When the Lord Jesus was on trial just prior to His crucifixion, the Roman governor Pilate asked Him the question, "What is truth?"—then walked away without waiting for an answer, totally unaware that Truth Incarnate (John 14:5-9) stood before him. Had Pilate been with Christ and His disciples the day before, he would have heard the answer to his question as Christ opened His heart to the Father in prayer. During the course of this prayer for His chosen people, our Lord spoke these gracious words, "Sanctify them through Thy Truth. Thy Word is Truth" (John 17:17).
The answer to Pilate's question, "What is truth?" is found in these words of our Lord's prayer. The Word of God, as recorded in the Holy Bible, is the Truth. It has the answers to all the great and vital questions of life, such as, "Who am I?"; "Where did I come from?"; "Why am I here?"; "What is the purpose of life?"; "Who is God?"; "What is He like?"; "How can He be known?"; "Is there life after death?"; and "How can I find acceptance and peace with God?" The answers to these important questions and many others are found in the Holy Scriptures.
The Bible claims for itself Divine authorship and inspiration. In the Old Testament, its writers repeatedly used such phrases as, "Thus saith the Lord," "The Lord hath spoken unto me," "The Word of the Lord by the hand of Moses," and many other similar expressions. In the New Testament, these words are recorded in 2 Timothy 3:16-17,
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."
The New Testament book of Hebrews begins with this statement:
"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken to us by His Son, Whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds . . ." (Hebrews 1:1-2)
Referring to the Holy Scriptures, the Apostle Peter wrote these words:
"Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (2 Peter 1:20-21)
These passages teach that the Bible—while given to us through human agency—claims to be an infallible revelation of truth from the very heart of God. As such, it gives an accurate account of the creation of the universe and of man, the fall and desperate plight of mankind, the early history of the human race, the nature and attributes of God, and His personal involvement with His creation, particularly His redemptive purposes for man in the Lord Jesus Christ. The central theme which runs throughout its pages like a scarlet thread from Genesis to Revelation is salvation by the grace of the triune God, through a living faith in the Son of God—blood redemption through the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ is "God manifest in the flesh" (1 Timothy 3:16; John 1:1,14)—therefore, all words that He spoke are the very words of God Himself. Accordingly, the Lord Jesus Christ could say,
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away." (Matthew 24:35)
The Apostle Peter repeated this statement in substance:
"But the Word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you." (1 Peter 1:25)
[Click Here to read the excellent article on-line by Michael Gowens titled, "The Bible Speaks Today."]
In the final analysis, then, a search for Truth concerning God, man, salvation, and eternal life must begin with this question: "What saith the Scripture?" (Romans 4:3). For this reason, the Bible is referred to or quoted on every page of this book. It is the only source of absolute authority—it is only the "Holy Scriptures that are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15). Therefore, all who read this message are encouraged to do so with an open Bible before them—and to take the time to look up each Scripture reference given.
This book is sent forth with the earnest prayer that God may be pleased to use it to the edification of His people and to magnify and glorify His matchless, amazing grace in the salvation of many precious souls—by leading them to repentance toward God and faith in the crucified, risen, exalted, glorified, and enthroned Lord Jesus Christ, Who said,
May it be a blessing, dear friend, to you!
—JOHN RODEN
Last eve I passed beside a blacksmith's door
And heard the anvil ring the vesper chime:
Then looking in, I saw upon the floor
Old hammers, worn with beating years of time."How many anvils have you had," said I,
"To wear and batter all these hammers so?"
