The Great Divide

Man will spend is a lifetime trying to come to terms with that message that whispers to his soul. How do I deal with guilt that I know is there.

What will I do about my sin field sends one of the sense of coming judgment.

Why do I go through life feeling a sense of emptiness. Even though I filled my life with more and more thing. How can I be right. What part did you play and what part does God plan you're going to learn God's answer to that question today.

You're listening to wisdom from the heart with Stephen Devi Stevens continuing through his series entitled Sola vide with this lesson.

He's calling the great divide. Open your Bible to Romans three as you settle in for this important message I want to draw your attention today to one of the most well-known biblical verses in all of Christianity. Romans 323 which says for all of sin finished with me and fall short of the glory of God. Not only is this verse well known within the church of our Lord. The apostle Paul has clearly provided the inspired declaration. The inspired evidence that the truth of this verse is buried within the heart of all of mankind for all of sin and fall short of the glory of God is intuitively known by all of humanity. In fact, man will spend is a lifetime trying to come to terms with that message that whispers to his soul.

How do I deal with guilt that I know is there. What will I do about my sin that I feel and sends one of the sense of coming judgment. Why do I go through life feeling a sense of emptiness. Even though I filled my life with more and more thing. And what can I do to bring peace to my mind when I think of the afterlife. How do I make sure that I end up in an eternally good place rather than an eternally bad place. How can I be right with God. Religions throughout all time and all around the world are nothing more than man's organized effort to answer those questions and to deal with those issues. The Greeks even before the time of Paul develop the mystery religions which involved initiation spiritual oneness with the God they believed suffered, and rose again so familiar a person who desire to be related to this God had to go through a period of initiation rites known as identification rights with this God when the identification rights were completed. The initiate was in the language of the mystery is a quote twice born in one we would call it born again in one particular mystery religion. The initiate after his identification rights were completed was actually given a goblet of milk to drink signifying in their minds that he or she was a newborn baby where they get that from in one graphic mystery ceremony a person came in direct contact with blood shed a ceremony called terrible William in this mystery identification right. The initiate was lowered into a deep pit and across the mouth of the pit beams were laid in a lattice type arrangement. Then on top of the beans. A bull was laid good had its throat caught in the blood would gush down through the beans to that initiate and the kid who would be literally bathed with the blood of that dying animal. This was what they considered salvation when the ceremony was over and the initiate was brought up out of the pit covered in blood. He was referred to as quote one reborn for all eternity. The world is looking for some sort of answer and in its pursuit of answer comes close. Doesn't you can see kernels of truth therein. But it is exercising great faith stopping short of the truth. The truth of Jesus Christ and it is futile the religious attempts is futile as a mouse, or read about a little while ago Amanda purchased the little white mouse to use as food for his pet snake dropped the mouse into the glass cage where the snake was sleeping on a bed of sawdust. The tiny mouse had a serious problem and so he needed to do something in a moment that sleeping serpent could awaken and swallow him for dinner. So what you know.

He instinctively began to dig with his paws, flinging sawdust back to the corner until he had completely covered the snake with sawdust chips without the mouse apparently thought he found the safety the only safety for that little mouse was the owner took pity on him and took him out of that glass cage before that serpent awakened ladies and gentlemen, religion is like piling wooden ships. Upon sleeping judgment. I have seen people attempting to cover their guilt by going through baptismal water I have talked to those who have offered penance in some sort of self-sacrifice and self-denial. I have seen pictures of people piercing their body and even in other countries every year.

Having themselves nailed to a wooden crosses believing that that would bestow upon them some sort of grace I've seen people washing and polluted water, believing that the water that river was sacred and he could wash away their sin. I have heard them humming the Contras. I have heard of them praying to the spirits and looking to the stars. Those activities are no more effective and washing away sin is the man or woman who stood in the pit and looked up one of a bull wash over them. They are no more effective than covering over our sin and guilt and judgment than that little mouse covering the snake with ships of sawdust. Paul has delivered the final and full verdict of mankind, and he has said in verse 22 that we looked at briefly, that salvation or hope comes through faith in Jesus Christ.

