Those are the two alternatives given to us. There is no third alternative. In spiritual things, in the long run, there is no neutrality. Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Matthew 12:30). We either we make the right confession to salvation, or we make the wrong confession, which will not produce salvation.

e0:T56f,

“For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:19, NASB)

By Adam’s one act of disobedience, many—that is, all—of his descendants were made sinners. But by Jesus’ one act of obedience, all who believe in Him are made righteous.

The parallel is important because the people who became sinners as a result of Adam’s sin, including you and me, were not just sinners by label; they were sinners by nature and by act.

Correspondingly, when we are made righteous through faith in Jesus, it is not that God just puts a new label on us by taking away the label “sinner” and applying the label “righteous.” Rather, we are actually made righteous, by nature and by act.

Just as surely as Adam’s disobedience made us all sinners, in exactly the same way, Christ’s obedience can make us all righteous. Not just in theory, not just in theology, but in the way we live—in the very nature that is in us.

e1:T6ff,

“For He [God] delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13–14, NASB)

Through our faith in Jesus and His sacrificial death, God has delivered us from the domain of darkness. Notice that word domain. In the original Greek, it is authority. Satan has authority over the disobedient, the unbelieving, and the unsaved. But through Jesus, God has delivered us from that domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption.

Note the key word redemption. We have been bought back. We are no longer under the power of the curse, because of the redeeming death and shed blood of Jesus Christ.

“For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8)

Why did Jesus come? To destroy the works of the devil. That includes the curse!

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10:19)

Satan may have power, but Jesus has given us power over the power of Satan, so that “nothing shall by any means hurt [us].”

e2:T86d,

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught us to pray:

“Forgive us our debts [trespasses], as we forgive our debtors [those who trespass against us]” (Matthew 6:12)

This petition says, in other words, “Forgive us as we forgive.” Remember that in the same proportion

Declaring God's Word

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