The Doctrine of Salvation
How
"Righteousness by Faith"
Really Works
"Righteousness by Faith"
Really Works
Transcript of A-2
Welcome again to our study on The Doctrine of Salvation -- How “Righteousness by Faith” Really Works
We are still in Section A: What Is Sin? and this is now Lesson 2: The Result of Sin & The Penalty for Sin
We are still in Section A: What Is Sin? and this is now Lesson 2: The Result of Sin & The Penalty for Sin
Before we can understand what sin really is in our personal experience, we need to look back to what happened when Adam and Eve sinned in the beginning of this world's history. What did God do in that emergency, when all of God's plans for the human race were being altered by the choices of the first beings that He created to populate Earth?
Let’s first determine: What was the penalty for Adam & Eve’s sin? We find the answer in Genesis 2:17: Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
This is a puzzling verse, because we know that Adam and Eve did not die “in the day” that they ate the forbidden fruit. Yet God was very clear that immediate death would be the penalty for disobedience. Why didn't Adam and Eve die immediately?
Genesis 3:15 tells us: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
This verse can be a bit confusing, so let’s read an amplified version of Genesis 3:15 - And I (Christ) will put enmity (hostility, hatred) between thee (Satan) and the woman (Eve), and between thy seed (Satan’s followers) and her seed (Christ - the promised Messiah); it (her seed - Christ) shall bruise thy head (kill Satan), and thou (Satan) shalt bruise his heel (only wound Christ).
Adam and Eve did not immediately die when they first sinned because at that very moment, the Substitute was placed between them and the penalty of death for their sin. Jesus Christ took Adam and Eve’s place, and personally paid the penalty for their sin by living a sinless life and willingly dying on the cross.
There is a remarkable insight on what happened in the Garden of Eden in the following comments: “Why was not the death penalty at once enforced in Adam’s case? Because a ransom was found. God's only begotten Son volunteered to take the sin of man upon himself, and to make an atonement for the fallen race. The instant man accepted the temptations of Satan, and did the very things God had said he should not do, Christ stood between the living and the dead, saying: Let the punishment fall on Me. I will stand in man's place. He shall have another chance. As soon as there was sin, there was a Saviour... As soon as Adam sinned, the Son of God presented Himself as surety for the human race, with just as much power to avert the doom pronounced upon the guilty as when He died upon the cross of Calvary.” -- S.D.A. Bible Commentary, Vol. 1, pp. 1082-1085.
Jesus’ promise of His atoning death directly affected Adam and Eve and the whole human race. Jesus paid the penalty for Adam's sin exactly as specified in Genesis 2:17 (where it says: Thou shalt surely die.) In doing this, Jesus gave Adam and Eve and all their descendants another chance to make different decisions about obedience and disobedience.
The suffering and later death experienced by Adam and each of us was the result of sin, not the penalty for sin. The penalty for sin was paid at that moment by Jesus Christ through His promise to die in our place. Adam soon offered a lamb sacrifice for his sin, showing that he understood that the death penalty would be paid. But the result of Adam’s sin (the curse of sin upon this world) has continued to be a part of the human experience ever since then to this very day.
Does death (a result of sin) imply guilt? Let’s read Luke 13:1-5 to find out: There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
Here we see that death was not the direct result of their personal sins. They were not more guilty than others. Their death was not the penalty for their sins, but the result of sin, which has affected all who have lived on this earth.
Does suffering (another result of sin) imply guilt? Let’s read John 9:1-3 to find out: And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
Jesus is saying that suffering is not the penalty for sin, but rather is the result of sin's curse resting heavily on the earth and the human race. There is a clear distinction between the result of sin and the penalty for sin.
Since death and suffering are results of sin and not the penalty for sin: When can we have everlasting life? John 5:24 tells us: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that hears my word, and believes on him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
We have everlasting life when we believe, which can be today. However, even for those who believe and have everlasting life, they will still die (from the results of sin), but will be raised from the dead at Christ's second coming.
