Day 197

Isaiah 18-23. “Saved from the Penalty of Sin”

         Our theme for the week is salvation.  There are a number of different topics related to salvation that we are going to look at.  My prayer is that, by the end of the week, you will be rejoicing even more in the salvation that we have in Christ. 

         Judgment, Judgment, Judgment.  Five chapters of judgment.  Judgment is not a pretty thing to look at or encounter or even to think about.  However, it is an important part of who God is.  Judgment is God’s reaction or response to man’s sin and rebelliousness and, as the verse above indicates, the judgment or penalty for that sin is death.
         This is where the need for salvation comes in.  It is because, on our own, we stand before God condemned or judged in our sin.  This salvation I speak of today is the first level or primary experience of salvation in that we are saved from the penalty of sin.  We experience or will experience salvation on two other levels, which we will discuss later in the week.
         This experience of being saved from the penalty of sin is often what we think of when we talk about being saved.  It is in this salvation that comes by faith in Christ that we experience a regeneration of life and an adoption into the family of God, becoming co-heirs with Jesus.

General Questions for each day:
Summarize the day’s Bible passage in your own words.
What thoughts, actions, attitudes or beliefs are addressed in the passage?
How is the Holy Spirit leading you to apply this passage to your life today?