Justification that is the legal declaration of righteous standing before a holy God has nothing to do with whatever we can do that has everything to do with what Jesus Christ has already done whatever you might have done, whether it is the water of baptism or the membership of some church or some moral deed or some philanthropy or whatever you put it all in a category and those are all wonderful things but they are things that you do. Justification is nothing to do with what you do what Christ has done.

The truth is, ladies and gentlemen, until you understand the gravity of Romans 323. You might think that there is something you can do, you do not understand the absolute necessity of solo for day face in Christ alone. So let's look at this verse, shall we, let's take it slowly enough and it quickly enough to finish this morning. The study of this verse, Paul begins this classic text with the universal verdict. First of all, a universal verdict you want to circle that first word or that first phrase for all, there's the word all that is comprehensive. This is all inclusive.

This word is all embracing. It is all encompassing all leaves nobody out and leave anybody behind no one can say will Paul here is only talking to the Roman Paul is only talking to the Italians of the first century, not the Americans of the 21st century.

Now he's is all this is a reference to all of humanity, of all time. Up to this very moment today and it will include all who live beyond the day all means everyone and what is it, in which we are all included.

He moves from that universal all-encompassing verdict to this in your revocable condition. He says for all have sinned the keyword for now. In our study is the word have. It is the word that we would often skip going what we would think would be the most important were but this is a critical verb verb in the original text and its tenants refers to something that actually happened a long time ago and there are residual effects on all of mankind for all of time you need to understand that Paul is referring here. Not so much to our sinful action as he is to our sinful nature when he says all have sin.

This is a reference by the weight of the sin of Adam. Adam.

The representative of the human race had corrupted the fountainhead of the water of the human race by his sin and now the water is polluted and no matter how far you get away from Adam's original sin, you still drink rum polluted water. He will explain that by the way, in chapter 5 wanted to turn over there. Look at verse 12. It may be a while before we get there again. He explains this. He says therefore, just as through one man, he's talking about Adam through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sin, so Paul is thinking of the entire human race as having sinned in their representative what theologians call federal headship others referred to as seminal headship. I think there's truth in both we and Adam sin and is good news because then we in Christ are righteous, but all of humanity in their representative that is Adam sin and we have proof do we not that we are partakers of atoms nature because we all by nature do what we all by nature. Sin I mentioned a few weeks ago. Those little birds that we thought were in the nest in the rafters of our home, or perhaps just outside our bathroom window in the eaves of the gutters.

My wife is outside a few days ago working in the yard she was around that side of the house and she saw high up on the house that flapped on the vent open and a bird fly out. She watched for a while and sure enough, that same bird came back again with something in her mouth and opened up that event as it fluttered and went inside.

That event went from the outside wall and did ended in our bathroom ceiling which made a lot of sense out of the noises that we heard because we could hear a slam and then chirping in a slam at all quiet with the slant was a vent door opening up in the chirping would signal the fact the little birds knew that mommy was there and they would all chirp you could hear him part of this morning I got dressed to the sounds of birds that was irritating actually, but any rate, in a few days little mother bird to push those little birds out that vent and they're gonna instinctively flap their wings and fly there's no driver's ed for little birds. No 12 months with a permit before you can fly on your own. They're just gonna instinctively began to flap their wings and fly away. Praise God when the seal that vent shutter do something as significant as it won't happen again.

Just as a bird flies by virtue of its nature, so we sin by virtue of our nature.

Just as a bird by its instinct, sores in the air, so we buy or instinct gravel and sin. Just as a bird learns letter, having learned so we sin without ever having had one lesson we do it by nature, would you notice as well. Back in chapter 3 verse 23 the Paul is not referring to the amount of our sins, he isn't saying here for all have sinned a lot. There's a reason for that.

