Genesis 1:26-27 ⢠May 7, 2023 ⢠s1346
Pastor John Miller continues our series Great Doctrines Of The Bible with an expository message through Genesis 1:26-27 titled, âThe Doctrine Of Man And The Fall.â
Genesis 1:26-27 says, âThen God said, âLet Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.â So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.â
I want to talk about the important doctrine of man and the Fall.
You ask, âWhy, Pastor, is this so important? Arenât there other subjects or doctrines that are more practical for Christian living?â
Nothing is more important than a foundation when you build a house. Itâs the most important part of the structure. Genesis 1-11 forms the foundation of our faith, forms the foundation of our need for a redeemer. Yet it is under attack today. Even Christians believe these chapters are myth, allegory and not historically true. They donât really believe there was an Adam and Eve or the Garden of Eden or Noah and the Flood. But without this foundation, the structure crumbles.
Wayne Grudem, in his excellent book, Systematic Theology, said, âIf ever we deny our unique status in creation as Godâs only image-bearers, we will soon begin to depreciate the value of human life. We will tend to see humans as merely a higher form of animal, and we will begin to treat others as such. We will also lose much of our sense of meaning in life.â How true that is.
All the chaos, all the wickedness, all the evil that is going on in our culture today we can trace back to the Fall of man, to the sin of disobedience in the Garden of Eden. The death, sin, corruption, sorrow and all the suffering go back to that point.
So it is absolutely essential that we think Biblically about man and the Fall. Actually, we should think Biblically about all of life. Everything we view in life should be viewed through the lens of sacred Scripture.
Now I want to ask and answer a few questions. The first question is, âWhat does the Bible teach about the origin of man?â I first want to tell you what it does not teach. First, the Bible clearly does not teach atheistic evolutionâcertainly not theistic evolution. It is one of the greatest, damnable lies on our culture today. We have been taught in our public schools that we have accidentally evolved. Itâs Darwinâs theory of evolution in Origin of the Species, including natural selection and the survival of the fittest.
Evolution teaches that there is no need for God, because there is no God. So there is no accountability to God. There are no higher moral standards; we can do whatever we want. âThey sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind.â
Secondly, the Bible does not teach theistic evolution. So we have atheistic evolution, and we have theistic evolution, both of which are not taught in the Bible. Theistic evolution teaches that God created matter, and matter evolvedâsome say over billions of years. But the Bible doesnât fit that picture. If we believe that Genesis 1-3 is historically true, then we also have to reject this concept of theistic evolution.
Third, the Bible also doesnât teach the day-age theory. This theory holds that the six days of creation are not actually 24-hour periods, but each day is millions or billions of years long.
So evolutionists need time and more time to believe in evolution, but they only need faith to believe that something came from nothing.
Genesis 1:1 says, âIn the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.â If you believe this verse, you have no problem with the rest of the Bibleâeverythingâs smooth sailing. Itâs so very important that we receive the truth of Godâs Word on this subject.
The Bible doesnât teach atheistic evolution, it doesnât teach theistic evolution, it doesnât teach the day-age theory. Then what does the Bible teach? It teaches five things about creation. Number one, it teaches that God created out of nothing. Itâs called âex nihilo.â âIn the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.â The word âcreatedâ here is the word âbara.â Genesis 1:27 says, âSo God createdâŚââthatâs the Hebrew word âbaraââââŚman in His own image; in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them.â The word âcreatedâ actually means âout of nothingâ or âex nihilo.â
So this is whatâs known as âfiat creation.â âGod said, âLet there be lightâ; and there was light.â God has the ability to speak with His mouth and create something out of nothing. We donât have that ability. If Iâm going to create a painting, I have to have a paint brush and paints. I can only put together what existsâthe brush and paints. But God can actually start with zero, and He can create out of nothing by just speaking it into existence. Seventeen times in Genesis 1 God is said to be the creator.
Number two, God created man directly. God actually created man. In Genesis 1:27, it says, âSo God created man.â Now all through the Genesis record, it says, âGod created man.â Yet you still find Christians who believe in theistic evolution, when the Bible is very clear that âGod created man.â
Other great verses are Genesis 5:1-2. âThis is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created.â This is taking Adam as a historical figure and giving his generations. Here, again, it says that âGod created man.â Itâs the word âaw-dawm,â in the phonetic spelling, which is a reference to both Adam and Eve. So God created both male and female. And this statement is repeated several times in our text.