"Just one," said he, and then, with twinkling eye,
"The anvil wears the hammers out, you know."And so, thought I, the anvil of God's Word,
For ages skeptic blows have beat upon;
Yet though the noise of falling blows was heard,
The anvil is unharmed . . . the hammers gone.—Author unknown
Amazing grace—how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost but now am found,
was blind but now I see.'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear,
the hour I first believed!The Lord has promised good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
as long as life endures.Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.When we've been there ten thousand years,
bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
than when we first begun.—JOHN NEWTON (1725-1807)
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-10)
Probably the most popular hymn of all time is "Amazing Grace" written in the 18th century by English pastor John Newton. [Click Here to read the biography of John Newton.] Besides being sung during the worship services in many churches today, it has been recorded by popular singers and sung on television and at special events throughout the world. Many who are not regular church-goers could easily recite the first verse of the hymn. But do most of those who are familiar with this hymn really understand the meaning of the grace of God, and are they actually experiencing the power of it in their lives? Have they, as John Newton, seen themselves to be "wretched," "blind," and "lost"? Can they truthfully say that it has been their experience, "I once was lost, but now I am found; I once was blind, but now I see!"? What is the grace of God, and why is it so amazing? Why was John Newton so thrilled with the grace of God? Why do we need the grace of God, and how can we receive it? It is the purpose of this book to unveil the glory of God's wonderful grace as it is taught in the Word of God, and to point the reader to the only One who can bring that grace to him personally—the Lord Jesus Christ! "For the Law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ" (John 1:17).
The word "grace" stands out above all other words in the Bible in describing God's great salvation, appearing 130 times in the New Testament alone. The prominence of "grace" is seen in the Ephesian passage quoted above, and in many others. For example, the Gospel is called "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24). Believers are said to be "justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24). According to Titus 2:11, it is "the grace of God that bringeth salvation..." Again, in the same epistle to Titus, Paul wrote, "…that having been justified by His grace, we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:7). These are only a few of the many, many passages that teach the preeminence of the grace of God in salvation.
The word "grace" in all these Scriptures is a translation of the Greek word charis. This Greek word has various shades of meaning, according to the context in which it is used, but when it refers to the salvation of sinners, it always means God's unmerited favor—the favor, blessing, and mercy of God shown to those who are totally unworthy, undeserving, and Hell-deserving, where there is no consideration whatsoever of any merit on their part.
The Biblical concept of the grace of God has been clearly expressed by this writer:
"The first and possibly most fundamental characteristic of divine grace is that it presupposes sin and guilt. Grace has meaning only when men are seen as fallen, unworthy of salvation, and liable to eternal wrath . . . Grace does not contemplate sinners merely as undeserving but as ill-deserving . . . It is not simply that we do not deserve grace; we do deserve Hell! . . . Grace ceases to be grace if God is compelled to bestow it in the presence of human merit . . . Grace is treating a person without the slightest reference to desert whatsoever, but solely according to the infinite goodness and sovereign purpose of God."—Dr. C. Samuel Storms, The Grandeur of God
With this definition of grace in mind, we find that according to the Bible, this favor, blessing, and mercy of God comes to Hell-deserving sinners like you and me only through the Lord Jesus Christ—redemption through His precious shed blood on Calvary's cross:
"To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved, in Whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace." (Ephesians 1:6-7)
For a more detailed, expanded definition of the grace of God, please see Appendix A, Click Here.
"Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil." (Ecclesiastes 8:11)
There is something terribly wrong with the human race. Read the daily newspaper, or watch the evening news on TV; study the history of mankind; and then ask this question: "Why is man, obviously the most intelligent creature on this planet, so full of moral corruption, so naturally evil?" Our race has produced such cold-blooded killers as Adolf Hitler, Jeffery Dahmer, Ted Bundy, Saddam Hussein, and Osama bin Laden. There are mothers who destroy their own children in the womb, parents who kill or physically and sexually abuse their own offspring, and thousands of people who commit suicide, being so disturbed of mind that they deliberately commit self-murder. Even animals and birds will not normally drink poisoned water, yet millions of human beings daily poison their bodies and numb their minds with the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Consider the two devastating world wars that took place in the 20th century; consider all the murder, rape, thievery, racial and religious warfare and strife—and other forms of human cruelty—that goes on daily among mankind. Man by nature, either under a religious covering or without any religion, is basically greedy, selfish, and self-serving. The thin layer of modern civilization does not conceal the moral depravity that exists everywhere.