If he had said for all of sinned a lot. Somebody in this auditorium to their wet certainly not make it on us a lot. I sent a little in fact I know others who really loosen a lot of them even be sitting near me, but the service for them. But that's not me service for somebody else know Paul wasn't referring to the amount of our sin is referring to the nature of our sinfulness, so you can read verse 23. This way for all have the nature of a sinner for all by nature instinctively sin and there lies the offense.

Paul moves from the universal verdict through this, your revocable condition to the irrefutable offense for all have what sin you can deny doesn't matter all of sin. You can excuse an ally than matter. All of sin. You can say that it really is not bad. That matter God says all have sinned. You can even claim as a red Thursday was such thing as a sin like the Russian dictionary that was published after the communist came to power in Russia after the entry of the word sin.

I read was the definition quote archaic word denoting the transgression of a mythical divine law, then the matter if you try to define away all of sin. Because of this irrefutable offense call reveals the truth now of an impassable chasm for all have sinned and fall short stair room time to come short of to be utterly lacking in sterling two was used by Greek farmers in the first century for a farmer who missed the season that is, he failed to get the seed into the ground in time to get a crop for all have sinned and have missed the season will never have the fruit of the crop of God's glory. This term and tie was used in ancient Egypt to refer to those uneducated who could not read for all have sinned and are illiterate of the glory of God disturbance I was used in the financial world of the apostle Paul to refer to somebody was bankrupt you could translate it for all have sinned and are bankrupt of the glory of God. We say this way for all of sin and fall short, come short fine this impassable chasm to the glory of God, Amanda, Detroit, Michigan read about recently did everything he could to meet the standard height for law enforcement officers, which was at that particular point in time 5'7". He was 5'5" father was a policeman he wanted to be a policeman all his life. He mastered martial art.

Study did everything he could.

He wanted to be a policeman, but he didn't meet the requirement.

So he worked at stretching the tried pulleys, even went to the excruciating pain of a sort of a handmade rack in the group. He stretched nearly 2 inches but after he had exhausted all of his efforts. He was still 5/8 of an inch too short. All of his efforts attracted the attention of the press and the public in enough pressure was put upon the police Commissioner that he did what our role will the right change the requirement so he could get in. I want you to know that God does not change the rules even when it gets bad press. He didn't change the standard which is holiness that one sin and one life could ever allow that life to abide forever in the presence of a holy God, and that standard will never change. For he has said he will not allow the guilty to go unpunished and how many in this audience are guilty see your hand. It looks unanimous.

He goes on in this fifth declaration. It's found embedded in this one verse that heaven is an unreachable goal. He says for all have sinned and fall short of the what the glory of God that what exactly was Paul intending to communicate what is it mean when he says the glory of God, but the original Greek word for glory translated here is the word docs from which we get our transliterated Word doxology the word many, many centuries ago, originally meant to appear or to seem to be, and it eventually came to refer to having an opinion about someone over time the word came refer only to that which was a positive opinion about someone from their developed further to mean praise and honor toward someone of high reputation and by the time of Scripture you find the word used specifically in relation to God alone who was the one worthy of all docs the one worthy of the highest opinion of man.

The one worthy of all honor and glory. But that's not all.

The Greek word docs a transliterated consistently in the Greek Old Testament the word Shekinah and that sheds even a greater volume of truth upon this word for Shekinah was that word which referred to the glory brightness. The brilliance, the splendor of God's presence when the tabernacle of God was completed in acts chapter 40 remember reading perhaps the story of how the Shekinah glory came down and settled over later in Israel's history, the ark of the covenant symbolize the place of God's Shekinah, the place of God's glory.

God again revealed his Shekinah brilliance. When Solomon's Temple was dedicated in first Kings chapter 8 in Matthew chapter 2 I believe that that star is actually a reference to the Shekinah which specifically led the Magi to the house for the young boy Jesus was in John in his gospel. He is describing the birth of the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his docs so we beheld the Shekinah glory of the father full of grace and truth in acts chapter 9 were told that when the apostle Paul was writing on the Damascus Road to persecute believers in Christ that he saw the glory of God.

