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“Salvation: It Is Man’s Greatest Need and God’s Greatest Gift”
Salvation: It Is Man’s Greatest Need and God’s Greatest Gift
David Sproule
If you were to ask the average person—“What is man’s greatest need?”—what sort of answers would you receive? If you were to ask the average person—“What is the greatest gift that man could receive?”—what sort of answers do you think you would receive? Would the answers to these questions vary? No doubt! Did you know that the Bible gives one single answer to these questions?
The Bible teaches that God created man in His image (Gen. 1:26-27). The Bible teaches that God loves mankind (John 3:16) and longs to have a relationship with each of them (Matt. 11:28-30; 1 Tim. 2:4). However, the majority of accountable persons are not interested in the will of God and they make choices that violate God’s will—this is called “sin.” Consider what the Bible tells us about sin.
Sin is the result of violating the will of God, which is called “lawlessness” and “unrighteousness” in the eyes of God, whether one “commits” the violating act or fails to “do” what is commanded (1 John 3:4; 5:17; Jas. 4:17). Sin is a personal choice (John 8:34; 1 John 2:1) and is not inherited from anyone else (Ezek. 18:20). The devastating consequence of sin is that it separates man from God, both in this life (Isa. 59:1-2; Rom. 6:23) and in the life to come (2 Thess. 1:8-9). It is essential to understand the true nature and gravity of sin, so that man can understand his desperate need for salvation from his sin.
Seeing that salvation is man’s greatest need leads easily to recognize that the greatest gift that God could give to man would be the same—salvation from our sins! Our salvation was part of the eternal plan of God (Gal. 4:4; 1 Pet. 1:18-20). God longs that we might “be saved FROM wrath through” Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:9). God longs that we might be saved TO a “reconciled” relationship with Him (2 Cor. 5:10). God longs that we might be saved “FOR good works” in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:10).
And God offers the gift of His salvation to every person on earth! The Bible teaches that ALL are lost in sin (Rom. 3:19, 23). The Bible teaches that ALL will be judged in the end for how they have lived (2 Cor. 5:10; Matt. 25:31-46). The Bible teaches that God wants ALL to be saved (1 Tim. 2:4; 2 Pet. 3:9). The Bible teaches that wants the good news of salvation in Christ Jesus to be preached in ALL the world (Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15). The Bible teaches that God has extended His invitation for salvation to ALL people (Tit. 2:11; Rom. 1:16; Rev. 22:17).
Salvation! There is no greater need among man today! There is no greater gift from God today! Do you have it? I’m not asking if you have some version of it! Do you have GOD’S salvation from sin?
