SALVATION
GOD’S JUSTICE REQUIRES SACRIFICE FOR OUR SINS
Salvation Series: Lesson 2
“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth,
the gospel of your salvation. Having believed you were marked in him with
a seal, the promised Holy Spirit”.
Ephesians 1:13
The verse says that before we get “saved”, we need to hear and believe the
message of the Good News. If we accept that salvation is in Jesus Christ, we
will be sealed with the Holy Spirit who will mark us as God’s children. But
why do we need to be saved? What’s wrong with us? Why do we need to
believe in Jesus as the way to salvation? We will now answer these
questions.
1. THERE IS A BARRIER THAT SEPARATES GOD AND MAN
Have you ever felt as if God is so far from you? All of us felt the same way.
The feeling of God being distant makes many think that religion and good
works can bring us closer to Him. However, since our separation from God
is not physical - no human effort can bridge such gap. What causes a
person to be isolated from God?
“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have
hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.”
Isaiah 59:2
2. SIN SEPARATES US FROM GOD
The separation between God and us is very clear in the Bible. God is holy;
we are sinners. God is righteous; we are wicked. God’s word says, “All have
sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Death or
separation is the payment for sin (Romans 6:23).
3.
Because God is just, He sees to it that sin is punished. Because God is loving
and merciful, He does not want people to be distant from Him. The divine
solution to God’s dilemma is Jesus Christ, God’s only Son who became the
“sacrifice for the sin of the whole world.” Hebrews 9:28 says, “so Christ
was offered once to bear the sins of many.” He is the “…the lamb of God
who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). The Bible says:
“25 God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his
blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he
had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished, 26 he did it to
demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one
who justifies those who have faith in Jesus”.
Romans 3:25-26
4. JESUS PAID FOR THE PUNISHMENT OF OUR SINS
What happened on the cross? Jesus took our place of punishment. He took
on himself the curse and poverty so we may receive His blessings and
riches (Galatians 3:13-14; 2 Corinthians 8:9). He took our sins so we may be
able to embrace His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because He is
sinless, only He is worthy to pay for our sins and to mediate between God
and mankind. Our salvation therefore is founded on what Jesus Christ did
on the cross and not based on our good deeds for him. 2 Corinthian 5:21
says, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we
might become the righteousness of God”.
5. WE CAN BE SAVED IF WE REPENT FROM OUR SINS AND TRUST CHRIST
All of us sinned against the holy and righteous God. Hell and separation
from the living presence of God are the consequences of sin. God is just
and he really punishes sin. On the other hand, He is also loving, and he
does not want us to suffer in hell for all eternity. He sent Jesus Christ to pay
for our sins on the cross instead (Romans 5:8). Because Christ never sinned,
death had no hold of him. He rose from the dead on the third day. Jesus is
alive!

He is here today willing to forgive those who want to turn away from their
sins. He is ready to save those who will commit themselves to Him. The
message of the Good News is, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to
Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19). We can receive salvation if we put our faith on
what Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross for us, instead of trying to
save ourselves through good deeds. We need to believe that He did not
remain on the grave. The Bible says in Romans 10:9-10:

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your
heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with
your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that
you confess and are saved.”

APPLICATION:
1. Are you ready to repent from your sins and entrust your life to
Christ?
2. Are you ready to obey Him with all your life?
3. Are you ready to pray a prayer of commitment?

PRAYER FOR SALVATION

Lord Jesus, I come to you with the faith that you are sent by God as a
sacrifice for my sins. I believe your work on cross. I also believe that you
rose up from the grave; you are alive. I receive you as my Lord and Savior.
Jesus, I admit that I am a sinner. Forgive me and cleanse me. Lord Jesus,
come into my heart, and through the Holy Spirit, live inside of me. Starting
today, I will obey and serve you. I will stop sinning. Lord Jesus, write my
name in the book of life. Thank you Lord that in you I am saved…in you I’m
forgiven…in you I’m now a child of God…in you I’m now a citizen of heaven
and have no part in hell. Amen.