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Bible Study- Lutz, Florida
Established
November 2008
Rightly
Dividing the Word of Truth
(2
Timothy 2:15)
This is
good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who
desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1Timothy 2:3-4
Romans by the Book
Lesson 27
In
case anyone missed the point I was making in my opening illustration in lesson
26, permit me to enlighten. The truth
about fast food consumption and its negative effects on a person’s health
have been widely made known. The people who
frequent these establishments on a regular basis have been educated on the
negative effects of this type of diet but they “choose” to ignore the truth, as
they rush through their daily routine.
You
could stand outside the business with a sign warning them – “Hey,
this food is unhealthy! It will make you
fat, clog your arteries, and stop your heart from beating.”
But
that wouldn’t turn them away. The business
offers food that is priced low, and it comes though the car window in less than
5 minutes on average. The consumer is
back out on the street, on their way to work or to school, and eating
breakfast, lunch, or dinner on the way. Simply
put – they offer what the people want.
In
comparison, the Truth about sin and its negative effects on the sinner
have been recorded for humanity in God’s Word. The Tyndale Bible the first Bible printed in English
was in the 1500’s.
God
fearing men and women have been preaching and teaching on the subject of sin
for centuries. Countless books and magazine articles have
also been written on the subject. In
addition, parents have taught their children the difference between right and
wrong and raised them accordingly; this is in keeping with Bible Truths because
this is how they were raised by their parents, and so on…
Therefore,
I believe it’s safe to say people are aware of the word “sin” and of its
meaning. I will go a step further and say
that the majority of people have heard of or are aware of the fact that God
holds sinners responsible for their actions.
It
doesn’t matter if people believe in God or not.
This doesn’t alter the Truth.
I
will add that people have heard or are aware of Jesus Christ and of His
sacrifice on the cross and why. In some
form or fashion they are aware that He is “Key” to their salvation.
So,
people have been educated about the deadly effects of sin and the eternal
consequences should the individual choose to ignore the One and only remedy.
But
evidence shows the majority will “choose” to ignore the Truth, as they rush through their daily routine.
You
could stand on a busy street corner in your city holding up a sign that says,
“Repent, Jesus is coming!”
But
I don’t think you’d attract much attention, honestly.
You’re
up against some stiff competition. Satan
is the god of this world.
The
world is the devil’s playground and it offers all the delights imaginable.
Genesis 6:5
Then the LORD saw
that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
The
booze, the drugs, the strip joints, the gambling, the wanton sex, the
pornography, the child sex slave trade, fast food, movies, Hollywood, Las
Vegas, video games, the music, abortion, genocide, racism, slavery in this age,
the list is apparently endless.
You
take all these things, add the fact that we all have an Adamic Nature and you
get total depravity on a world-wide scale by
choice.
Simply
put the “world” (Satan) gives the people what they want NOW; doesn’t matter that they can only have it for thirty or forty
years (give or take) and then they’re gone.
Hollywood
and the entertainment industry are perfect examples of this type life-style. They rise to stardom and they’re on top for a
time, then they drop like a falling star until they hit rock bottom, eventually
they disappear from the entertainment scene altogether. The fast living, the booze, the sex, the
drugs, it takes its toll on their bodies and their minds. If they’re lucky, they’re claim to fame last
30-40 years and that’s all.
40
years! Are you kidding me?
You’d
take 40 years when Jesus Christ is offering you eternity in Heaven?
Please
reconsider your options.
I
pray this helps someone understand that you have an important decision to make.
Your
decision will determine where you spend eternity. No one can make this decision for you. It’s your decision to make.
This
is why this Home Bible study exists.
Here
we open up God’s Word and study what the book says and in some cases what it
does not say. Here we look at the Truth
and study it so you can understand it.
After
all this, the choice is up to you. I
pray you choose wisely.
Please
open your Bible to Romans, chapter 3, at verse 23.
Let’s
review Scripture.
Romans 3
23: for all have sinned and fall short of the
glory of God,
24: being justified
as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;
25: whom God
displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This
was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He
passed over the sins previously committed;
Starting
at verse 23, we’re going to look at these verses. You’re going to notice phrases and words
being used here that you’ll never find anywhere in the four gospels.
Words
like justified, works, law of faith, faith in His blood, etc. There is one big word we need to look at in
verse 25, but other than that Paul’s message is pretty clear.
Verse
23:
“for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
I
don’t think you need a college degree to decipher the meaning of this verse.
Everyone
from Adam until the last person is born on this earth when Jesus returns arrives
on this earth a sinner. God says, “all
have sinned.” And that’s it!
No
arguments accepted.
What
does need an explanation is …”the glory of God.”
What
is the glory of God? The best answer I
can come up with is this.
God’s
glory is the perfection of His attributes and we picture the perfection
of His attributes in His Son, Jesus Christ.
Let’s see what the book says.
Hebrews 1
3: And He (Jesus Christ) is the radiance of His (God the Father)
glory and the exact representation
of His nature,
If
you apply this teaching to Romans 3:23, how does your life measure up when it
is compared to Jesus Christ? He lived for
33 years and never sinned.
Verse
24:
“being
justified as a gift by His grace…”
Verse
24 tells us how God begins the salvation process.
