Delivered From Sin How?

Minister:
Date: AM
Text: II Corinthians 5; Lord's Day 5
Psalters: 413, 42, 161, 310
  1. By satisfaction? A must.
    1. To escape the punishment earned by our sins and to be received again into favor God’s justice must be satisfied.
      1. God must punish every sin against His most high majesty.
      2. This He does with everlasting punishment.
    2. Given the nature of God, the only possibility for reconciliation is via the satisfaction of God’s justice.
      1. The punishment of sin cannot be avoided because God is just.
      2. If man is to have God’s favor, it can only be in accordance with God's perfect justice.
  2. Can we ourselves make this satisfaction?
    1. We would like to think we can, but it is utterly hopeless for all we do is daily increase our debt to God.
      1. Our Arminian natures always want to earn God’s favor by ourselves.
      2. All false religions and Roman Catholicism says we can.
      3. Scripture and the Reformed faith declares that man cannot deliver himself.
    2. We only increase our guilt, and do that daily - our list of debts grows longer every day.
      1. The so-called "good works" of sinful man are really not good (perfect love for that moment).
      2. It is not possible for us ever to make it right between God and us.
    3. Also we cannot find another to be a proper substitute for us.
    4. Nor can satisfaction be made for us by another creature.
  3. A proper mediator and deliverer must be a real man who is perfectly righteous and very God.
    1. The gospel is the good news that there is full remission and perfect righteousness.
    2. God gave His own Son into our flesh to make the necessary satisfaction.
      1. He came into our flesh because man must bear the punishment for man’s sins.
      2. He remains sinless, absolutely perfect, so He would not be punished for His own sins.
      3. And as the eternal Son of God, Christ could give infinite value to the work He performed.
    3. God took our transgressions and placed them on His own Son, and laid His own Son on the altar of His wrath.
    4. Believe God’s Word that reconciliation is through the shedding of Christ’s blood, and trust in nothing else.