Post #4: Problems and Solutions Part 2

Part 2

In part 1, I talked about the big problems(1) we are faced with in our relationship with God.  Problems that we cannot fix.  But God has done it for us.  He has provided the solution for not just dealing with one thing, but all we need to be made completely whole.  Through His grace and mercy(2), here’s what that looks like.

A bank account is a good analogy.  What was in our account is death because of our sin.  God sent his perfect Son, to be the sacrifice for us.  He paid (deposited into our account for us) the price we could not pay for our sin and unrighteousness.  Now that’s good news!  This Easter week is a great time to discuss and remember this.
 
So why did Jesus have to die for us?  Why couldn’t God just forgive and forget our wrongs?  Simply put, because God is just.  Yes, God is love and merciful.  But He is just.  And that’s a really good thing too.  Now, this can get deep, and I promised to keep things less so going forward, but I do want to close out this foundational discussion.  Here’s some verses from Romans chapter 5, which says it better than I can, so I’ll let God’s written Word do the talking.
 
Romans 5
¹Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. ³ Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
⁶ You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! ¹⁰ For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! ¹¹ Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. ¹² 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—
¹³ To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. ¹⁴ Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.
¹⁵ But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! ¹⁶ Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. ¹⁷ For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!
¹⁸ Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. ¹⁹ 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.
²⁰ The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, ²¹ so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
 
And Romans 3:20-24 says,
²⁰ Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. ²¹ But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²² This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
 
 
Here's Leroy’s summary of all that:
-We are vindicated through Jesus only by God’s grace through our faith in Him
-He died for us when we could do nothing about our sin problem
-Once Adam sinned, sin was in the world and death came to us all
-The (Old Testament) law makes us aware of sin, but doesn’t fix our sin problem
-The righteous act of one perfect man, Jesus, makes eternal life possible for all
 
Jesus himself said in John 14:6, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”
 
John 3:36 says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever does not believe does not have eternal life, because God’s wrath remains on him.”
 
Romans 10:9,13: “That if you confess with your mouth that ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord, will be saved.”

Remember the “problems” discussed in the previous post?  To combat and overcome each of those, look at the gifts He has given us!

PROBLEM	GIFT
Sin	Complete forgiveness (Hebrews 10:14)
Separation from God	Unity with God (John 17:21)
Death	Eternal Life (1 Peter 1:23)
Stone Heart	New Heart (Ephesians 2:10)

God has given us incredible gifts.  It’s really that simple.  Confess, believe, accept these free gifts.  

 

Where do you stand?  For me, I have decided to believe in Jesus as my Lord.  I confess that I have sinned and need Jesus’ gift of forgiveness and salvation.  It doesn’t mean I am perfect.  But when God looks at me now, He only sees what Jesus has done for me, and not what I’ve done.  Thank God for that.

 

Can’t wait to continue our discussion about what a new life in Jesus can be.  I hope we can journey through it together.

 

 

 

(1)—A lot of the wording of this discussion on problems and gifts was written by Debbie a few years ago during a class she was teaching on finding our true identity.  I have added my own bible references and adapted it to these posts on salvation and why we need Jesus as our Savior.

(2)—Grace is receiving something that you do not deserve.  Mercy is not receiving what you do deserve.