Good evening everyone, tonight is another edition of the Sunday Bible study and I'm excited to be here. It couldn't hold last week because I wasn't feeling well, thank you to everyone that checked on me, and to those that didn't, I'm positive you prayed for me so thank you too.
Someone asked a question on our last editing. He said 'sin, grace, works and faith' are a bit confusing and by God's grace, I'll start with SIN tonight.
Let us pray,
Almighty Father of light, we bless you for another opportunity to learn at your feet. We ask that you shower us with your light and let everything be clear to us tonight so we will no longer walk in darkness. In Jesus name we have prayed. Amen.
I have observed that many Christians, myself included only know God through secondary information, i.e. other people's opinions and views and not through primary information i.e. through what He said about himself in the Bible.
And the reason is because it's easier that way and we are lazy. We prefer someone, a pastor or a preacher to go study and then come teach us, so we believe whatever he says. This has caused many problems because man tends to add his own version to the story thereby misinterpreting the message
Now, to know what sin is we need to go back to the first sin committed in the Bible and where's that? In the beginning... i.e. Genesis
Gen 2: 16-17
16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: note
17 But 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.
Gen 3 : 4-6
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye not surely die:
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it waspleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
God told man something, if you eat you'll die. Satan said if you eat you'll not die. Then Man ate and his eyes were opened. Because man chose to believe Satan instead of believing God, he sinned. Eating the fruit wasn't the sin, disobedience wasn't the sin NOT BELIEVING GOD was the sin.
And that's why the Bible says
It's very simple really, if we believe we'll live, if we don't believe, we'll die.
Let me show you something,
Hebrews 3: 16-19
16 For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses.
17 But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness?
18 And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?
19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.
What stopped them from entering? UNBELIEF. it's as simple as that.
Now you may ask what about lying, adultery, and the rest?
Let's go to
As long as you've given your life to Christ Jesus genuinely, you are saved and you are no longer an unbeliever
Yes you commit, according to this verse, iniquities but you are not a sinner. A sinner is an unbeliever because the only sin a sinner is guilty of is unbelief. I hope that is clear now?
Let me show you something shocking
1 John 3:9
Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
In fact, let me add this. The sin Christ died for is this sin of unbelief. This is the first and greatest sin of all. This was why he died and went through all that suffering. This was why God sent his son. So anyone that doesn't believe, the Bible says the person is condemned already.
Unbelief is calling God a liar. It is boasting in one's ability to save one's self and God dislikes that.
Unbelief is such a bad sin because it is saying God doesn't have the ability to save you. And that's why believing in Christ is such a powerful thing that it is all you need to make heaven.
Let's look at the second sin in the Bible. Do you know who committed the second one?
Cain, Killing his brother
This is what the Bible says about it.
Hebrews 11:4
By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
The keyword here is BY FAITH
FAITH IS BELIEVING IN SOMETHING GREATER THAN YOU
Simply put, Abel brought an offering believing God to save him, Cain brought an offering believing his offering is good enough. Remember we were saved by grace through faith (by believing in Jesus) so that no man should boast.
I'll summarize by saying this.
We'll continue from here next week by God's grace, questions and comments are all welcomed. Please let's go through it again when we have time and also study our bibles. Stay blessed. Let us pray.
Father lord we thank you for bringing us your word today through our brethren, may you continue to strengthen him in jesus name. To everyone that has listened to the word, we shall also be doers of the wors in Jesus name. This week shall be a week of blessing to everyone in jesus name. In jesus name we have prayed. Amen.