This creation is regarded as historical fact in many other passages of Scripture. This is what a lot of people donât think aboutâthat the Bible validates the Bible. Exodus 20:11 is a reference to God directly creating man. âFor in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day.â In Psalm 8:3-6, God created man. It says, âWhen I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet.â
Jesus referred to Adam and Eve, the first of Godâs creation, in Matthew 19:4-5. âAnd He answered and said to them, âHave you not read that He who made them at the beginning âmade them male and female,â and said, âFor this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one fleshââ?â And itâs referred to in 2 Corinthians 11:3. âBut I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.â 1 Timothy 2:13-14 says, âFor Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.â And Jude 14 says, âEnoch, the seventh from AdamâŚ.â So all these verses speak of God directly having created man.
These verses in Exodus, Psalms, Jesus in Matthew 19, Paul in Corinthians, Timothy and Jude referencing God creating man, as first mentioned in the book of Genesis, support the idea that this is historical truth. These verses donât say itâs allegory or myth; they say itâs historical fact and true. These writers believe in this report from the book of Genesis as history.
The Bible teaches that not only did God create out of nothing and create man directly, but number three, God created male and female. Jesus affirmed this truth in Matthew 19:4, where He said, âHave you not readâŚââor âHave you not read your Bible?ââââŚthat He who made them at the beginning âmade them male and femaleâ?â There are only two genders. And any attempt to blur those two distinctions is an attack on God Himself.
Iâve never seen so widespread an attack on our culture today as on the very existence of God. Evolution fuels transgenderism. If weâre just evolving, weâre evolving from a man to a woman, from a woman to an animal. You can be whatever you want to be. We donât even know what a woman is or what a man is anymore in our culture. And if we donât know that, we donât know what marriage is. The Bible says, âFor this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.â Marriage is the building block of society. So itâs no surprise that weâre just falling apart morally, socially and spiritually. Romans 1 shows us the degeneration of mankind, ending with âa debased mindâ in turning away from the true and living God. Knowing the truth so very important.
So God made male and female. And God does not make any mistakes. In Genesis 2:18-25, God actually looked at man by himself and said, âIt is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.â Then God caused Adam to go asleepâAdam took a nap. He took from Adamâs rib and made the woman. When Adam woke up from his nap, he found out he was married. The first wedding ever performed was performed by God; marriage is a divine institution. Adam had been looking at animals all day long, so when he looked at this woman, he said, âWow-man!â So her name was âWoman.â Adam said, âThis is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.â
Both man and woman are made in the image of God, both equal before God, but given separate roles and functions as designed by God. And God said to the two, âBe fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it.â
Itâs troubling that weâre seeing in the United States so many young people not getting married and not having children. Yet itâs encouraged. God said that He âmade them male and femaleâ and instructed them to âmultiply.â
Number four, God created in six, 24-hour days. You ask, âWell, what does it matter?â It matters. When you begin to question the historicity of the book of Genesis to try to satisfy evolution, you have big problems. Genesis 1:31 says, âThen God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.â This is before the Fall. âSo the evening and the morning were the sixth day.â When you see âthe evening and the morning,â and you see âthe sixthâ and you see the word âday,â what do you think? Six days; right?
The Hebrew word for âdayâ is âyom.â It was used with a number and always designates a 24-hour period of time or a day. Any Hebrew reading this verse would assume the natural interpretation of six, 24-hour days. Exodus 20:11 supports this. âFor in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them.â That says that God made everything in six days. He used the word âyomâ with a number. It was six, 24-hour days.
Evolutionists claim it takes billions of years for everything to evolve. We know that within a species, there are different kinds, such as different kinds of dogs. But no matter how long it takes, dogs can never become horses. The Bible teaches that Godâs creation was complete in six, literal, 24-hour days. God didnât need billions of years to create.
Number five, God created man, a unique being, in His image and in His likeness. We read about this in Genesis 1:26-27 and again in Genesis 5:1. âGod created man [and] He made him in the likeness of God.â Human beings are created in Godâs image and likeness. If we lose this Biblical truth, God have mercy on us! And no matter how marred the image of God is in mankind, every human beingâno matter what age, what ethnicity, what race, what sexâis made in the image of God. This is a Biblical doctrine that needs to be believed. God created man unique; he is the crown of Godâs creation.
We know for sure that man is at least two parts: he has a body, and he has an immaterial part called soul and spirit, which are eternal. Theologians argueâand I donât have an opinion on thisâwhether or not man has two parts, a dichotomy, body and spirit; or man has three parts, a trichotomy, body, spirit and soul. But what we are clear about Biblically is that we have at least two parts: a physical body and a spiritual part, which makes us like God or eternal.
