It is because of Christ that we have been pardoned from sin. Christ is our source of life. Without Christ we are dead and without hope.
—Romans 3:24 NKJV “being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,”
All Have Sinned
Why do we need Christ? The simple answer is we are all sinners. Sin has destroyed our relationship with a holy and righteous God. As rebellious sinners we have lost our position with God and have been cast out.
—Romans 3:23 NKJV “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
We live in a world where everyone has been declared a sinner. The result of this judgement is eternal separation from God and a future misery in the lake of fire. Is it possible to escape this fate? How can we obtain salvation from this fate?
Can we earn salvation?
As human walking this earth is salvation something we are entitled to or is this something we can earn through our actions? Can we obtain it by our good behavior or church affiliation? Is there anything in us at all that merits us earning a place in heaven?
—Romans 3:10 NKJV “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;”
Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do to earn salvation. We do not have the capacity to obtain our own salvation. The best we have to offer, God considers it as filthy rags.
—Isaiah 64:6 NKJV “But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.”
Anything we have to offer will result only in our own doom.
—Romans 6:23 NKJV “For the wages of sin is death . . .
Dead in Sins
Because of the taint of sin in us, we can not have a relationship with a holy God. We can not earn a spot in heaven nor remove the stain of sin that condemns us. This sin has put up a wall between us and God.
Scripture teaches the unbeliever is dead in sins. Left to our own means death is our just reward and we are guaranteed to perish. The penalty of sin is death and all have been found guilty. Is life so hopeless? Are we chained to this misery for eternity?
Pardoned from sin
Thankfully, No! By the grace of God, Christ is sent to rescue us from our misery. God mercifully purchases us from the bondage of death through Christ.
—2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
Christ paid for our debt of sin on the cross. Because of Christ, our account has been paid in full. Our freedom has been bought with the blood of Christ. Only one person in all of history was fully qualified to purchase our salvation and that person was Christ.
God is the author of our salvation. It is not what we do or do not do that gets us to heaven but what God has done. This is truly a wonderful gift. Not by our merit are we saved, but by the grace of God we have been declared righteous. By Christ we have been redeemed.
Declared Righteous in Christ
God is justifying by grace those who have put faith in Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. God is declaring all who believe in His Son’s sacrifice righteous. This is the only way a sinner can experience redemption. Our salvation can only be through Christ, the rescuer God has sent to save us.
God’s grace is amazing. We have been saved, set free from sin, declared righteous and been promised a home in heaven. It is through Christ that we have been pardoned from sin and declared righteous. This truly is an amazing gift!
—Ephesians 2:8 NKJV “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”