Spiritual Death
Sin damaged the inner life of human beings. The moral and spiritual values that ruled over God's universe no longer rule over the natural human heart. Humans know that there is something wrong with them, and they wish for something better. At times they try to do what is good and right only to discover that “the mind of sinful man is death. . . . The sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so” (Rom. 8:6, 7, NIV).
Human nature is morally and spiritually weak. Humans cannot resist the power of sin, and consequently, wherever there is a human being there is sin and wickedness. The phenomenon is so universal that “ ‘there is no one righteous, not even one’ ” (Rom. 3:10, NIV). Sin is a condition of the human nature in its alienation from God. Because of the Fall, the human “heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jer. 17:9, NIV). The “heart,” considered in the Bible to be the volitional and intellectual center of a human being, is now defined as essentially deceitful, insidious, and in itself unreliable.
Humans are almost incapable of fully comprehending the intricacies of their inner being and are unable by themselves to live a dignified life (Eccles. 9:3). They live in conflict with the depth of their beings in fear and loneliness, struggling in themselves to do what is right but often finding that they can’t (Gal. 5:17). They are unable to fully comprehend themselves and the world in which they exist; thus, they live in darkness with respect to God (Rom. 1:21–25). This inner corruption and stupefaction expresses itself in sinful acts against oneself, against others, and against God (Matt. 15:19).
The corrupting power of sin knows no boundaries. Only God can set limits to its corrupting influence and ultimately eradicate it from the universe. If, after the Fall, there was something good left on the planet, it was because God did not allow Satan to take full control. He said to the woman, representing the human race, and to the serpent, the expression of evil powers, “ ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman’ ” (Gen. 3:15, NIV). They were not to coexist peacefully, one totally controlling the other. An element of freedom was preserved for humans that would allow them, if they so wished, to hate evil and choose life. God's decision to intervene in the human predicament made it possible for Him to limit the corrupting power of sin.
Humans need a way out of the terrible situation brought about by sin.
| Look up the verses listed in today’s lesson. How should these texts help you better understand your need of a Savior? |
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