The world around us divides people into two categories: good and bad. How do we determine which group a person falls into? It seems that bad people are those who act worse than me, and good people are just like me … or better. Working from that viewpoint helps me feel better about myself. I may not be perfect, but I’m not a bad person like so-and-so.
God classifies people differently—lost sinners and saved sinners. The level of my goodness has nothing to do with how God classifies me. Sin makes me a sinner, whether it is one sin or a decadent lifestyle of sin. Many people react negatively to being so classified, yet our study of the opening chapters of Romans can give us the opportunity to deal with the issue of sin in a straightforward manner and pave the way for discovering the solution.
Why This Lesson Is Important
Today it seems impolite to call people sinners and tell them they are lost in sin. Even those adults who agree they are sinners usually think they are not so bad as to deserve eternal punishment in hell. Some even feel they have a private agreement worked out with God, who thinks they are OK. Other adults think that if people are religious or good or sincere that they are OK with God. This lesson confronts such thinking and beliefs with the biblical truth that everyone is lost in sin—no matter how bad or good they are.
How This Lesson Can Impact Your Life
This lesson will help you discover that people are not naturally good and thus right with God. It will help you see that our human standards of right and wrong are twisted and perverted. And it will help you understand why some people delight in doing evil and encourage others in it.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
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