MAN'S CHOSEN DESTINY AGAINST GOD'S DESTINY FOR MAN - Bro. John Sentone IV,
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God's plan for man is to make man like Him, Genesis 1:26
The likeness of God in man is spiritual. This is the Word of God about man in God's likeness, found in Ephesians 4:21-24,
"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 things that creepeth upon the earth."
This is the destiny of man envisioned by God. Man's likeness with God is not in the physical because God is Spirit; man is made of material, from the dust of the earth.The likeness of God in man is spiritual. This is the Word of God about man in God's likeness, found in Ephesians 4:21-24,
"If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:
That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness."
We can also read this in James 3:9,
We can also read this in James 3:9,
"Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the likeness of God."
GOD'S IMAGE
MAN'S ROLE IN GOD'S CREATION
GOD'S IMAGE
According to Ephesians 4:23-24, man was created after the likeness of God. He is created in righteousness and holiness.
The image of God means, "like God". But man is also given the freedom of choice. He was endowed with freedom of choice, man is not created like robots. After creating man, God put him in the best place. The best garden, the garden of Eden in Genesis 2:8,
"And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed."
Around that garden is a river, verse 10-15
MAN'S ROLE IN GOD'S CREATION
He is not only created in the likeness of God but he was also given privilege of doing the work of God. Genesis 2:10-15,
"And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that comaseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it."
This is God's destiny for man. He was created in the image of God; he was put in the garden, the best in the whole world, to be an overseer and co-worker of God, 1 Corinthians 3:9,
Moreover the Lord said in verse 16-17,
"And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But 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."
MAN'S FALL
Adam, the first man fell into sin. Man from the seed of Adam was sold to sin, from where he became a captive and cannot release himself from sin. He cannot overcome his carnal self unless he will return to God.
"For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not," - Romans 7:14,18
Man sold himself to sin and sin has power over him. He does not want sin, but man finds it impossible to have deliverance from sin. He cannot resist sin by himself. Sin is a kind of life seed that no good can come out of him (Romans 7:18).
Before the fall of man, the Lord was visiting them in the garden; the Lord was delighted to walk in the garden in the cool of the day, Genesis 3:8. In verse 9,
"And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?"
We know what happened next, they were afraid; they hid themselves from God because they were naked.
Although it is very clear that destiny of God for them is the best and the greatest, and knowing that they will always have fellowship with God, men still chose to follow Satan. Men because of the Tempter, made another choice; instead of abiding in the will of God for them they chose their own way, choosing Satan rather than God. Men rejected the destiny of God made for them. They have chosen the voice of Satan for their own selves.
This is what the Word of God says of how they fell to sin as they deliberately disobeyed.
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for good, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she tool of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat." - Genesis 3:1-6
Man and his wife did not adhere to the Word of God which should be obeyed for their own good, but instead they followed the way of Satan. They chose the voice of Satan as their own destiny.
This is the chosen way of man for himself, he left and deserted the destiny of God made for him. God's way for him was diverted by the temptations and deceits of Satan. This resulted in his fall.
Almost all the so-called Christian denominations recognize the great and awful fact of sin. Even if this account in Genesis is known, the problem of the fall of man and sin remains. The doctrine of the fall of man in relation to Christianity is not found in other religion or religious system. The moral character of God is seen in the Christians faith that no other teaching surpasses.
If we consider the very character of God and look at the doctrine of sin, we shall find it hard to reconcile the fact that God, being so perfect in moral, should ever allow sin to come unto the world. To some mind they are putting sin incompatible with God's moral standard.
Remembering that God has created man in His own image. One of the attributes of God is the power to choose; the power to act according to His own judgement; the same freedom of choice was given and endowed to man. Man is a free moral being who can choose to adhere to God or to reject Him. When man followed his way rather than what God wants him to be, this caused his fall.
Genesis tells how man fell into sin although sin was already in the world, because Satan exists and he is the author of sin from the beginning. The fall of man to sin was a choice insinuated by Satan. Man could have not sinned if he had remained in what has been instructed to him. But because he ignored the way of God, he chose his own destiny. Man was separated from God and lost the image of God. Instead of choosing the image of God, he chose the ways of Satan. Instead of choosing the way of life, he chose the way of death,
"for the wages of sin is death..." - Romans 6:23
Let us keep in mind that Adam and Eve were free moral agents. They used their liberty of choice and they voluntarily embraced the mind of Satan, for they were deceived. Their sin was like any other sin, it is a voluntary act of their own free will.
The first sin was the denial of the divine will, and the elevation of the will of man over the will of God; it was his own choice against the divine will. He disregarded the divine will and made his own way. It was indeed his choice.
