About Humanity
A. Human Value
1. Created in God’s Image
· Genesis 1: 26-27: “Then 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 birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
2. God’s Care for Humans
· Psalm 8: 4-5: “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.”
· Matthew 10: 29-31: “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
3. Precious to God
· Isaiah 43: 4: “Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life.”
· Psalm 139: 13-14: “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
1. Equal Worth Before God
· Galatians 3: 28: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
· Acts 17: 26: “And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place.”
2. Crowned with Honor
· Psalm 8: 6-8: “You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.”
· Job 31: 15: “Did not he who made me in the womb make him? And did not one fashion us in the womb?”
3. God’s Concern for Justice and Respect for Others
· Proverbs 22: 2: “The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the maker of them all.”
· James 3: 9-10: “With it [the tongue] we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.”
1. To Glorify God
· Isaiah 43: 7: “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”
· 1 Corinthians 10: 31: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
2. To Reflect God’s Image
· Genesis 1: 28: “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’”
· Ephesians 2: 10: “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
3. To Worship and Serve God
· Micah 6: 8: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
· Ecclesiastes 12: 13: “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”
4. To Enjoy Relationship with God
· John 15: 5: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
· Revelation 21: 3: “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.’”
D. Free Will and Moral Responsibility
1. Humans are Created with Free Will
· Genesis 2: 16-17: “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’”
· Deuteronomy 30: 19: “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live.”
· Joshua 24: 15: “And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
2. Humans are Accountable for Their Choices
· Ezekiel 18: 20: “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.”
· Romans 14: 12: “So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.”
· 2 Corinthians 5: 10:”For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.”
3. God Desires Righteous Choices
· Micah 6: 8:”He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
· Isaiah 1: 18-20: “‘Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’”
4. Free Will in Salvation
· John 3: 16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
· Revelation 22: 17: “The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.”
· Matthew 11: 28: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
5. The Struggle Between Free Will and Sin
· Romans 7: 15-19: “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.”
· Galatians 5: 16-17: “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.”
6. God’s Sovereignty and Human Free Will
· Proverbs 16: 9: “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
· Philippians 2: 12-13: “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”
7. Moral Responsibility and Consequences
· Galatians 6: 7-8: “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”
· Deuteronomy 11: 26-28: “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God.”
· James 1: 13-15: “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”
E. The Human body, the Soul, and Life and Death
1. The Body: Physical and Temporary
· Genesis 2: 7: “Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.”
· Genesis 3: 19: “By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
· 2 Corinthians 5: 1: “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”
· Psalm 103: 14: “For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.”
2. The Soul
· Ecclesiastes 12: 7: “And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.”
· Matthew 10: 28: “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (NOTE: Jesus says the soul can be destroyed too)
· Luke 23: 46: “Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!’ And having said this, he breathed his last.”
· 2 Corinthians 5: 8: “Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.”
· Philippians 1: 23-24: “I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.”
3. Life of the Body and Soul Together
· Job 33: 4: “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
· Matthew 16: 26: “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”
· James 2: 26: “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”
· Zechariah 12: 1: “Thus declares the Lord, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him.”
· 1 Corinthians 15: 42-44: “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.”
· Revelation 6: 9: “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne.”
4. Eternal Destiny of the Body and Soul
· Daniel 12: 2: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”
· John 5: 28-29: “Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”
· Revelation 20: 12-13: “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
Visão Bíblica 