the sins of all men, unless God took it upon himself to cleanse the past, the present and the future sins from mankind. This was only possible when God would come in human form to take that condemnation away. In his spiritual form, it would have been impossible for him to take man’s sacrifice upon himself, since he is a spirit.  That is Jesus! Paul reminds us that, “Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. Rom. 6:18-19.” Thus, atonement became the major foundation for receiving salvation, which means eternal security with God. This is a work of God.  No herculean task nor any amount of merit of man can ever achieve this. Van De Walle states that, “the statutes of the divine law demanded satisfaction, and so the atonement, through its object remains divine, is a work of the entire Godhead.(34)” 

Two thousand years ago, Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected by God on the third day, conquering both sin and death. Now, God has given mankind one final opportunity to operate in their free will, to be saved for all eternity, or be lost forever. The Lexham Dictionary tells us, that “the New Testament authors interpreted Christ’s death as the once-and-for-all atonement event, fulfilling and surpassing all other means humans had previously relied on to atone for sin.” Every person on this earth has an easy access to obtain eternal security with God (salvation) or be eternally separated from God. Sin is an inherent issue with all people, across the world, but mankind can be delivered from the “sting of sin,” if they seek forgiveness of their sins and believe in the resurrection power of Jesus. They will be saved! 

Justification – Christ the only Savior

The offer of salvation or to be saved is freely given, motivated by the love of God for all people on this planet - past, present, and future. The gospel of John tells us “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16.” Ironically, we live in a world that believes in subjective truth. There are some who say, there are multiple ways to reach heaven; while there are others who say there is no heaven or hell. To challenge and counter this complex and incorrect world view from the beginning of time to now, Jesus makes a clear, definitive, and objective statement, in the gospel of John, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6.” This is an affirmative and true statement, confirming that Jesus is the only way to God and there is no other basis for truth, salvation or eternal life from this sin sick world and life. 

In Matt. 28:19-20, before Jesus went up to Heaven, he commanded his disciples to preach this good news to the ends of the earth, so that everyone gets an opportunity to be saved. To be saved from this sin sick world and life, Jesus introduced a new concept, which was very foreign to the Jewish religious scholars and people. This new concept he first shared with Nicodemus, who came to him in the night to seek his guidance about the Kingdom of God. Jesus said, one needs to be “born again” to see the Kingdom of God, which surprised and challenged the foundational understanding of salvation from the Mosaic law. Two questions, arise in all our minds. Firstly, what is this born-again experience? Secondly, what happens to a person when he (or she) is saved?  Grudem describes it, “As the gospel comes to us, God speaks through it to summon us to himself (effective calling) and to give us new spiritual life (regeneration) so that we are enabled to respond in faith. Effective calling is thus God the Father speaking powerfully to us, and regeneration is God the Father and God the Holy Spirit working powerfully in us, to make us alive.(700)” This is true transformation of a person, from having a heart of stone or being dead in his spirit, to become alive in Christ. He (or she) will now have a heart of flesh as stated in Ezekiel 36:26-29. Now, by the power of the Holy Spirit, God moves in their hearts to help them understand a true born-again and being saved experience. This is something that happens in the twinkle of an eye, one moment we are spiritually dead and another moment we are spiritually alive. This motivates one to have an absolute trust in Jesus Christ for salvation and challenges man to recognize his (or her) sinful nature motivating him to seek the forgiveness of his sins from Jesus. This is the point of Justification. Grudem describes justification as, “an instantaneous legal act of God in which he (1) thinks of our sins as forgiven and Christ’s righteousness as belonging to us, and (2) declares us to be righteous in his sight.(723)”   

 Sin took mankind away from God, but justification restored that broken relationship of man with God. Paul tells the church in Rome, “Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Romans 8:33.” So when we are justified, there is no more legal charge against the sinful man who has sought forgiveness of their sins from God. There is no more condemnation or penalty to be paid for our sins – past, present, or future. Paul confirms this to the church in Rome, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1.” 

This justification is not due to the merit or effort of man, rather it is God’s amazing grace by which God considers man penalty free. It is His grace, that makes God take on the perfect righteousness of Jesus and put it on sinful man.  Now when God sees us, he does not see a sinful man, rather he sees the righteousness of Jesus covering the sins of man. God has already paid a costly price for it, by the shedding the blood of Jesus on Calvary and by his resurrection on the third day. Paul affirms this, “because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.  Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.  For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. Romans 5:17-19.” Every man, woman and so-called gods have lived and died. Only Jesus Christ died, resurrected, and rose to heaven. Jesus is alive and is seated at the right hand of God. Only his righteous act, has given each person on this earth the opportunity to be saved. Only through Him and none other. Indeed, Jesus Christ is the Savior, there is none other who can save all of mankind – from the past, present, or future.

Christ as My Savior

As a young adult grown up in a traditional Christian family, I was a good Christian boy and I assumed I knew everything about God, until the brokenness of my life and the brokenness of this world collided and came crashing on my footsteps. I was shattered, bringing about many confusing questions of life. Life seemed meaningless and without purpose, church seemed like a hollow building with meaningless traditions and betrayal from every side forced me to take a step back and recognize that I was all alone in this big world. 

It was at that time, a colleague of mine, invited me to a different kind of church. It was there, I somehow started reading God’s Word again and my loneliness made me seek God for solace. I immersed myself in his holy word cover to cover. As I prayed and sought his help, his Holy Spirit started to reveal in me, my state of brokenness, my sinfulness, my unclean thoughts, my pride, my lusts, and every evil thought, that had originated from my heart. God started doing an introspection leading to an amazing transformation. That is when I realized that I needed to be born again. As the Spirit of God spoke into my heart, I repented of my sins to Jesus. I recognized that only Jesus Christ is my savior and there is none other. I saw and experienced the love of Christ, both from God and from this new fellowship of believers.  His Word confirmed to me that God’s promises are true and everlasting, and he delivers his children from the enemy’s snare. He truly delivered me and then on February 24, 1995, I took the believer’s baptism by immersion to publicly declare that Jesus Christ is my Savior. 

Bibliography

• The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV). Crossway, Good News Publishers, 2001 
• Grudem, Wayne. Systematic Theology. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2000
• Van De Walle, Bernie A. The Heart of the Gospel. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2009
• Brockway, D., et all. The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Lexham Press, 2016.