Sept. 26 | The Role of the Sinner in Receiving the Gospel

Series | The Heart of Soul Winning

Scripture | Romans 10:9, “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Lesson 26 | The Role of the Sinner in Receiving the Gospel

The role of the sinner is to freely accept the universal gift of salvation and confess Jesus as Lord.  Why? Because God has given all men the right to choose to accept Him or reject Him, Joshua 24:15.  God desires all mankind to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) however, James said in James 4:8, “Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”  Therefore, when sinners hear the gospel preached they have a free choice to either come to God and be saved or remain in rebellion and condemnation. 

Some theologians have falsely claimed that the sinner has no real role in their salvation because whomever God wants to save, He will save by irresistibly drawing him to salvation.  They deny that man has a genuine free will or a real choice in the matter- they teach that the choice of salvation is totally and solely dependent on God. According to them God chooses to lovingly save some and willing damn others. 

This kind of “fatalistic” thinking makes the gospel a charade because they claim that the sinner is so dead in their sins that they can’t even choose to have faith to believe in Christ, thus, they have to be “dragged” by the Spirit into believing in Jesus.  However, this is the exact opposite of the clear and practical teachings of the Bible.  Not to mention that this horrible belief system also states that Jesus didn’t die for the sins of the whole world, but only limited His atoning sacrifice for the “elect” and “chosen.” God have mercy! 

This kind of man centered philosophical thinking can easily corrupt the character of God from being a loving and merciful Creator to being a merciless dictator who joyfully dams His own creation simply because it pleases His sovereign will!

On the other hand, Jesus clearly taught that God loved the whole world (John 3:16) and John in his first epistle boldly stated that Jesus, “Is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world,” 1 John 2:2. Therefore, I praise God for Jesus’ great universal love and sacrifice!

As a result, when the message of God’s grace and salvation is preached to the sinner all they have to do is willing choose to obey Jesus and declare Him the Lord (or God) of their lives.  This simple act of obedience brings them from death unto life, from lost to found, and from a child of wrath to a born again child of God!

In light of God’s great love let us preach the glorious truth of the gospel to sinners having full assurance that Jesus loves the whole wide world and desires everyone to be saved and confess Him as Lord!

Reflection | Do you believe God loves the whole world and desires everyone who hears the gospel to be saved?

Action | (1) Repent if you have ever believed in the false teachings of Christian fatalism. (2) Preach the gospel to all people believing that God desires to save everyone. (3) Lastly, teach the lost to freely put their faith in Jesus and confess Him as the Lord of their lives.  

One Year Reading Plan (Optional) | Isaiah 48:12-50:11, Ephesians 4:17-32, Psalm 69:1-18, & Proverbs 24:5-6. Click here to read online.