How can these sad facts be explained? Evolutionists erroneously teach that man is only a more highly developed animal, and that as we continue to evolve, we will learn to live together in peace and love. They would have us to believe that man—just another animal, a primate—began at the bottom of the moral ladder, but that through education and progressive civilization, he will slowly climb out of his animal nature. The truth revealed in the Holy Scriptures, however, is just the opposite. The Bible declares that man began at the top of the moral ladder, but that through deliberate rebellion and willful disobedience to his Creator's command, he fell to the bottom.
The truth is that mankind is not progressing at all, from the standpoint of morals. In spite of all our scientific and technological achievements, man is still the same morally depraved creature. Our highly educated, high-tech society continues to devise more intricate means of destroying itself—hydrogen bombs, "smart bombs," chemical and biological warfare, and atomic intercontinental ballistic missiles are a few obvious examples.
As a result of the "sexual revolution" of the 1960s, adultery, fornication, and divorce are taken for granted today in our culture, and glorified in movies and on television, teaching that it is acceptable, "cool" and "sophisticated" to be immoral. Sexual perversion is no longer generally considered to be a sin, but is now called "gay"; out-of-the-closet sodomites are even pastoring churches and being elected and re-elected to political office. Crime and revolt against civil authority are rampant throughout the land, while law enforcement officials and the courts are overwhelmed and baffled in their efforts to cope with it and keep it under control. There aren't enough jails to house all the criminals, and many are being turned loose back on society, with little or no punishment. We are witnessing the disintegration of the family as never before, while many children today are allowed to run wild like the beasts of the forest, doing whatever they please—including carrying loaded guns to school and shooting and killing their classmates and teachers. And yet we are told that the human race is progressing along the evolutionary trail!
The only logical conclusion is that revealed in the Word of God, the Holy Scriptures—that man is ruined by a terrible tragedy. According to the Bible, man is not now in the state in which he was originally created. The fall of man, as recorded in the third chapter of Genesis, provides the true explanation of human history, and the universal moral depravity of mankind. Sin has entered and become a part of human nature, and man is now a fallen and ruined creature—and as such, he is capable of any vileness and wickedness.
The source of all sin and human misery can be traced back to that tragic day in the Garden of Eden when our first parents, the fountain from which all mankind flowed, willfully and deliberately disobeyed the command of their Creator, and partook of the forbidden fruit, as recorded in Genesis chapter 3 of the Old Testament. In the New Testament, Romans 5:12,19 states and interprets this sad fact very clearly:
"Therefore, just as through one man [Adam] sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned . . . by one man's [Adam's] disobedience, many were made sinners . . ."
Our first parents were created in the "image and likeness of God" (Genesis 1:26-27). Adam bore the image of God in that he was created a rational being; he not only was a personality capable of thinking and reasoning, but he was also a living spirit who knew his Creator personally, originally living in personal fellowship and communion with God. From a moral standpoint, Adam also bore the image of God in that he was originally endowed with a natural goodness and uprightness of heart. God's description of Adam immediately after his creation was "very good" (Genesis 1:31). According to Ecclesiastes 7:29, "God made man upright..."—not only in his physical stature, but also in his moral character, for he was originally created naturally conformed to the moral character of God, Who Himself is "good and upright" (Psalm 25:8). According to Genesis 2:19-20, Adam gave names to all living creatures, an ability which displayed an intelligence far greater than that which is attributed to the grotesque, ridiculous "ape-man" imagined by those who hold the evolutionary theory or hypothesis.
