Laying the Foundation

One of the ways we honor God¹ is through stewarding the various gifts He has given us. One of these gifts is the ability to reason – to observe, analyze, and to engage in decision making; one of the joys of bearing the image of God.

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

Genesis 1:27

God had made man to be in harmony with Himself and gave man a charge to tend the earth and have dominion over the creatures therein. What God has made is intended for good, as we are assured at the end of each day of creation recorded in Genesis Chapter 1.

“And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.””

Genesis 1:28

The Fall of Human Kind

Due to mankind being made subject to the deceptions of the devil as described in Genesis Chapter 3, our connection to God was severed because of sin, and our ability to reason has been gravely impacted in a negative way.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”

Romans 3:23

Because God is perfect and just, there must be a consequence for sin. The Bible tells us that the consequence for sin is death and eternal punishment in hell. Sin is serious and God takes it seriously.

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:23

The Redemption of Human Kind

Here we have a Biblical basis for reporting bad news first. The payment for sin is death, we are sinners, therefore we deserve to die.

But the good news trumps the bad news. There is the Man that paid the price of death on our behalf, and in Him is the gift of eternal life.

“But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 5:8

Glory to God, this is good news! Jesus Christ’s sacrifice makes salvation available to everyone, but effective only for those who confess and believe in Him.

“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Joel 2:32

Acts 2:21

Romans 10:9 & 10:13, respectively

When a person is found with faith and has put their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, they are immediately reconciled with God. They are justified before God on the basis of Jesus Christ taking the penalty of their sin upon Himself.

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 5:1 & 8:1, respectively

The Challenge

We cannot work our way to be right with God, it is only by placing our faith in Jesus Christ that we can be right with God. All who are in Jesus Christ are a new creation, made for good works. We are not to try to do good works in order to be saved, we are enabled to do good works because we are saved.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

2 Corinthians 5:17

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast.
For we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Ephesians 2:8 – 10

The devil and the world he has authority over will seek to ruin your faith and eliminate your ability to be an effective Christian, but God has promised us that nothing can remove us from our position in Jesus Christ.

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:38 – 39

Gaining Knowledge and Growing in Wisdom

The Bible says that knowledge begins with the fear of God,
and the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”

Proverbs 1:7 & 9:10, respectively (Bolded text for emphasis)

As teachers bound by Holy Scripture, we have the duty of teaching our students and learners the Lord Jesus Christ first; for without such a prerequisite, our labor is indeed vain.

¹The “God that made the world and all things therein”

– Acts 17:24

Footnote: All Bible quotes within this website are referenced from the The Holy Bible – English Standard Version unless otherwise noted.