In Genesis 2:7, we have a record of how God created man. âAnd the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.â So every human beingâI believe from the moment of conceptionâis an eternal being. Every human being exists for all eternity. We know from the doctrine of salvation they will exist either in heaven with God, or in hell separated from God. So the Bible teaches we will all exist forever.
Why did God create man? God didnât need to create man. Sometimes you hear the idea that God needed fellowship, so He created man. Thatâs why I preached on the Trinity. You have God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. The Godhead had gotten along fine for all eternity without mankind. They had love within the Godhead. God didnât need human beings. He didnât create man because He needed man.
But God did create man for His glory. In Isaiah 43:6-7, it says, âBring My sons from afar, and My daughters from the ends of the earthâeveryone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory.â Manâs purpose in life is to know God, to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. You could reduce this down: what is our purpose in life? To glorify God. We do that by knowing Him, by loving Him, by serving Him and by enjoying Him. So the purpose of mankind is to glorify God, his Creator, and to enjoy Him forever.
Now what does it mean that we are made in Godâs image? First, it means that man is like God and that man represents God. âImageâ and âlikenessâ mean that we are like God in order to represent God. We are not divine; we will never be God, we canât become God and weâre not little gods. But there are ways in which we are like God, and we can reflect God so we can bring glory to God.
Let me put it in three categories. Number one, we are like God in that we have a personality. God is a personal being and so are we. That means we have self-consciousness, self-determination, self-awareness and we have a mind, emotions, a will and we can think abstractly. Humans are the only species that blush, become embarrassed and can enjoy abstract art.
Have you ever seen a squirrel sitting on the limb of a tree in the forest enjoying the beauty of a sunset? No; theyâre just animals doing things instinctively. Humans are spiritual beings. Weâre made like God. We have creativity, can create things and think abstractly. We have a mind, a will and emotions. Weâre personal beings. So we can have fellowship with God, because we are made like God in that sense.
Number two, we are spiritual beings; we have spirituality. âGod is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.â Man has an eternal spirit or soul.
Number three, we are moral beings. God is holy. He says to us, âBe holy, for I am holy.â When we study the attributes of God, we discover that some of Godâs attributes are communicable. That means we can have them. But I canât have all-power or all-knowledge or be present everywhere, but I can have Godâs love in my heart and in my life. I can be holy like GodâI can be patient.
Is Godâs patience reflected in me? When youâre a dad, you want to be a reflection of God the Father in heaven to your children. You want to show your wife the love that Jesus Christ has for the church. âHusbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her.â So whoever you are, whatever your role in life is, you should reflect the love of God, the grace of God, the mercy of God, the holiness of God and the righteousness of God, because we are made in the image of God.
Second, something has gone horribly wrong in reflecting the image of God. What has happened to mankind in the world today? Itâs called the Fall of man or the original sin in the Garden of Eden. You need to understand that man is made in Godâs image and likeness, but that image is marred. That image hasnât been erased; even non-Christians are made in the image and likeness of God. It has nothing to do with whether or not youâre a Christian. Every human being is made in the image and likeness of God. Even though the image is marred, it still exists. And all your study of anthropology is of no avail if donât understand that man is a sinful human being.
Genesis 3:1-7 says, âNow the serpent was more cunningâŚââor âsubtleâ or âcraftyâ or âwiseââââŚthan any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, âHas God indeed said, âYou shall not eat of every tree of the gardenâ?ââ The first recorded words out of the mouth of the devil in the Bible were questioning Godâs Word. âDid God really say that?â Those are the first recorded words from Satan.
The serpent was a representation of the devil and was an actual animal. The word âserpentâ could be translated âdragon,â which could be some kind of lizard or a being that had legs. It didnât have to be without legs, because it would be cursed and have no legs. So it wasnât necessarily a snake. When you see a picture of a snake in a tree telling Eve to eat the apple, itâs not anywhere near what the story says in the Bible. And poor apples!âthey got a bad rap. We donât know that the forbidden fruit was an apple. It might have been a cumquat or a banana. We just donât know.
So Satan is using this wise creature to speak to Eve. It could have been before the Fall that this creature had the ability to speak; it was wiser than any other creature. So Eve wasnât surprised when the serpent said, âHas God indeed saidâŚ.â The number one thing Satan does is to question Godâs Word. He is always attacking the validity of Godâs Word or the historicity of Godâs Word.
