An Important Note To Students And Teachers
This material is the second quarter adult study on the theme of the importance of people to God. It focuses on some lessons from Jesus and some lessons from Paul. The first quarter focused exclusively on a lessons emphasis from Jesus.
As the study begins, let us focus on the obvious. If God wished to destroy people, all He needed to do is withhold the gift of Jesus from humanity. We as humanity were condemned by our own sinfulness. Each of us ignorantly and rebelliously were guilty of acts of unrighteousness. We were powerless to create a solution to our spiritual problem [individually or collectively]. No human act could cause us to appear as holy before the sinless God. Our only hope was forgiveness. God's forgiveness occured before we qualified for it.
Paul said centuries ago, "For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:6-8)
Paul described our plight and God's incredible love for us in our helplessness.
Paul merely affirmed Jesus' statement recorded by John: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God." (John 3:16-21)
God acted on our behalf in sending Jesus, in redeeming us through Jesus' innocent blood, and in resurrecting Jesus because He loved humanity. God's work in Jesus was not accomplished because He hated us. It was not done because He longed to destroy us. It was not done because He wished us to pay for our mistakes. It was not done to produce a convenient way to condemn us. God acted in Jesus because He loves us! In His love for us He wished to create for us a means of escaping our horrible mistakes! Instead of wanting to condemn us, He wanted to save us! Jesus was [is] a divine rescue mission, not a condemnation mission.
This is the thesis of the entire year's emphasis: God began implementing His divine effort to save humans from the moment the first rebellion began in Genesis. God's divine effort culminated in Jesus' death and resurrection. Because of God's great love for us, salvation is a continuing reality.
When we appreciate God's love for us, we understand the value of all people to God.
