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Sermon outline by Rev James Chan
Text: Genesis 3:1–24
Constitution 4.2.4
We believe that man was created in the image of God, but
sinned through the fall of Adam, thereby incurring not only
physical death but also spiritual death, which is separation
from God and that all human beings are born with a sinful
nature and become sinners in thought, word and deed.
INTRODUCTION
1. Where did man come from?
There are two schools of thought:
Ø
One ignores or denies the Bible.
Ø
The other takes God at His Word.
2. Our concern is to know what the Bible teaches
concerning the origin of man and the doctrinal statement of
our Constitution.
I. The Origin of Man
Constitution 4.2.4 states:
“We believe that man was created in the image of God….”
1. The fact of creation of man.
We will accept the Biblical teaching that man is the
result of God’s creation.
a. There are three accounts of the creation of man
recorded in Genesis.
(1) Genesis 1:27
states the fact of man’s creation.
(2) Genesis 2:7 states the method of His creation.
(3) Genesis 2:21-22 gives an account of the creation
of woman.
b. The method of creation.
From Genesis 2:7, there are two stages in creation.
(1) Man’s physical body
Genesis 2:7a says, “And the LORD God formed man of the
dust of the ground…”
(2) Man’s spiritual body
Genesis 2:7b says “God…breathed into his
nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”
(3) The Genesis account tells us that man was the
climax of God’s creation.
(a) One of God’s
purposes in creating man is to make man His representative
on earth.
Genesis 1:26b “And God said, … let them have
dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of
the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and
over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”
(b) Man was perfect and the earth he lived in was
also perfect.
2. Man was created in the image of God.
“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our
likeness…”
(Gen 1:26a).
“So God created man in his own image, …” (Gen 1:27).
(a) Man was not made in the likeness of any creature on
earth.
He was created in the likeness of his Creator.
(b) In what way is man like God?
(1) It does not mean physical likeness.
“God is a spirit” (Jn 4:24).
The
Lord Jesus says, “for a spirit hath not flesh and bones”
(Lk 24:39b)
(2) The likeness is in man’s personality.
Personality consists of intellect, emotion and
volition (will).
(3) He has a moral sense.
(c) There was something special in man.
Immediately after God created man, He had fellowship with
him.
II. The Fall of Adam
1. The fall of Adam
a. The Bible teaches that after the creation of man,
God placed him in the Garden of Eden, and subjected him to a
state of probation.
God said, “…for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou
shalt surely die” (Gen 2:17b).
b. The Shorter Catechism
Question 13
Did our first parents continue in the estate
wherein they were created?
Answer
Our first parents, being left to the freedom of
their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were
created, by sinning against God.
2. The consequences of Adam’s sin
(a)
The effect of their nature.
(1) A realisation of their shame.
Genesis 3:7 “And the eyes of them both were
opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they
sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
Genesis 3:8 “And they heard the voice of the LORD God
walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam
and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the
LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.”
(2) They were morally ruined.
Genesis 2:17b “The day that thou eatest
thereof thou shalt surely die” This is called “spiritual
death”.
Isaiah 59:2 “But your iniquities have separated between
you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you,
that he will not hear.”
(3) The result of spiritual death
“dead in trespasses and sin” (Eph 2:1, 5).
“Without Christ” (Eph 2:13).
“Alienated from the life of God” (Eph 4:18).
b. The effect on their bodies.
(1) When God said that man would “surely die”
for disobedience, He also meant the body.
God said to Adam, “…dust thou art, and unto dust shalt
thou return” (Gen 3:19).
(2) Death became universal (Rom 6:23; Heb 9:27).
c. The effect on the whole human race.
Constitution
4.2.4
We
believe that man was created in the image of God, but sinned
through the fall of Adam, thereby incurring not only
physical death but also spiritual death, which is separation
from God and that all human beings are born with a sinful
nature and become sinners in thought, word and deed.
(1) Sin became universal.
(2) Man is also a sinner by practice.
(a) Constitution 4.2.4 “We become sinners in thought, word
and deed.”
(b) Romans 3:10–20
“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one
(v.10):
There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh
after God
(v.11).
They are all gone out of the way, they are together become
unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one
(v.12).
Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they
have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips
(v.13):
Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness
(v.14):
Their feet are swift to shed blood
(v.15):
Destruction and misery are in their ways
(v.16):
And the way of peace have they not known
(v.17):
There is no fear of God before their eyes
(v.18).
Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith
to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be
stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God
(v.19).
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be
justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of
sin”
(v.20).
Romans 3:23
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
III. The Restoration of Man
1. God can repair the broken image.
2. God promised to send a Saviour.
3. When we accept Christ as our
Saviour, He forgives our sins.
Will you come to Christ?
**********
Notes adapted from Rev Chan’s sermon outline.
Where does man come from? Where is man going
henceforth? We can trace this to our Constitution Article
4.2.4
“We
believe that man was created in the image of God, but sinned
through the fall of Adam, thereby incurring not only
physical death but also spiritual death, which is separation
from God and that all human beings are born with a sinful
nature and become sinners in thought, word and deed.”
Modern sciences have no definite or absolute
answers to these questions.
Generally, there are 2 approaches to these
questions: we either ignore the Bible and all revelations of
God or take God’s word with faith, to be the truth. Our
concern is the latter, to know God’s teachings from His holy
word.
Genesis 1:26
“And
God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness:
and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and
over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all
the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon
the earth.”
Thus, man’s origin is God’s creation.
·
Genesis 1:27 — the fact of man’s creation
·
Genesis 2:7 — the method of His creation
·
Genesis 2:21-22 — the creation of woman
We know that man has a physical body made
from dust, which are elements of the earth and a spiritual
body (unseen) where God “breathed
into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a
living soul”.
In fact, only man has a soul unlike the other creatures. Man
became the highest order of all God’s creations.
The purpose of God’s creation of man is to
have fellowship and communion with him, and for man to rule
over all the things of the earth, sea and air. Man and the
earth were perfect then — without sin, sorrow and natural
disasters.
Man was not created to resemble any other
creatures, but rather, the image or likeness of God. This
does not mean a physical likeness. We know that “God
is a spirit”
(John 4:24). “For
a spirit hath not flesh and bones”
(Luke 24:39). Thus, likeness of God refers to man’s
personality such as intellect, emotion and volition, a sense
of morality and also the ability to exercise rational
choices. Man is never an accidental result of evolution from
a lower form as described by Darwin. To subscribe to
Darwin’s view of evolution is clearly an abomination to God,
the Creator of all things on earth and in heaven (Genesis
1:1).
The Shorter Catechism Q13: Did our first
parents continue in the estate wherein they were created?
NO! When left to the freedom of their own
choice, they fell from God’s grace because of their
disobedience of His command and sinning against God by
consuming the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and
evil.
“thou shalt not eat
of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die”
(Gen 2:17).
As a consequence of their sin, they were made
aware of their nakedness and tried hiding from God’s
presence. They were morally ruined. This is called
“spiritual death”.
“But your
iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your
sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.”
(Isaiah 59:2)
When God said that man would
“surely die”
for disobedience, He also meant death to man’s physical body
as well.
“…dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return…”
(Gen 3:19).
As a result of spiritual death of our first
parents, sin fell on mankind. The world fell into the works
of Satan —disobedience, lusts of the flesh and mind, wrath,
etc. (Eph 2:1-5).
Question: Did you ever break any of God’s
commandments? Can we adhere to all of God’s moral law given
to man through Moses (10 commandments)?
“For
the wages of sin is death…”
(Rom 6:23)
-
Sin became universal to
mankind.
-
Man is a sinner by practice
(Rom 3:10–20, 23).
-
Constitution 4.2.4 “We become
sinners in thought, word and deed.”
Having said all this about the origin of sin,
God has a saving plan for you.
By one man’s holy sacrifice on the wooden
cross 2000 years ago, as a lamb without blemish, killed,
shedding His blood, according to the Levitical atonement
law, appeasing God are we saved. This is non other then our
Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus said:
“I
am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for
the sheep.”
(John 10:11)
“I
am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the
Father, but by me.”
(John 14:6)
“For
God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have
everlasting life”
(John 3:16).
Have you accepted Jesus as your personal
Saviour? If not, you ought to do so immediately with no
delay. Will you accept God as your Creator? Will you accept
Christ as your Saviour?
As for Christians, the harvest is great, but
the labourers are few. Would you fervently do the work of
our Lord God with no nagging, murmur or complaint?
May God help us! Amen.
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