Verse 2, âAnd the woman said to the serpent, âWe may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, âYou shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.ââ That command of God is given in Genesis 2:16-17. God said nothing about not touching the fruit. So here Eve is adding to the Word of God. Thatâs a dangerous thing to do.
Verse 4, âThen the serpent said to the woman, âYou will not surely die.ââ So Satan first questions Godâs Word, then he blatantly denies Godâs Word. He tells a lie. God said that if they ate of the fruit of this tree they would die. They would die in two ways: they would die spirituallyâthey were separated from God and driven out of the Garden of Edenâand they died physically.
In verse 5, Satan says, ââFor God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.ââ So Satan said she would be like God, but not God. He gives Adam and Eve a partial truth. But Satan also questions the goodness of God here. Satan was saying that God knows something good will happen to you when you eat the fruit, but Heâs keeping it from you. So Satan denies the Word of God and questions the goodness of God.
Verse 6, âSo when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with herâŚââevidently Adam was hanging out there with her and should have been protecting herâââŚand he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.â
These are some of the saddest verses in the Bible. All of the sin, sorrow, suffering, sickness and tragedies of all human history started in the Garden of Eden with sin. Eve disobeyed God and ate of the fruit.
Think about this beautiful garden with all these trees they could eat from, and there was only one tree they couldnât eat of, but thatâs the tree Eve ate of. She had all these trees, but she was standing by the tree she shouldnât eat from. What Eve did plunged the human race into sin, death, condemnation and judgment, the Fall of man.
I know you look at this and say, âMan, if I were there, I would never have done that!â Yeah, right! You would have been the first one to eat of the forbidden fruit.
Verse 6 says that âThe woman saw that the tree was good for food.â In 1 John 2:16-17, we see that Satan tempts us with âthe lust of the fleshââit was good for food. He tempts us with âthe lust of the eyesââit was pleasant to look at. He temps us with âthe pride of life.â The Bible says, âFor all that is in the worldâthe lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of lifeâis not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.â Our passions are âthe lust of the fleshâ; our possessions are âthe lust of the eyesâ; and âthe pride of lifeâ is our pride. Satan said, âIf you eat this, you will be wise.â
So Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together and covered themselves. Then they hid from God. In the evening, they heard God walking in the garden calling Adam saying, âWhere are you?â But God knew where Adam was. God wanted Adam to know where he was. This is the cry of a broken-hearted Father.
Adam said, âI was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.â Fear and estrangement are the results of sin.
God said to Adam, âWho told you that you were naked?â The serpent. âHave you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?â
Then Adam said, âThe woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.â This is the first, original pass-the-buckâhusbands blaming their wives for all their problems.
So this is whatâs called the Fall of man. The text of the original sin and the fall of Adam is historically true. There really was an Adam, an Eve, the Garden of Eden, the devil. He really came to Eve and tempted her to eat the forbidden fruit, and he plunged the world into sin and death. Itâs not myth or allegory; itâs true history, just as Jesus affirmed in Matthew 19:4-5.
What were the results of manâs fall? There was judgment on the serpent, Genesis 3:14. âSo the Lord God said to the serpent: âBecause you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.ââ
Then there is the judgment on Satan, verse 15: âAnd I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.â This is the first prophetic, Gospel message of the coming of Jesus the Messiah. He was the Seed of the woman. Jesus would bruise the head, or authority, of Satan, and Satan would bruise Jesusâ heel on the Cross at the Crucifixion. So this is a prophecy of the Gospel of Christ coming to die on the Cross for our sins.
Then there is the judgment on the woman, verse 16. âTo the woman He said: âI will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.ââ Pain in childbearing is the result of the curse.
When I complain about my aches and painsâand I do a lot of thatâmy wife will often say, âWell, Iâve had four kidsâyou talk about pain!â Then I shut up.
Then it says, âYour desire shall be for your husband.â I believe that indicates that sheâll want to control or dominate her husband, but âHe shall rule over you.â My belief is based on the Hebrew word and some other insight we get from the next chapter of Genesis.
There also is a judgment on man, verses 17-19. âThen to Adam He said, âBecause you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, âYou shall not eat of itâ: Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.ââ So we see the labor, the thorns, the sweating and the curse on man.
Creation is waiting for Christ to come back and establish his kingdom, because creation is also under the curse. In Romans 8:19 and 22, Paul says, âThe earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of GodâŚ.For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.â We see the storms, animals eating animals and all the violence in nature. All of nature is groaning, because it is under the curse.
