Notes from What is the Gospel? by Great Gilber, Part 2: Man the Sinner

Notes:

- Sin is not just some impersonal, arbitrary, heavenly regulation

- Sin => breaking of a relationship, rejection of God himself- His rule, His care, His authority, His right to command those whom He gave life

What Went Wrong

- God's intention for creating human beings- they live under His righteous rule in perfect joy, worshipping, obeying Him, living in unbroken fellowship with Him

- God had job for humans Genesis 1:28 God blessed them; and God said, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

- Adam & Eve's rule over creation x ultimate, authority give to them by God

- God placed tree of knowledge of good and evil in center of garden => reminder authority limited, they were creatures, dependent on God for their lives

• when Adam and Eve ate of the fruit X just violate arbitrary command but rejected God's authority over them, declaring independence from Him ex. Potter made a jar, jar says "I reject you as my creator! You don't have the right to use me for your will."
• Serpent promised that they would be "like God"- both took opportunity to take crown for themselves, made conscious decision to reject Him as King

- Genesis 2:17 But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die."

• disobedience=sin= death
• x just physical, but spiritual death- cast from presence of God, become enemies of God vs. friends & joyful subjects
• sin: literally means "missing the mark," but biblical meaning much deeper; Adam  & Eve x just miss bulls-eye by few inches, but shot arrow in opposite direction; had goals & desires opposed to God's

Not Just Them, But Us

- Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

- crucial we understand both nature & depth of our sin' x approach gospel thinking sin is something else/ less than what it really is => badly misunderstand gospel

Confusing Sin with Sin's Effects

- fashionable lately to say Jesus came to save humanity from innate sense of guilt/ meaninglessness/ emptiness/ purposelessness

- but Bible teachers humanity's fundamental problem x above- just symptoms of deeper problem: our sin

- we are in predicament of own making- have disobeyed God's word, ignored commands, sinned against him

Reducing Sin to Broken Relationship

- human beings made to live in fellowship with God- specific kind of relationship- btwn. King & His subjects

- sin x just relationship tiff between man & God x just lover's quarrel

- Bible teaches sin is breaking of relationship- consist of rejection of His majesty

- x just adultery but rebellion; x just betrayal but treason; sin- traitorous rebellion of beloved subject against good and righteous King

Confusing Sin with Negative Thinking

- sin x just matter of negative thinking holding back from health, wealth & happiness

- Bible teachers big part of problem- we think too highly of ourselves x too lowly

- *How did serpent tempt Adam & Eve?- told them they thought too neg of themselves, needed to think more pos., extend grasp to reach full potential...to be like God- told them to think bigger

(be careful of when you work toward self-improvement, check your heart to make sure you aren't doing it to make yourself bigger, but to glorify God in all that you do, okay?:])

Confusing Sin with Sins
- sin x isolated little mistakes inn otherwise pretty good life
- God shows us sin runs to very depths of our hearts, deep-running deposits of filth & corruption x even knew & we ourselves x expunge
- Bible says sin is not just on us or of us, but in us
- Ephesians 2:3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
- Matthew 15:19- "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders."
- sin x isolated incidences, but rise out of evil from our own hearts
- Romans 8:7 Because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God, for it does nor subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so.
- only when we realize our very nature is sinful- we see how good the good news is!

God's Active Judgment against Sin
- one of Bible's most frightening statements- Romans 3:19 Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God
- What would it be like to stand before God in the end w/ no explanation/ plea to escape punishment for sin?
- God is holy and righteous x excuse sin, God will punish us for sin with death
- Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death- physical & spiritual death- separation from presence of Holy God
- Bible says final destiny for unrepentant, unbelieving sinners- place of eternal torment "hell"
- Rev 20:10 And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
- Mark 9:42 "If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having you two hands, to go to hell; into the unquenchable fire,
- Bible's sobering verdict on us- There is not one righteous, not eve one. Because of that one day every mouth will be silenced & whole world will be help accountable to God for their sin, BUT...

Job & Hard times

I've been reading the beginning of Job and it has really resonated in my heart. Sometimes we face immeasurably painful things, and we don't understand why. But sometimes God allows us to go through struggles, because without it our faith wouldn't be able to grow. So if you are facing hard times, please hold onto God. Trust that He knows what He is doing and be confident in that His purpose will be fulfilled through these difficult times. Know that no matter what you go through, there is one reality that this world cannot take away- God's love for us!

Job 2:10
But he said to her, "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Notes from NASB Life Application Study Bible Job 1-4

Job 1
- we must experience life as Job did- 1 day at a time & w/o complete answers to all of life's questions/
- Will we, like Job, trust God no matter what? Or will we give into the temptation to say God doesn't really care?
- faith in God is justified even when our situations look hopeless; Faith based on rewards/ prosperity is hollow; unshakable faith- must be built on confidence that God's ultimate purpose will come to pass
- Satan is limited by God's power and can do only what he is permitted to do, Satan can do nothing w/o God's permission; God's people can overcome his attacks through God's power!
- Although God loves us, believing and obeying Him do not shelter us from life's calamities
- how do you respond in times of trouble? Do you ask God, "Why me?" or do you say, "Use me!"?
- put roots of your faith down deep into God so you can withstand any storm you face

Job 2
- God created our emotions, and it's not sinful/ inappropriate to express them as Job did
- message of Job: you should not give up on God because He allows you to have bad experiences
- God is capable of rescuing us from suffering, but He may also allow suffering to come for reasons we can't understand; if we always knew why we were suffering, our faith would have no room to grow!

Job 3
- When someone is in need, go to that person, but be sensitive in how you comfort him or her
- Often, we feel we must say something spiritual and insightful to a hurting friend, but maybe what he/she needs most is just our presence, showing that we care- empathetic silence & loving companionship
- We must hold onto our faith even if there is no relief
- Job driven back to basics of faith- 2 choices: 1) He could curse God and give up, or 2) he could trust God and draw strength from Him to continue, what will yours be?
- trials and grief, whether temporary of enduring, do not destroy real purpose of life; life x merely for happiness & personal fulfillment, but to serve and honor God
- worth and meaning of life x based on what we feel, but on 1 reality no on can take away- God's love for us! (Romans 8:38-39)

Job 4
- Eliphaz- some good comments, but 3 wrong assumptions 1) a good and innocent person never suffers 2) those who suffer are being punished for past sins 3) Job, because he was suffering, had done something wrong in God's eyes
- true that those who promote sin and trouble eventually will be punished; it is false that anyone who is good and innocent will never suffer
- Bible gives us teachings and examples of what we should do as well as what we should not do
- Don't limit God to your perspective and finite understanding of life


Hold on to your faith in God! He does care for you. He has not abandoned you. He loves you and is with you in every situation. So trust Him and He will carry you through