Our Need For A Savior

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Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to die on the cross? Couldn’t there have been another way? What is God’s plan for us? What does He expect out of us? Why did He give us the Bible? Why does He expect us to obey all that is in it? Is it true that a person can go to heaven if they live a good moral life, or is there more to it than that? These are the questions that we want to answer in this lesson. The answers center around the fact that we need a Savior.

I. Why the Bible?

  1. Contrary to what some might think, God did not give us the Bible in order to restrict us from doing things that are enjoyable. God told Israel in Deuteronomy 10:12-13 that His laws were given for their good. It is just like an automobile manufacture that includes an owner’s manual along with the car. The purpose is not to restrict the car owner, but to get the most enjoyment possible out of the car.The Bible is just that; an owner’s manual sent from God so that we can get the most out of this life.
  2. The primary reason for the Bible, though, is so that we can become like God so that we can live with Him. In fact, the ultimate reason God made us is because He wants us to live with Him; that is evident by all that He has done for us to make living with Him possible. Therefore, the Bible, or God’s law is simply a reflection of who He is; it represents perfection. If we did all that God’s law requires, as Jesus did, we would be like God and would therefore have earned the right to live with Him.
  3. To further emphasize that God wants us to be like Him, read the following passages noticing especially the “even as” or “just as” statements to show that we are to live in such a way to be like Him: Matthew 5:48; John 13:34; Ephesians 4:32; 5:25-27; I John 1:7; 2:6; 3:1-3.

II. Our Problem: SIN

  1. Now, of course, there is one big problem with all of this: we do not always live like God. We have not kept His law. We have sinned, that is, violated the law ( I John 3:4). Romans 3:23 tells us that all have sinned and Romans 3:9-10 tells us that there is none righteous, not even one.
  2. What is the result of our sin? In such a condition, we cannot live with God. God cannot have us in heaven with Him with our sin. Thus, Romans 6:23, “The wages of sin is death,” death being separation from God. See also Isaiah 59:1-2.
  3. It is also interesting to note that it does not matter how many times we have sinned or how “bad” our sins were. Even one sin separates us from God and leaves us in the condition of not being able to live with Him. In Luke 7:41-42 Jesus told a parable to a Pharisee who thought he would be saved because he had sinned far less than a very sinful woman who was also n Jesus’ presence. In the parable Jesus showed that the Pharisee was in exactly the same condition as the sinful woman because even though his sins may have been fewer, he could not pay the penalty for his sins any more than she could. Thus, we are all in the same boat: LOST, AND UNABLE TO GET OUT OF THIS CONDITION BY OUR OWN GOOD WORKS.
  4. It is important to emphasize this last point. No one will be saved because they lived a good moral life. We cannot make up for our sins by being good. Even sinning once is like owing a million dollars to the bank with nothing but a weekly paycheck that wouldn’t even make a dent in the interest. In Acts 10:2, we read of a man named Cornelius who was “devout, feared God with his whole house, gave much money to the poor, and prayed to God always.” And yet Cornelius was lost because he had not done what the Lord required to obtain forgiveness. Forgiveness is the only way we can be saved.

III. God’s Answer To Our Problem

  1. Here is where the love of God and the grace of God comes in. While it is true we are lost, God does not want us to stay in that condition. Remember, He made us so that we could live with Him. And yet, He cannot simply “overlook” our sins because that would not be justice — He would not be a just God. (We are not pleased with our judges today who allow murderers to go free on technicalities.) This is not justice and such is not the character of God.
  2. So, how does God remain just and yet still forgive our sins (that is ,justify us)? Read Romans 3:19-26. There are a number of principles we learn from this text:
  3. No one can be saved by simply trying to obey God’s laws well enough to be saved (”by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified”). We simply cannot be good enough to earn our own salvation. Such would require perfection on our part and none of us have been perfect. Instead, God’s law tells us when we have sinned. The law by itself does not bring us salvation.
  4. God has made a plan by which we can become righteous (”the righteousness of God is revealed apart from the law”). This plan is different (”apart from”) a system by which we would need to keep the law of God perfectly in order to be saved. This new system God has revealed comes through faith in Jesus Christ. In other words, this system is based on forgiveness (Romans 4:6-8) instead of perfect law-keeping.
  5. In this system we are justified (pronounced righteous) “freely” (we did not earn it nor could we) “by His grace”. God extended grace to us based on the “redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” No person could pay the penalty we deserved of everlasting separation from God. Therefore, God set a “ransom price” (Mt.20:28; 1 Tim.2:6) by which man could be redeemed or purchased from his sins. Jesus willingly paid this price with His life. No one else could have paid that price because no one else could qualify as the perfect “lamb of God”. If Jesus did not give His life, all of us would have been lost in our sins throughout eternity. What an unfathomable gift He has given us!

IV. How Do We Obtain This Great Salvation?

  1. Obviously, if Jesus died for us paying the ransom price for our sins, we need to come to God through Him. The first chapter of Ephesians repeatedly states that salvation is IN CHRIST. This means I must do whatever Jesus Christ has asked me to do in order to obtain this forgiveness. To do whatever He has asked of me is to have true FAITH in Him. See Hebrews 5:8-9.
  2. What exactly must I do? Peter began his sermon on the day of Pentecost with the words of Joel, “And whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord, shall be saved.” Peter then went on in his sermon to show that Jesus was the Lord upon whom men should appeal to if they would obtain salvation. Then in Acts 2:37-38, when the people asked what they needed to do (that is, in order to call on the name of Jesus), Peter told them they were to “repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
  3. Hebrews 10:22-26 sums it all up by telling us that we first must draw near to God with faith, repentance, and baptism. And then we must hold fast the confession of our hope WITHOUT WAVERING. Finally, we must consider one another (that is, help each other to stay saved also) by not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together. Instead, we are to stimulate one another to love and good works.
  4. Finally, the beauty of all of this is that once we are IN Christ, we can continue to have forgiveness of our sins. (We didn’t live perfectly before we became Christians and we won’t after we become Christians.) Our salvation continues to be on the basis of forgiveness. How do we obtain forgiveness after we have been saved? Read I John 1:7–2:5. By obeying God and confessing our sins to Him when we fall short we can maintain ourselves in a state of being “cleansed from all sin.”

WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO TURN SUCH A GREAT SALVATION DOWN ?!