Man was originally a very glorious creature. The whole nature of his being pointed toward God his Creator; he was created to reflect the glory of God, even as the rest of the creation reveals His eternal power, wisdom, and majesty (Romans 1:20). Adam and Eve knew and worshipped their Maker and naturally walked in personal communion and fellowship with Him (Genesis 1:28-30; 2:16; 3:8-10). Man's affections were originally free from defilement, for God's law and God's love were written upon his heart and mind, unaffected by sin. Man's soul was created for an eternal existence. The "breath of life" was breathed into his body directly from God (Genesis 2:7). His body was originally created free from disease and death, which came later as the consequences of sin. Man was originally created as the masterpiece of God's handiwork, creative power, and wisdom--the capstone of all that is so wonderfully displayed throughout the universe—made in His image, made for His loving fellowship, made with an upright moral character—and given dominion over all the earth (Psalm 8:5-6).
Though Adam and Eve were created in the image of God, having an upright moral character, they were not robots. God originally endowed them with free wills, and as free moral agents, they had the ability to choose to obey God's command, or the ability to choose to disobey it. God placed them under the most favorable circumstances, and forbid them only the fruit of one tree, though everything else in the Garden of Eden was theirs to use freely. God warned Adam of the consequences of disobedience:
"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." (Genesis 2:17)
In giving this commandment to our first parents, God was putting man's obedience and loyalty to the test, and giving him the opportunity to exercise the faculty of free choice.
Can anyone deny that God has the sovereign right and prerogative to test his creature's fidelity? Had Adam stood this probationary test in honor, choosing to obey rather than to disobey God, the fate and history of mankind would have been vastly different. Because God constituted Adam as our federal head, he acted in behalf of the entire human race (Romans 5:12-19). Obedience would have confirmed him—and all those whom he represented—in holiness and righteousness forever. Disobedience plunged him—and the entire race of mankind in whose behalf he acted—under the sentence of death, into ruin and corruption, and under the judgment of a holy God. The Biblical account of the temptation and fall of man is given in Genesis 3:1-7:
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 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. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant 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. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons."
The Tempter—A literal serpent is involved in the temptation (see Genesis 3:14-15), but this serpent is only an instrument being utilized by an unseen, supernatural being; the real tempter was the Devil, or Satan, who spoke through it, as revealed in the New Testament in Revelation 12:9 and 2 Corinthians 11:3,14. Satan, motivated by malice toward God, and being envious of man, who was created in His image, set out to deceive and destroy the human race by enticing our first parents to disobey God. Because he succeeded in this attempt, the Lord Jesus Christ refers to him in the New Testament as a "liar and the father of it," and "a murderer from the beginning" (John 8:44). Further on in this book, we will see in more detail what the Bible reveals concerning Satan's origin, rebellion against God, and subsequent history.
The Temptation—Satan's attack upon Eve, and ultimately upon Adam, was launched in four stages. First, he introduced doubt in Eve's mind concerning the truthfulness of God's Word; second, he flatly denied that they will die as a result of disobedience, calling God a liar; third, he slandered God by misrepresenting His motive in denying them the fruit of the tree; and finally, he enticed her with the promise that they will be elevated to the same level as God Himself, attaining such increased knowledge that they "shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."
The Fall—Eve took the bait as presented by Satan, preferring to follow her own desires, rather than the will of God. She saw that the tree was not only "good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes" but also "a tree to be desired to make one wise." Eve brought her husband into the sin by offering some of the fruit to him, and the Word of God says, "and he did eat."
In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul, writing by the verbal inspiration of the Holy Spirit, refers to the Fall of Man in 1 Timothy 2:14:
"Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression."
From this verse we understand that Eve permitted herself to be duped and deceived, actually believed Satan's lies, and transgressed the commandment of God. Adam, however, was not deceived; he did not believe Satan's lies. His sin was an act of deliberate defiance and rebellion against the authority and rule of God over him. Though it is not clear from the Scriptures exactly why Adam chose this course of action, if we read between the lines, it seems highly probable that, upon observing Eve's transgression, he transferred his allegiance and loyalty from the Creator to the creature, or from God to his wife Eve. Eve must have been very beautiful, the very essence of feminine loveliness and charm, and although no children were conceived before the Fall, it is very likely that the first couple had already consummated their marriage with a pure and holy physical union, enjoying the pleasures of married love. Being fully aware of the consequences of disobedience, Adam was forced to make a choice, and in doing so, he made the wrong choice, defiantly walking into sin with eyes wide open, deliberately preferring Eve's approval, companionship and fellowship to the approval, companionship and fellowship of God. See Romans 1:25.
