This morning for our Bible study
I would ask you to turn in your Bible to first Corinthians chapter
fifteen first Corinthians chapter fifteen and let's read beginning
at verse twenty one for since by man came death since by man
came death by man came also that is through the God man the Lord
Jesus Christ since by man that's referring to Adam came death
by man that is, the second Adam, came also the resurrection of
the dead. Now this is 1 Corinthians, chapter
15, verse 22. For as in Adam all die, spiritual
and physical death, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. There we see that the doctrine
of representation is taught in the scriptures. In Adam, Adam
stood as a representative man. In Adam, when he sinned, we sinned. When he fell, all humanity fell
in him. Even so, in this last Adam, or
the second Adam, that is the Lord Jesus Christ, all those
for whom he represents, shall be made alive or have spiritual
life and salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to bring
you a message today on the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and
how God saves sinners and justifies the ungodly through the Lord
Jesus Christ alone. Salvation as it is taught in
the scriptures is conditioned upon the Lord Jesus Christ. It
is declared to be in him, salvation in Christ. He said, I'm the way,
the truth, and the life. And salvation is conditioned
upon his performance, his obedience, his sacrifice unto death. We
read in Colossians chapter 2, in Christ dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily, and believers stand complete only in Christ. In Adam, we stand incomplete,
sinful, ruined. In the Lord Jesus Christ, by
God's grace and salvation completed and determined and accomplished
by Him, the believer stands complete. Now, three things I want to bring
to your attention this morning. The first of all is ruin, sin
and depravity in and through Adam, Adam's fall. Adam's sin
we read in Romans chapter 5 wherefore as by one man sin entered into
the world and death by sin so death passed upon all men for
that all sinned that is in whom all sinned in Adam by one man's
disobedience many were made sinners Romans 5 19 As I said earlier, Adam stood
as a representative man for all mankind. When he sinned, all
sinned in him. His guilt, his defilement of
his fallen nature has been imputed and implanted to all men. All
men, because of Adam's sin, stand guilty as charged before God. Now what are the results of Adam's
sin imputed and imparted to us. What are the results of that?
What are the implications of it? Well, the scriptures teach
that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. The
implications of sin imputed and guilt imputed and implanted to
all men is that we have a sinful nature, born in sin, shaped in
iniquity. All men love darkness rather
than light. Our Lord said in John 3, this
is condemnation, that light has come into the world, but men
love darkness rather than the All of our deeds, our best efforts,
that we might think recommend us unto God, our moral living,
our righteous doing, all of our righteousnesses, the scriptures
declare, are filthy rags. We read in Romans chapter 3 that
there is none righteous, no not one. There is none that understandeth,
there is none that seeketh after God. We're all gone out of the
way. We're all together become unprofitable. There is none that doeth good.
No, not one. By our deeds and by our best
moral efforts, we cannot justify ourselves before God. God is
too holy and we are too sinful. All men stand guilty before God. We are most sinful in all we
can produce. Sin is what we are. Sin is what
we do. That is our problem. Sin. And
we know that we cannot put away sin by our deeds. By the deeds of the law shall
no flesh be justified. Well, that leads us to our second
point. What is a remedy? What is a remedy for sin? We
certainly have a sin problem. We must confess that through
and through that we are guilty before God. We have a sinful
nature, unable to put away our sin, unable to establish righteousness
before God. What is the remedy for my sin
problem and sins condemnation? Well, my friend, there is just
one remedy. There is just one remedy for
sin. And that one remedy is one redeemer,
the Lord Jesus Christ. There is just one gospel, the
gospel of God's grace in Christ, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ.
There is just one salvation, because there's one Savior. Salvation
is in Christ. There is just one faith, the
faith that's a gift of God, given to God's elect, Faith which is
obtained by the righteousness of Christ. There's one faith
that looks to the Lord Jesus Christ alone. One church. The church of the firstborn.
Those called and quickened by God's grace and made one with
Christ. There's just one way. Not many.
