The Gospel in a Nutshell
Part One in a Series of Three
Our Human Dilemma
Today, wherever we go, the world is in trouble. Men and women everywhere are seeking the solution to insurmountable moral, personal, social, national, and international problems. Underneath is a longing to know the real meaning of life and the future.
People are asking where the world came from, how life began, why men are continually at war, and why there is so much hatred between various races and ethnic groups. Is there no hope for lasting peace? Why is human nature torn between ideals and actions, between hope for something better and the perverse inclination to do something worse?
Unaided by some power outside of himself, man has never been able to find a satisfactory answer to these problems. But there is hope. Implanted in every human heart is a measure of faith, a desire to worship some higher power, a desire to seek after God. God indeed has the answers.
‘What Must I Do?’
His wonderful plan of salvation is revealed through His Word, the Bible. In Matthew, the first book of the New Testament, chapter 19:16-26, we read the story of a young man who came to Jesus with a question, which is on everyone’s minds: “What good thing must I do to get eternal life?”*
In response, Jesus answered, “If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.” In other words, if you think you can earn eternal life — salvation by your good works — you must keep the commandments. Since this young man was a Jew to whom the commandments meant the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament, he wanted to know to which of the commandments Jesus was referring. Jesus’ answer summed up the last six commandments of the moral law, the Ten Commandments, “Love your neighbor as yourself” [Leviticus 19:18].
Because he had been raised a strict Jew, this young man replied, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” In other words, is there anything lacking in my performance that will deprive me of heaven? To this Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect [i.e., if you really love your neighbor as yourself], go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have [my] treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
What a bargain! But this was more than the young man was willing to do. He was rich and had great material possessions. He turned away sorrowfully and went home without the assurance of eternal life.
The disciples of Jesus witnessed this incident, and Jesus used it to show them that when it comes to salvation, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” [verse 26].
When Human Effort Fails
Because sin is a deceiver, many have been misled into thinking that they can save themselves by their own good works. In a recent survey in three cities of America, the question was raised: Who goes to heaven and who goes to hell? The typical answer in every city: those who are good go to heaven and those who are bad go to hell.
But the Bible clearly teaches that “by observing the law [trying to be good], no one will be justified [declared righteous]” (Galatians 2:16). Paul repeats the same statement in Romans 3:20, and then adds, “Through the law we become conscious of sin.” https://secondcoming.org
The Jews of Christ’s day made the tragic mistake of believing that they could be saved by keeping the law. For this reason, in the beginning of his ministry, Jesus invited these sincere Jews who desperately tried to work their way to heaven, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened [very discouraged], and I will give you rest” [Matthew 11:28].
Hope for the Helpless
Man’s only hope of salvation is the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. To Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish counsel called the Sanhedrin and one of the prominent leaders of Judaism, Jesus made a statement which has become the favorite Bible text of many Christians: “For God so loved the world [human race] that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” [John 3:16]. Jesus came to this world for that purpose.
As we read the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, we discover three very important facts.
- All in One. God created all men — the whole human race — in one man. In Acts 17:26 we read, “From one man [one person] he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth.” In Genesis 2:7 the creation of Adam is recorded for us. The word “Adam” in Hebrew means “mankind.” We read that God breathed into Adam the breath of life. While the English Bible uses the word “life” in the singular, the original Hebrew text from which the English was translated actually has the word life in the plural form — “lives.” God was not creating one man when he created Adam, he was creating the whole human race in that one man.
- A Ruined Race. Through man, sin entered the world. In the New Testament, especially in Romans 5:12 and 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, we discover that Satan ruined the whole human race in one man — Adam. When Adam and Eve were created, God told them to multiply the corporate life that he had created in them [Genesis 1:28].
But before Adam and Eve began the multiplication process (had any children) they sinned. Therefore, the life that Adam passed on to his children, his posterity, was a life that had already sinned. Since the life that you and I were born with is an extension of Adam’s life, it is a life that stands condemned, a life that must die.
According to Romans 5:12, “Sin entered the world through one man.” In verse 18 Paul concludes his statement by saying that, “Just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men.” God doesn’t blame us for the sin predicament that we are in because of the condemnation we inherited at birth.
We read in 1 Corinthians 15:21, “For since death came through a man [singular], the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man [singular].” In verse 22, the apostle points out who these two men are, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.” This brings us to the third fact.
- Incredible Good News. The incredible good news of salvation is that God redeemed all men in one man, Jesus Christ, just as Satan ruined the whole human race in one man, Adam.
Through No Choice of Our Own
But there is one difference: we need to clearly understand what Adam did to the human race. We had no choice in it. It is our common heritage because we are, by nature, the descendants of Adam. But because God so loved the world, what he did for us in Christ is a gift. And, like any gift, we cannot enjoy it until we receive it.
“The Gospel in a Nutshell” J. Sequiera