Here we have a clear distinction between the first death as the result of sin, which Jesus called a sleep, and the second death as the penalty for sin from which there is no resurrection. Let me repeat: The first death is the result of sin pervading this earth, while the second death is the penalty for sin.
While we cannot avoid the results of sin, we can avoid the penalty for sin by believing in God. This means that we can possess everlasting life even while we must die the first death (sleep). Thus, the first death (and all suffering) is not the penalty for sin. Everlasting life means no second death, which is the penalty for sin.
We find this truth in 1 John 5:12-13, as well: He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.
So, what can we conclude from all this? This means that we must divide the basic idea of sin into two separate parts -- evil and guilt. Evil includes all the things which are the inherent results of sin, which include suffering and death. Guilt involves personal condemnation and the penalty for sin, which is the second death.
So, we have two different consequences of Adam's sin. We have the curse -- the inherent results of sin – that human beings, animals, and all nature experience, which leads to the first death. We also have guilt, which only human beings experience, and which leads to the second death – the penalty for personally choosing and committing sins.
The atonement of Christ covers both of these consequences of sin, but in different ways. The atonement must deal with guilt by forgiving the sin, and it must deal with the evil results of sin by recreating and restoring what the curse of sin has damaged.
In addition, forgiveness can be ours today, while restoration of our perfect nature (without a tendency to sin), which comes with God’s gift of eternal life, must wait until Christ’s return. Forgiveness is not needed for the results of sin, -- only for the guilt of sin.
Thus, the terms: forgiveness, justification, righteousness, sanctification, salvation, and the gospel apply particularly to our guilt and the penalty for our sin.
There is a fundamental difference between the result of sin and the penalty for sin. We are not guilty and personally condemned because we were born into a sinful world. We suffer many results of Adam's sin, including: a fallen nature, sickness, disabilities, and death. But our sufferings are part of the natural curse of sin, not the willful sin for which we are held guilty.
The sin for which we will be lost eternally comes from something else (choice), which will be the subject of our next study. This is why there is no guilt applied to a cat who tortures a mouse to death, while we hold a human being guilty for torturing someone. The cat is simply following its instincts -- its fallen nature -- without any knowledge of right and wrong, while human beings can be held guilty because of a conscious choice to do wrong.
All animals and human beings suffer because of the results of sin, but they are not personally condemned because of those sinful results. Guilt applies only to the moral responsibility for the choices we make. Guilt demands prior knowledge and willful rebellion. It must be from an informed choice.
Let’s first determine: What was the penalty for Adam & Eve’s sin? We find the answer in Genesis 2:17: Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
This is a puzzling verse, because we know that Adam and Eve did not die “in the day” that they ate the forbidden fruit. Yet God was very clear that immediate death would be the penalty for disobedience. Why didn't Adam and Eve die immediately?
Genesis 3:15 tells us: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
This verse can be a bit confusing, so let’s read an amplified version of Genesis 3:15 - And I (Christ) will put enmity (hostility, hatred) between thee (Satan) and the woman (Eve), and between thy seed (Satan’s followers) and her seed (Christ - the promised Messiah); it (her seed - Christ) shall bruise thy head (kill Satan), and thou (Satan) shalt bruise his heel (only wound Christ).
Adam and Eve did not immediately die when they first sinned because at that very moment, the Substitute was placed between them and the penalty of death for their sin. Jesus Christ took Adam and Eve’s place, and personally paid the penalty for their sin by living a sinless life and willingly dying on the cross.
There is a remarkable insight on what happened in the Garden of Eden in the following comments: “Why was not the death penalty at once enforced in Adam’s case? Because a ransom was found. God's only begotten Son volunteered to take the sin of man upon himself, and to make an atonement for the fallen race. The instant man accepted the temptations of Satan, and did the very things God had said he should not do, Christ stood between the living and the dead, saying: Let the punishment fall on Me. I will stand in man's place. He shall have another chance. As soon as there was sin, there was a Saviour... As soon as Adam sinned, the Son of God presented Himself as surety for the human race, with just as much power to avert the doom pronounced upon the guilty as when He died upon the cross of Calvary.” -- S.D.A. Bible Commentary, Vol. 1, pp. 1082-1085.