Not many. Just one way of salvation. One
way of truth. And that way is Christ. Our Lord
said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. Now this one remedy
involves, one remedy for sin involves one redeemer. Who is
this redeemer? This redeemer is the God-man,
God manifest in the flesh. He is called in scripture, God
our Savior. Without controversy, 1 Timothy
3, 16, without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness,
God was manifest in the flesh. The word was made flesh. and
dwelt among us. This is who our Redeemer is. It's who He is that gives power
and weight and accomplishment to what the Lord Jesus Christ
did on our behalf as a representative man. All those for whom He stands
as surety, mediator, and advocate, they shall be justified by the
deeds of Christ. Two key accomplishments Our Lord
Jesus Christ accomplished, performed, as God incarnate, God our mediator,
God our Savior, two key accomplishments our Lord performed for his covenant
people. We've read in Romans 5, 19, for
by one man's disobedience, many were made sinners. So by the
obedience of another, the Lord Jesus Christ shall many be made
righteous. Those for whom he represents
their surety and their righteousness shall be declared righteous by
imputation of righteousness given to them on the basis of Christ
obedience you see I must have not only sin removed but I must
have righteousness established we have already discussed it
I cannot produce a righteousness I But the Lord Jesus Christ,
his obedience as the God-man mediator, as a representative
man, he lived a life honoring to God, honoring the law of God
in every precept and every penalty, thereby establishing a justifying
righteousness for his covenant people that's freely imputed
to them without any contribution on their behalf. Paul, when he
wrote To the Romans, put it this way, quoting from Psalm 32, blessed
is a man to whom God would impute righteousness without works. So in Christ, because of his
obedience, we have righteousness established, freely given, imputed
to all of his covenant people. Not only do we have righteousness
established by his life, but we have redemption and remission
and pardon from sin by his sacrificial atonement, his atonement for
sin. Here in his love, we read in
1 John 4 10, not that we love God, but that he loved us and
And he sent his son to be the propitiation, the sacrifice,
the atonement for sin. He gave his life for his covenant
people. He laid down his life for the
sheep. He shed his blood to put away their sin by the sacrifice
of himself. He obtained, as our high priest,
those for whom he represents, as high priest mediator, he obtained
for them Eternal redemption we read in 2nd Corinthians 5 21
about our substitute who satisfied God Putting away their sin God
made him to be sin for us God made him sin for us who knew
no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him
the Lord Jesus Christ declared from Calvary that salvation is
not attempted it's accomplished the Lord did not die to make
salvation a possibility and the Lord Jesus Christ died accomplishing
salvation for those for whom he represents. He said it is
finished. He said I lay down my life for
the sheep. Those for whom Christ died are justified. So the remedy for sin is what? Righteousness, an everlasting
righteousness established by the obedience of Christ and redemption,
remission from sin by his substitutionary sacrifice for his covenant people. Being justified freely by his
grace, we have redemption through his blood. Now lastly, in closing,
what are the results of Christ's high priestly work? Well, we
have reconciliation with God. Sin brought separation to Lord
Jesus Christ by his satisfaction unto God reconciles us unto God. In Adam all died, even so in
Christ shall all for whom he represents be made alive. As sin demands death, so his
righteousness established and imputed demands Acceptance with
God demands eternal life. So we have reconciliation through
Christ. Not only that, but we have what
we need by the deeds and the merit of Christ, regeneration
of faith and repentance. These are given upon the basis
of Christ accomplishing salvation for us. Through the gospel, God,
who hath begun a good work in you, will perform it. Both true
faith and genuine repentance that's God-given, sovereignly
given, acknowledge the truth of salvation all in Christ. It's
God who loved us and washed us from our sin in his own blood. Not only that, what are the results
of his work? Reconciliation, regeneration,
and revelation to you who believe Christ is altogether lovely.
We believe the gospel because of God's revelation. He said
he's hid these things from the wise and prudent and has revealed
them unto babes. God who commanded the light to
shine out of darkness has shined in our hearts to give us a light
of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Well, I hope this message will
help you to understand, further understand the gospel of the
Lord Jesus Christ. And Adam all died, even so in
Christ, in that representative man, for all whom he died shall
be made alive.