The last judgment God meted out was brought on the whole, human race. This is the main point of all that we are covering. Man was created by God in His image and likeness, Adam disobeyed God and fell, and in doing that, he plunged the whole, human race into sin, death and destruction. All of it came from Adamâs fall.
Romans 5:12 is an amazing passage in the theological book of Romans, in which God describes how He saves sinners. Romans is Paulâs last âtheological will and testamentâ; he puts all he knows into one book. It tells how God justifies the unjust.
If there was no Adam, no Eve, no Garden of Eden and no Fall, you would have a difficult time understanding Romans 5:12-19. In verses 12-14, we have a description of manâs ruin. Paul believed that Adam was a historical figure, because he said, âTherefore, just as through one manâŚââthatâs a reference to AdamâââŚsin entered the world.â
This is a clear statement. One man, Adam, brought sin into the world. Sin started in the heart of the devil, but it came into the world through one man, Adam. This is why Jesus is called âthe last Adam.â We have two Adams: the first Adam, and the last Adam, Jesus Christ. The first Adam brought sin, death and judgment; the last Adam, Christ, brought salvation, righteousness and justification. Verse 12, ââŚand [the first Adam brought] death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.â So we all inherit a sinful, Adamic nature bringing death.
Verses 13-17 is one, long, parenthetical statement. Verses 13-14 say, â(For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness ofâŚââor âthe same way asââââŚthe transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.â So even though the law had not yet come on the scene, men still died, indicating that Adamâs sin had entered the human race. Adam acted as âa federal headâ affecting the entire, human race.
From verses 15-17, we have the rescue. âBut the free gift is not like the offense.â So we have Adamâs sinâoffenseâand the free giftâthe last Adam, Jesus Christ. âFor if by the one manâs offenseâŚââAdamâsâââŚmany died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many.â
A lot of people get upset when they hear that Adamâs sin brought death, sin and condemnation on the whole, human race. They say it isnât fair. But know this: God designed His plan to allow man to sin and bring death on the whole, human race so that one man, Christ the Redeemer, could come to bring righteousness to the entire, human race. If we were all individually put into the garden and tested like Adam and Eve, we would also have sinned.
So we all inherit a sin nature and we all actually sin. Not only do we have a fallen, sinful, Adamic natureâyet we still have the image of Godâbut we have a propensity to rebel and run from God, weâre at war with God and we all sin. âThere is none righteous, no, not oneâŚ.All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.â
Verse 16, âAnd the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. For if by the one manâs offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)â
Now verses 18-19 show us the plan of righteousness brought by Jesus, the last Adam. This is the conclusion. âTherefore, as through one manâs offense judgement came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Manâs righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one manâs disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Manâs obedience many will be made righteous.â
So you see the danger of denying the historicity of the story of Adam and Eve or rejecting it as myth or allegory. It has theological, doctrinal implications. One man, Adam, brought sin, death and judgment on the human race, and then one man, Jesus Christ came. Like Adam, Jesus was tempted but resisted temptation. Adam was tempted in the garden surrounded by beauty and failed, but Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness surrounded by desert and was victorious. Then Jesus went to the Cross and conquered sin, death and the grave by rising from the dead. Jesus now brings righteousness to all who believe and trust in Him.
So Adam acted as our âfederal head,â and we have imputed guilt and sin on the entire, human race. We also have transmitted depravity; man is a sinner, depraved. We have personal sin; we disobey Godâs law. So we have whatâs called âa sinful nature,â or sometimes called âthe fleshâ in Scripture. Theologians call it âthe Adamic nature.â
In Romans 1:10-31, we see the downward fall of man. And in Ephesians 2:1-3, it says, âAnd you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.â These Scriptures say that we were doomed, we were dead, we were depraved and we were disobedient.
You say, âWell, this is a really lovely message, Pastor John. Iâm so glad I came to church.â
Itâs reality. âThere is none righteous, no, not oneâŚ.All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.â Weâre dead, spiritually separated from God, weâre disobedient, weâre depraved and weâre doomed. But in Ephesians 2:4-5, Paul says this: âBut GodâŚââwhen God comes back, how marvelous it is!âââŚwho is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).â Amen.
Pastor John Miller continues our series Great Doctrines Of The Bible with an expository message through Genesis 1:26-27 titled, âThe Doctrine Of Man And The Fall.â