Jesus’ promise of His atoning death directly affected Adam and Eve and the whole human race. Jesus paid the penalty for Adam's sin exactly as specified in Genesis 2:17 (where it says: Thou shalt surely die.) In doing this, Jesus gave Adam and Eve and all their descendants another chance to make different decisions about obedience and disobedience.
The suffering and later death experienced by Adam and each of us was the result of sin, not the penalty for sin. The penalty for sin was paid at that moment by Jesus Christ through His promise to die in our place. Adam soon offered a lamb sacrifice for his sin, showing that he understood that the death penalty would be paid. But the result of Adam’s sin (the curse of sin upon this world) has continued to be a part of the human experience ever since then to this very day.
Does death (a result of sin) imply guilt? Let’s read Luke 13:1-5 to find out: There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
Here we see that death was not the direct result of their personal sins. They were not more guilty than others. Their death was not the penalty for their sins, but the result of sin, which has affected all who have lived on this earth.
Does suffering (another result of sin) imply guilt? Let’s read John 9:1-3 to find out: And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
Jesus is saying that suffering is not the penalty for sin, but rather is the result of sin's curse resting heavily on the earth and the human race. There is a clear distinction between the result of sin and the penalty for sin.
Since death and suffering are results of sin and not the penalty for sin: When can we have everlasting life? John 5:24 tells us: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that hears my word, and believes on him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
We have everlasting life when we believe, which can be today. However, even for those who believe and have everlasting life, they will still die (from the results of sin), but will be raised from the dead at Christ's second coming.
Here we have a clear distinction between the first death as the result of sin, which Jesus called a sleep, and the second death as the penalty for sin from which there is no resurrection. Let me repeat: The first death is the result of sin pervading this earth, while the second death is the penalty for sin.
While we cannot avoid the results of sin, we can avoid the penalty for sin by believing in God. This means that we can possess everlasting life even while we must die the first death (sleep). Thus, the first death (and all suffering) is not the penalty for sin. Everlasting life means no second death, which is the penalty for sin.
We find this truth in 1 John 5:12-13, as well: He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.
So, what can we conclude from all this? This means that we must divide the basic idea of sin into two separate parts -- evil and guilt. Evil includes all the things which are the inherent results of sin, which include suffering and death. Guilt involves personal condemnation and the penalty for sin, which is the second death.
So, we have two different consequences of Adam's sin. We have the curse -- the inherent results of sin – that human beings, animals, and all nature experience, which leads to the first death. We also have guilt, which only human beings experience, and which leads to the second death – the penalty for personally choosing and committing sins.
The atonement of Christ covers both of these consequences of sin, but in different ways. The atonement must deal with guilt by forgiving the sin, and it must deal with the evil results of sin by recreating and restoring what the curse of sin has damaged.
In addition, forgiveness can be ours today, while restoration of our perfect nature (without a tendency to sin), which comes with God’s gift of eternal life, must wait until Christ’s return. Forgiveness is not needed for the results of sin, -- only for the guilt of sin.
Thus, the terms: forgiveness, justification, righteousness, sanctification, salvation, and the gospel apply particularly to our guilt and the penalty for our sin.
There is a fundamental difference between the result of sin and the penalty for sin. We are not guilty and personally condemned because we were born into a sinful world. We suffer many results of Adam's sin, including: a fallen nature, sickness, disabilities, and death. But our sufferings are part of the natural curse of sin, not the willful sin for which we are held guilty.
The sin for which we will be lost eternally comes from something else (choice), which will be the subject of our next study. This is why there is no guilt applied to a cat who tortures a mouse to death, while we hold a human being guilty for torturing someone. The cat is simply following its instincts -- its fallen nature -- without any knowledge of right and wrong, while human beings can be held guilty because of a conscious choice to do wrong.
All animals and human beings suffer because of the results of sin, but they are not personally condemned because of those sinful results. Guilt applies only to the moral responsibility for the choices we make. Guilt demands prior knowledge and willful rebellion. It must be from an informed choice.