Sin from the beginning until now is a positive disbelief in the Word of God, that he chose the word of Satan, rather than believing God.
In the wilderness, the same devise of Satan was offered to Christ, and yet Christ the second Adam, chose to go against Satan, and followed the will of God.
What happened in the fall of man?
Sin entered the world, therefore man died because of sin. It is the death of his soul and spirit, thus he will be destroyed in hell as a consequence of sin, Revelations 20:14-15.
Man has fallen to shame and curse, turning man away from the presence of God.
From the day that he was expelled from the garden, he has lived a life of hate and shame.This is man's destiny that he chose for himself.
Because of sin, all men regardless of their status are sinners before God. The sinfulness of man is because of the sinfulness of their first parents, Adam and Eve.
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned --
Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgement followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. - Romans 5:12,16 (NIV)
Now the whole world is under condemnation, (Romans 5:18), man is under the power of the spirit that is now working in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:3),
All men then became the children of the devil, John 8:44, and became captives of Satan. The entire nature of man was all in all, his mentality his morality, his spirituality and physical being were subjected to sin. Man chose his own destiny.
Now God in His mercy, gave man a second chance. He sent prophets,
"Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the LORD; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear." - 2 Chronicles 24:19
In the Old Testament God sent prophets, and He also sent his Son. But the world rejected Him even by His own fellowmen, the Jews. The Apostles sent by God was also rejected as they have rejected Christ.
"And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.". - Matthew 13:57-58
"And saying, if thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself." - Luke 23:37
God is so determined in his divine plan for man, and there will be who will repent (Luke 24:47). The God-fearing man will hear God's call to salvation and reconciliation, thru the Apostles (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).
"Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent." - Acts 13:26
God's destiny is rejected by man universally but for the elect, God will forgive them as they repent their sins and return to God.
This is God's destiny for man. He was created in the image of God; he was put in the garden, the best in the whole world, to be an overseer and co-worker of God, 1 Corinthians 3:9,
Moreover the Lord said in verse 16-17,
Moreover the Lord said in verse 16-17,
"And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But 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."
MAN'S FALL
MAN'S FALL
Adam, the first man fell into sin. Man from the seed of Adam was sold to sin, from where he became a captive and cannot release himself from sin. He cannot overcome his carnal self unless he will return to God.
"For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not," - Romans 7:14,18
Man sold himself to sin and sin has power over him. He does not want sin, but man finds it impossible to have deliverance from sin. He cannot resist sin by himself. Sin is a kind of life seed that no good can come out of him (Romans 7:18).
Before the fall of man, the Lord was visiting them in the garden; the Lord was delighted to walk in the garden in the cool of the day, Genesis 3:8. In verse 9,
"And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?"
We know what happened next, they were afraid; they hid themselves from God because they were naked.
Although it is very clear that destiny of God for them is the best and the greatest, and knowing that they will always have fellowship with God, men still chose to follow Satan. Men because of the Tempter, made another choice; instead of abiding in the will of God for them they chose their own way, choosing Satan rather than God. Men rejected the destiny of God made for them. They have chosen the voice of Satan for their own selves.
This is what the Word of God says of how they fell to sin as they deliberately disobeyed.
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for good, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she tool of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat." - Genesis 3:1-6
Man and his wife did not adhere to the Word of God which should be obeyed for their own good, but instead they followed the way of Satan. They chose the voice of Satan as their own destiny.
This is the chosen way of man for himself, he left and deserted the destiny of God made for him. God's way for him was diverted by the temptations and deceits of Satan. This resulted in his fall.
Almost all the so-called Christian denominations recognize the great and awful fact of sin. Even if this account in Genesis is known, the problem of the fall of man and sin remains. The doctrine of the fall of man in relation to Christianity is not found in other religion or religious system. The moral character of God is seen in the Christians faith that no other teaching surpasses.
If we consider the very character of God and look at the doctrine of sin, we shall find it hard to reconcile the fact that God, being so perfect in moral, should ever allow sin to come unto the world. To some mind they are putting sin incompatible with God's moral standard.
Remembering that God has created man in His own image. One of the attributes of God is the power to choose; the power to act according to His own judgement; the same freedom of choice was given and endowed to man. Man is a free moral being who can choose to adhere to God or to reject Him. When man followed his way rather than what God wants him to be, this caused his fall.
