The Sinners need for Christ

“The sinners need of Christ”

What is the definition of a sinner?

A person who transgresses against divine law by committing an immoral act or actions.

Synonyms:

wrongdoer, evildoer

What is a sinner according to scripture?

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Rom 3:24  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

So, if all have sinned, and 1 John 3:4  defines sin as: “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” Then we are all sinners, are we not? But, as Romans 3:24 says, we may all be “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” therefore, we are all in need of Christ, Amen? We each, individually, need His saving grace.

To understand further our need of Christ, and all sinners need, we can go and look at how man was created to be, and how mankind has been deteriorated because of sin—the transgression of God’s divine law.

Let’s begin in the beginning.

Gen 1:26,27

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

So, God created Man in HIS Image, to have dominion over all the earth, and everything in and on the earth.

In Genesis 2:7 we read how God created Man.

Genesis 2:7

And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Note: How was man created?

Formed from the dust of the ground

How was the rest of creation made?

God spake, and it was.

God created everything by speaking, and it was made except for Man. God purposed to form man in the Image of God with an intellect, a conscience and a well-balanced mind. He took time to form man with His own hands; the creation of man was intimate with God, thus men and women were created to have that close communion with God.

Ellen White says in Steps to Christ,

“Man was originally endowed with noble powers and a well-balanced mind. He was perfect in his being, and in harmony with God. His thoughts were pure, his aims holy. But through disobedience, his powers were perverted, and selfishness took the place of love. His nature became so weakened through transgression that it was impossible for him, in his own strength, to resist the power of evil. He was made captive by Satan, and would have remained so forever had not God specially interposed. It was the tempter's purpose to thwart the divine plan in man's creation, and fill the earth with woe and desolation. And he would point to all this evil as the result of God's work in creating man.” Steps to Christ ~ 17.1

So, when God created Man, did He create them to be evil? Did God create Evil?

No, of course not. It is Satan's purpose to discredit creation as evil that is the result of God's work in creating—God did not create suffering or evil, but Lucifer, and other supreme beings created by God, made a conscious decision to do wrong—that is, they chose to rebel and violate God’s divine law, and sinned entered.

But God specially interposed.

“It is impossible for us, of ourselves, to escape from the pit of sin in which we are sunken. Our hearts are evil, and we cannot change them. "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one." "The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." Job 14:4; Romans 8:7. Education, culture, the exercise of the will, human effort, all have their proper sphere, but here they are powerless. They may produce an outward correctness of behavior, but they cannot change the heart; they cannot purify the springs of life. There must be a power working from within, a new life from above, before men can be changed from sin to holiness. That power is Christ. His grace alone can quicken the lifeless faculties of the soul, and attract it to God, to holiness.” Steps to Christ  (18).

Amen?

Despite Satan's work to destroy mankind, God Specially interposed. Even though that which He created rebelled against Him, He still provided a way of escape from the wages of sin:

           

Rom 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

This brings us to the Plan of Salvation, What is the plan of Salvation?

Instead of abandoning us in this world with our sin or destroying this world and everything in it, God made a plan to bring hope to the world, a plan that could give human kind the hope of everlasting life if we so choose it. Sin is like a disease that has swept across the earth, destroying and deteriorating everything that it contacts; we can see this earth and all its contents scarred by sin, with disease and death all around. But God made a plan of salvation to save the people of the world from sin—and from the wages of sin.

The earthly sanctuary that was in Israel has a representation of the plan of Salvation:

Remember what the lamb represents?

"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world," John the Baptist said as he saw Jesus coming towards him (John 1:29). 
It is without a doubt who the Lamb of God is—Jesus is the Lamb of God, our Savior, the one who was innocent and holy, yet who took our reproach and sins upon Himself to pay the price of sin on our behalf. The whole illustration of the Ceremonies and furnishings of the sanctuary shadow the events of the cross—the whole of the plan of Salvation is focused around Christ as our Savior. That is why the message of the sanctuary is so important, both for new converts and those who have long been converted. Yet this topic, this illustration of hope and inspiration, is rarely taught in our churches today. Other denominations avoid the subject viewing it as holding little meaning, but even now our congregations are being deprived of the subject of the Sanctuary, and of the subject of Salvation. We must not forget who our Savior is and why, which is Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Steps to Christ:

“But in vain are men's dreams of progress, in vain all efforts for the uplifting of humanity, if they neglect the one Source of hope and help for the fallen race. "Every good gift and every perfect gift" (James 1:17) is from God. There is no true excellence of character apart from Him. And the only way to God is Christ. He says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me." John 14:6.

Amen?
We must recognize the true nature of sin in order to comprehend our essential need for Christ. Those who feel they may continue on in sin, in violation to God’s divine commandments, do NOT realize their true need for a Savior, and are thus perishing.
The true nature of sin should be recognized and abhorred by those seeking to live up to the light that they know. There should be a constant persevering attempt to overcome sin, for that is what Christ taught us, and which we can do only through Him.
Only through Jesus Christ can we be freed from the bondage of sin in this life, and be able to pass into that new life in Christ.

“The heart of God yearns over His earthly children with a love stronger than death. In giving up His Son, He has poured out to us all heaven in one gift. The Saviour’s life and death and intercession, the ministry of angels, the pleading of the Spirit, the Father working above and through all, the unceasing interest of heavenly beings,--all are enlisted in behalf of man's redemption.

            They are all there where we cannot see them, but they are all there working to help us. The whole hosts of heaven are ready and willing to assist us in fighting against the flesh—to help us conquer sin and worldliness. It is up to us to accept their aid—to surrender ourselves to God and dedicate to doing His will.

Oh, let us contemplate the amazing sacrifice that has been made for us! Let us try to appreciate the labor and energy that Heaven is expending to reclaim the lost, and bring them back to the Father's house. Motives stronger, and agencies more powerful, could never be brought into operation; the exceeding rewards for right-doing, the enjoyment of heaven, the society of the angels, the communion and love of God and His Son, the elevation and extension of all our powers throughout eternal ages—are these not mighty incentives and encouragements to urge us to give the heart's loving service to our Creator and Redeemer?

          Once the sinner has made that conscious decision, in humble and contrite heart, to forsake the service of Satan and continuance in sin, then the peace of God and with the hosts of heaven we can be united with in the struggle against sin.

“And, on the other hand, the judgments of God pronounced against sin, the inevitable retribution, the degradation of our character, and the final destruction, are presented in God's word to warn us against the service of Satan.

Shall we not regard the mercy of God? What more could He do? Let us place ourselves in right relation to Him who has loved us with amazing love. Let us avail ourselves of the means provided for us that we may be transformed into His likeness, and be restored to fellowship with the ministering angels, to harmony and communion with the Father and the Son.

1Ti 2:3-6
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;

Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

            It is God’s desire that all would be saved, that all would come to Him, and that all would receive Christ as their Redeemer. The only thing holding the sinner back from this gift of eternal life is their own choice. My prayer and hope is that each of us would recognize our need for a Savior, and that we would each make that conscious, mental, and physical decision to accept Christ of whom we are in need of. And in our daily lives, I hope that we would also teach others their need for Christ as well.