The
Greek word “justify” is “dikaioo” (pronounced dik-ah-yo’-o) and means literally
to render righteous. The word “justified” is a legal term. It means to be acquitted; to declare NOT
GUILTY. But it means more than
that. It means to wipe away the
record of sin and then declare the individual sinner “righteous” in God’s eyes.
Please
note that salvation is a “free” gift from God to the human race.
There
is nothing in us that causes God to want to save us. No good works, we’re not all that beautiful,
we’re not moral people, and we’re not all that intelligent. Let’s face facts, we don’t deserve the
gift. That’s what God’s Grace is all
about!
“…through
the redemption which is in Christ
Jesus;”
The
Greek word for “redemption” is Apolutrosis (pronounced: ap-ol-oo’tro-sis) and means: a releasing effected by payment of ransom;
deliverance. This word comes right from
the Roman slave market. To redeem means
to set free by the payment of a price.
The Bible teaches that we’re all slaves to sin. God the Father “sent” His One and only Son,
Jesus Christ, to redeem mankind from their sins. Jesus paid the sin debt God demanded; the price
was the blood of His sinless Son.
Verse 25:
“whom
God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith.”
“whom
God displayed publicly…”
What
do we have here and why does Paul mention this?
Asking
questions is what Bible students do, my friends.
Bible
readers pass right on over items like this without so much as a pause.
In
doing so, they miss things that God wants them to know.
We
know Jesus was crucified. But why did
He die this way?
Jesus
was crucified by the Roman authorities at a place outside the city
called Golgotha (meaning the place of the skull). The Romans used Golgotha for several
purposes:
- They used it for a garbage dump and took refuse there for disposal.
- The second purpose of Golgotha it was an open grave. The Romans disposed of the bodies of homeless or executed criminals there. There would have been a large number of skulls lying around in the open, which was one of the main reasons for its name.
- The third purpose for Golgotha it was a place of execution.
“whom
God displayed publicly…”
Now
let’s look at this section of the verse.
…”God displayed “publicly”
There’s
no doubt about it. Jesus’ death was a
public event.
For
3 hours our Savior hung on that cross of agony until He died.
I’ve
been to Golgotha. It’s a prominent hill
top outside the city of Jerusalem, west of the Gennath (Garden) Gate. Anyone entering or exiting that part of the
city can easily see it.
I stood at that
gate and easily took in the entire road leading out of the city and the hill
known as Golgotha. If someone had been
crucified up there, there’s no way you’d miss seeing it.
But
here’s the question of the moment. Why
did Jesus die by crucifixion?
Why
was Jesus’ death a “public” event? Scripture
holds the answer.
Please
go to the book of Numbers, chapter 21.
We
need some background information before jumping to these Bible verses.
This
event takes place after the Israelites won a great victory over the Canaanites;
thanks to the LORD God. They went the
long way around Edom to avoid a fight and the people became inpatient because
of the long journey and complained against God and Moses, saying there is no
food or water - why have you brought us here to die…
The
LORD God punished the Jews by sending fiery serpents among them. One bite from a serpent brought death. (Suggested reading: Numbers 21:1-10).
The Bronze Serpent
Numbers 21
8: Then the LORD
said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a standard; and it shall
come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he will live.
9: And Moses made a
bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent
bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.
Now
please turn to the book of John in the gospels at chapter 3.
This
is Jesus speaking.
John
3
14:
“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up;
15:
so that whoever believes will in Him have
eternal life.”
Look
closely, Jesus is telling his listeners (and us) the manner in which He will
die.
This
wasn’t an accidental occurrence in the dessert near Mt. Hor. The fiery serpents which brought death with
one bite, the disobedient Jews, and God’s plan of salvation based on faith, offered
to anyone who looked up and believed.
Sound familiar?
“…as
a propitiation in His blood through faith.”
The
word “propitiation” means to appease. This word comes right out of the
sacrificial system of the Old Testament.
The word literally means, “To turn away wrath by the offering of a
gift.” In the Old Testament, the Jewish
High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement and sprinkle
blood on the Ark of the Covenant.
No
other person was allowed in this area except the High Priest. In fact, they would tie a rope around the
waist of the High Priest before he entered the Holy of Holies – just in case he
did something God disapproved of and struck him dead. Without that rope around his waist they had
no way of retrieving the body.
When
the Jewish High Priest sprinkled the blood on the Ark of the Covenant, the sins
of the people (the Jews) were covered or “atoned”
for. When the LORD God looked down from
heaven, He no longer saw the people’s sins.
He saw the sprinkled blood and then His wrath was “appeased.”
Why
is this important? God’s justice demands
death as the punishment for sin.
To
call the death of Jesus Christ a “propitiation”
means that God is satisfied with the death of His Son as the substitutionary (means Jesus stepped in
the gap for mankind) punishment for the sins of humanity. When a sinner trusts Jesus Christ, accepts
the gospel on faith, God the Father accepts him on the basis of the blood His
Son shed on the cross when He died!
Only
the Apostle Paul writes of and speaks of the shed blood of Jesus Christ and the
importance of believing in this fact as part of the salvation process.
You’re
not going to find this information in the four gospels and that is
significant.
Here
is one of the two absolutes in Scripture.
The
first one is, without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews
11:6).
The
second one is:
The
Bible teaches that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness
of sin.
Hebrews 9
22b: and without
the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (of sin).
(To
be continued)
©
Copyright 2011
GJ
Heitzman’s Ministry
All
Rights Reserved
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