The Immediate Consequences for Adam and Eve—Instead of becoming as "gods," achieving a level of knowledge equal to God, our first parents discovered that they were naked, and feeling a sense of shame and guilt for having transgressed the commandment of God, sought to cover their nakedness with fig leaves. Their one act of disobedience was actually a transgressing of the whole moral Law of God, the essence of which is supreme love to God, and to "love thy neighbor as thyself" (Matthew 22:37-39). What sin is contained in this one act! They prefer the "god" of self and self-will over Jehovah and His will; they worship the creature rather than the Creator. In this sin there is blasphemy in that they so little regarded Him as their Ruler and Lord; there is spiritual adultery, in that they chose to side with God's enemy, Satan; there is not only self-murder, but the murder of their entire unborn race; there is stealing, by taking that which did not belong to them; there is bearing false witness to the character of God and the truthfulness of God's Words; and there is coveting that which was forbidden by their generous Creator and Benefactor.
Adam and Eve immediately attempted to hide from the presence of the all-seeing God (verse 8), the One Whom they once adored and worshipped. When God seeks them out and begins to interrogate them (verses 9-13), it is obvious that they who were originally created righteous are now corrupt and hardened sinners. Adam brazenly and impudently seeks to shift the blame for his sin to Eve, and ultimately blames God—"The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat." And when Eve is questioned by God, she blames the serpent. Rather than confessing their sin in brokenhearted repentance, neither are willing to admit that they are to blame. A holy and righteous God pronounces judgment upon the guilty pair—Eve is now to experience pain in childbirth and to be under the rule of her husband (vs. 16); Adam is told that the ground is cursed for his sake, and that in sorrow and toil he will eat of it until physical death returns his body to the dust from which it was made (vs. 17-19). With the sentence of death hanging over them, our first parents are expelled by God from the Garden of Eden (vs. 23-24). This is the beginning of the human experience in the state of sin. As we shall see, all that Adam lost in his Fall, all of us—the entire human race—lost in him.
The Consequences of Adam's Sin Upon Creation—When we read in Genesis chapter 1 the account of God's creation of the universe, as He spoke the universe into existence, we find this phrase used repeatedly at various stages of creation, "And God saw that it was good." And then in Genesis 1:31, on the sixth day, when God had completed the creation, we find these words, "And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good." From these verses we know that all that came forth from the hands of God in creation was originally perfect, with no flaws or defects. There was no chaos of natural disaster upon the Earth; hurricanes, tornadoes, cyclones, typhoons, earthquakes, floods, volcanoes, and unbearable extremes of temperature were unknown. The Earth was a virtual paradise, with the Garden of Eden being God's very best for Adam and Eve.
However, as we have already seen, God cursed the ground (or the Earth) because of Adam's sin (Genesis 3:17-19), and this accounts for all the harsh realities that we as a fallen race are faced with as a part of life in our world. Every disease, every natural disaster (which are commonly referred to as "acts of God") that brings illness, injury, and loss of life and property, are manifestations of the truth set forth in Romans 1:18, "For the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and un-righteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness." Additional light is shed upon this subject in Romans 8:18-22, where we find revealed the truth that God has subjected not only the Earth but the entire created universe to the consequences of Adam's sin. The universe is presently in a state of corruption and gradual deterioration through the operation of a principle known as entropy, a phenomenon which scientists have defined as the Second Law of Thermodynamics. (For additional insight on this subject from both Biblical and scientific viewpoints, please see the excellent book by Dr. Henry M. Morris, The Twilight of Evolution). The good news is that according to 2 Peter 3:10-13, a glorious deliverance, renovation, and transformation of the universe is yet future, awaiting God's appointed time when the Lord Jesus Christ shall return from Heaven in power and great glory.