The brightness which we would only believe what indicate the Shekinah glory of God and he said, referring to the brightness law are what you want me to do. When Stephen was being stoned to death in acts chapter 7, after preaching is one and only sermon this deacon. The text tells us looked into the heavens and he solved the Shekinah glory of God in Jesus Christ stand so to fall short. Ladies and gentlemen of the glory of God means that mankind can never have a high opinion of God but also means that mankind will never live in the presence of the Shekinah glory of God. There is in any way anybody will ever reach the glorious brilliant place where Jesus Christ, the embodiment of the triune God. The visible reflection of God resides in other words, nobody is going to have nobody we are condemned already.

Yes, there is a comprehensive verdict there is any revocable condition. There is an irrefutable offense.

There is an impassable chasm and there is an unreachable goal but I have one more point.

There is an eternal bridge.

The bridge that crosses the great divide in altar of sacrifice upon which our Lord Jesus died to pay the eternal penalty for all of your sin, and more than that. You see, but to pay the penalty for your sin nature see if it was dependent upon you to ask the Lord to forgive you for every specific sin you have to spend your entire life confessing sin, redemption doesn't just mean those specific sins that you embrace you repent of his return to Jesus Christ as Savior. But it has to do with your nature will learn later in this paragraph how the nature of man is replaced as it were given over to the nature of Christ's righteousness, our sinfulness is exceeded by Christ's righteousness. We can verse 24.

In this chapter being justified declared righteous as a what is a gift by his grace. Paul says God comes to bankrupt humanity that can do nothing for itself and offers this gift by his grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus back in verse 22. Even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe several years ago I read recently there was a dance instructor could been out late on Saturday night.

He got staggered back to his hotel room in the wee hours of the morning and fell in the bed fast asleep. The next morning, he was suddenly jolted awake by the sound of that hotel clock radio alarm clock that had been presets and he was suddenly awakened by the sound of a man preaching. The man was preaching at the moment the radio came on was asking this question. If in the next few moments you should die and find yourself before God and he should ask you what right do you have to come into my heaven, what would you say how's that for a truly wake up call. But he was confounded he is a religious man to church paid his dues, but he didn't have an answer and he then sat on the edge of his bed. While this preacher like Donald Ray Barnhouse went on to explain how he could claim heaven. The only right. The only answer was Jesus Christ alone solo for the day. Faith in Christ alone and that dance instructor got down on his knees and he gave his life to Christ that my friends is the transaction of salvation, what would your answer. By the way, that man who was saved when on and actually entered the ministry's name was James Kennedy.

He pastors today. The Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church and he has created this evangelism ministry called evangelism explosion, the weave and teacher at our church and it's based on those questions that he first heard from Donald Ray Barnhouse, would your answer be if you were to die this afternoon and stand before God and God should say to you, why should I let you into heaven, will would you say for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God the beginning of the gospel is that for all that means you and you and you and you and you and you and you and you and you and you and you you you and me all have sinned all fall short of the glory of God. Nobody gets in unless they receive from the Lord that ticket gives them entrance as it were, the bridge fashioned in the shape of a cross.

They walk across that that is the answer for Jesus Christ else that I the way no one any comes to the phone unless they come my way. Millions of people, including people you know are seeking God's approval through their own efforts thinking that if they succeed, they can tip the scales of their relationship with God in their favor.

Today's lesson was a powerful reminder of the truth from God's word. Nobody earns salvation. God gives it and it's not because of how great we are, but because of how great Jesus is. I want to encourage you today to share this lesson with the people who need to hear it. We've posted the link to our Facebook page and to our Twitter feed is are both ways that you can share our daily Bible lesson with your friends.

You'll also find it directly. If you go to our website which is wisdom online.org Stevens current series is called Sola the day and the message you heard today is entitled the great divide will be taking you through the rest of the series over the next four days and I hope you'll be with us for all of it.

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