Genesis tells how man fell into sin although sin was already in the world, because Satan exists and he is the author of sin from the beginning. The fall of man to sin was a choice insinuated by Satan. Man could have not sinned if he had remained in what has been instructed to him. But because he ignored the way of God, he chose his own destiny. Man was separated from God and lost the image of God. Instead of choosing the image of God, he chose the ways of Satan. Instead of choosing the way of life, he chose the way of death,
"for the wages of sin is death..." - Romans 6:23
Let us keep in mind that Adam and Eve were free moral agents. They used their liberty of choice and they voluntarily embraced the mind of Satan, for they were deceived. Their sin was like any other sin, it is a voluntary act of their own free will.
The first sin was the denial of the divine will, and the elevation of the will of man over the will of God; it was his own choice against the divine will. He disregarded the divine will and made his own way. It was indeed his choice.
Sin from the beginning until now is a positive disbelief in the Word of God, that he chose the word of Satan, rather than believing God.
In the wilderness, the same devise of Satan was offered to Christ, and yet Christ the second Adam, chose to go against Satan, and followed the will of God.
What happened in the fall of man?
Sin entered the world, therefore man died because of sin. It is the death of his soul and spirit, thus he will be destroyed in hell as a consequence of sin, Revelations 20:14-15.
Man has fallen to shame and curse, turning man away from the presence of God.
From the day that he was expelled from the garden, he has lived a life of hate and shame.This is man's destiny that he chose for himself.
Because of sin, all men regardless of their status are sinners before God. The sinfulness of man is because of the sinfulness of their first parents, Adam and Eve.
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned --
Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgement followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. - Romans 5:12,16 (NIV)
Now the whole world is under condemnation, (Romans 5:18), man is under the power of the spirit that is now working in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:3),
All men then became the children of the devil, John 8:44, and became captives of Satan. The entire nature of man was all in all, his mentality his morality, his spirituality and physical being were subjected to sin. Man chose his own destiny.
Now God in His mercy, gave man a second chance. He sent prophets,
"Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the LORD; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear." - 2 Chronicles 24:19
In the Old Testament God sent prophets, and He also sent his Son. But the world rejected Him even by His own fellowmen, the Jews. The Apostles sent by God was also rejected as they have rejected Christ.
"And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.". - Matthew 13:57-58
"And saying, if thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself." - Luke 23:37
God is so determined in his divine plan for man, and there will be who will repent (Luke 24:47). The God-fearing man will hear God's call to salvation and reconciliation, thru the Apostles (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).
"Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent." - Acts 13:26
God's destiny is rejected by man universally but for the elect, God will forgive them as they repent their sins and return to God.
We know what happened next, they were afraid; they hid themselves from God because they were naked.
Although it is very clear that destiny of God for them is the best and the greatest, and knowing that they will always have fellowship with God, men still chose to follow Satan. Men because of the Tempter, made another choice; instead of abiding in the will of God for them they chose their own way, choosing Satan rather than God. Men rejected the destiny of God made for them. They have chosen the voice of Satan for their own selves.
Although it is very clear that destiny of God for them is the best and the greatest, and knowing that they will always have fellowship with God, men still chose to follow Satan. Men because of the Tempter, made another choice; instead of abiding in the will of God for them they chose their own way, choosing Satan rather than God. Men rejected the destiny of God made for them. They have chosen the voice of Satan for their own selves.
This is what the Word of God says of how they fell to sin as they deliberately disobeyed.
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for good, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she tool of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat." - Genesis 3:1-6
Man and his wife did not adhere to the Word of God which should be obeyed for their own good, but instead they followed the way of Satan. They chose the voice of Satan as their own destiny.
This is the chosen way of man for himself, he left and deserted the destiny of God made for him. God's way for him was diverted by the temptations and deceits of Satan. This resulted in his fall.
This is the chosen way of man for himself, he left and deserted the destiny of God made for him. God's way for him was diverted by the temptations and deceits of Satan. This resulted in his fall.
Almost all the so-called Christian denominations recognize the great and awful fact of sin. Even if this account in Genesis is known, the problem of the fall of man and sin remains. The doctrine of the fall of man in relation to Christianity is not found in other religion or religious system. The moral character of God is seen in the Christians faith that no other teaching surpasses.
If we consider the very character of God and look at the doctrine of sin, we shall find it hard to reconcile the fact that God, being so perfect in moral, should ever allow sin to come unto the world. To some mind they are putting sin incompatible with God's moral standard.
Remembering that God has created man in His own image. One of the attributes of God is the power to choose; the power to act according to His own judgement; the same freedom of choice was given and endowed to man. Man is a free moral being who can choose to adhere to God or to reject Him. When man followed his way rather than what God wants him to be, this caused his fall.
