Lesson 3: A Humanitarian to an Evil World
Go Deeper
Study Guide Pages 19-26
More Key Bible Verses
Read Genesis 6-9.
Genesis chapters 6-9 recount the story of Noah and the flood. The account begins with the depraved state of all of humanity. Notice how God sees the evil in man’s heart both before and after the flood. Did you know that rainbows are a loving sign from God?
Read and study the following quotes from “A Humanitarian to an Evil World” chapter 3 of God—The Ultimate Humanitarian.
Although most of us would admit that sin and evil are all around us, we are less inclined to acknowledge that sin and evil are also in us.
Every human is born with a depraved heart. It is not morally neutral. It is not inclined towards the good. It is evil. Not just weak and frail. Not just prone to harmless and minor faults. The divine verdict stands: the heart is evil. It’s not just partially evil either. The Lord said every inclination is evil. He didn’t single out well-formed thoughts of mayhem and violence. He spoke of inclinations – passing whims and fleeting thoughts. Neither did he use the word “some.” He said “every inclination is evil.” The human heart is pure evil.
God—The Ultimate Humanitarian, 20
Because of the sin and evil in us, humanity cannot be perfect now or ever. Thankfully there is one who is perfect for us, and he gives us his perfection to us as our perfection.
No one can achieve perfection themselves. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Therefore God acted. His Son became human and lived a perfect life. Every one of Jesus’ thoughts and actions was perfectly in line with God’s law. Incredibly Jesus didn’t do this for himself. He acted on behalf of all people. He lived, not so much as our example, but as our substitute. Examples show us what we have to do. Substitutes do it for us. Jesus lived to do for us what we couldn’t do.
God—The Ultimate Humanitarian, 23
More Questions to Consider
- God’s observations of the human race, both before the flood (Genesis 6:5) and after it (Genesis 8:21), was “that every inclination/imagination of the human heart is evil.” How do we see evidence of that truth in the world before the flood, after the flood, and today? (Look back at Genesis 6-9 and especially what happened at the end of chapter 9.)
- Although most of us would admit that sin and evil are all around us, we are less inclined to acknowledge that sin and evil are also in us. Why is this the case?
- Why was it necessary for Jesus to be more than an example for us? Why did he need to be a substitute for us? Why do we have a hard time accepting Jesus as our complete substitute?
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