Genesis tells how man fell into sin although sin was already in the world, because Satan exists and he is the author of sin from the beginning. The fall of man to sin was a choice insinuated by Satan. Man could have not sinned if he had remained in what has been instructed to him. But because he ignored the way of God, he chose his own destiny. Man was separated from God and lost the image of God. Instead of choosing the image of God, he chose the ways of Satan. Instead of choosing the way of life, he chose the way of death,
Let us keep in mind that Adam and Eve were free moral agents. They used their liberty of choice and they voluntarily embraced the mind of Satan, for they were deceived. Their sin was like any other sin, it is a voluntary act of their own free will.
The first sin was the denial of the divine will, and the elevation of the will of man over the will of God; it was his own choice against the divine will. He disregarded the divine will and made his own way. It was indeed his choice.
Sin from the beginning until now is a positive disbelief in the Word of God, that he chose the word of Satan, rather than believing God.
In the wilderness, the same devise of Satan was offered to Christ, and yet Christ the second Adam, chose to go against Satan, and followed the will of God.
What happened in the fall of man?
Sin entered the world, therefore man died because of sin. It is the death of his soul and spirit, thus he will be destroyed in hell as a consequence of sin, Revelations 20:14-15.
Man has fallen to shame and curse, turning man away from the presence of God.
From the day that he was expelled from the garden, he has lived a life of hate and shame.This is man's destiny that he chose for himself.
Because of sin, all men regardless of their status are sinners before God. The sinfulness of man is because of the sinfulness of their first parents, Adam and Eve.
Now the whole world is under condemnation, (Romans 5:18), man is under the power of the spirit that is now working in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:3),
All men then became the children of the devil, John 8:44, and became captives of Satan. The entire nature of man was all in all, his mentality his morality, his spirituality and physical being were subjected to sin. Man chose his own destiny.
Now God in His mercy, gave man a second chance. He sent prophets,
In the Old Testament God sent prophets, and He also sent his Son. But the world rejected Him even by His own fellowmen, the Jews. The Apostles sent by God was also rejected as they have rejected Christ.
God's destiny is rejected by man universally but for the elect, God will forgive them as they repent their sins and return to God.
Genesis tells how man fell into sin although sin was already in the world, because Satan exists and he is the author of sin from the beginning. The fall of man to sin was a choice insinuated by Satan. Man could have not sinned if he had remained in what has been instructed to him. But because he ignored the way of God, he chose his own destiny. Man was separated from God and lost the image of God. Instead of choosing the image of God, he chose the ways of Satan. Instead of choosing the way of life, he chose the way of death,
"for the wages of sin is death..." - Romans 6:23
Let us keep in mind that Adam and Eve were free moral agents. They used their liberty of choice and they voluntarily embraced the mind of Satan, for they were deceived. Their sin was like any other sin, it is a voluntary act of their own free will.
The first sin was the denial of the divine will, and the elevation of the will of man over the will of God; it was his own choice against the divine will. He disregarded the divine will and made his own way. It was indeed his choice.
Sin from the beginning until now is a positive disbelief in the Word of God, that he chose the word of Satan, rather than believing God.
In the wilderness, the same devise of Satan was offered to Christ, and yet Christ the second Adam, chose to go against Satan, and followed the will of God.
What happened in the fall of man?
Sin entered the world, therefore man died because of sin. It is the death of his soul and spirit, thus he will be destroyed in hell as a consequence of sin, Revelations 20:14-15.
Man has fallen to shame and curse, turning man away from the presence of God.
From the day that he was expelled from the garden, he has lived a life of hate and shame.This is man's destiny that he chose for himself.
Because of sin, all men regardless of their status are sinners before God. The sinfulness of man is because of the sinfulness of their first parents, Adam and Eve.
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned --
Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgement followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. - Romans 5:12,16 (NIV)
Now the whole world is under condemnation, (Romans 5:18), man is under the power of the spirit that is now working in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:3),
All men then became the children of the devil, John 8:44, and became captives of Satan. The entire nature of man was all in all, his mentality his morality, his spirituality and physical being were subjected to sin. Man chose his own destiny.
Now God in His mercy, gave man a second chance. He sent prophets,
"Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the LORD; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear." - 2 Chronicles 24:19
In the Old Testament God sent prophets, and He also sent his Son. But the world rejected Him even by His own fellowmen, the Jews. The Apostles sent by God was also rejected as they have rejected Christ.
"And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.". - Matthew 13:57-58
"And saying, if thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself." - Luke 23:37
God is so determined in his divine plan for man, and there will be who will repent (Luke 24:47). The God-fearing man will hear God's call to salvation and reconciliation, thru the Apostles (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).
"Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent." - Acts 13:26
God's destiny is rejected by man universally but for the elect, God will forgive them as they repent their sins and return to God.
