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Sermon #5692

What is Man?

A Sermon on 1 Peter 2:9-10

Originally preached March 18, 1962

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Scripture

1 Peter 2:9-10 ESV KJV
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you …

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Sermon Description

People are not highly-developed animals. Neither are they enlightened products of evolution. In this sermon on 1 Peter 2:9–10 titled “What is Man?” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains how God made humanity. In the Bible, humanity is made in the image of God, naturally upright. Yet they chose to sin, and are now condemned as a slave to sin and immorality. This is why the world is filled with so much wickedness; this is why there is war and suffering. It all goes back to the sinful nature of humankind. What hope is there for sinful humanity? The answer is found in God’s free gift of salvation. God sent His Son to die in the place of sinners, for all those that believe in Jesus Christ. God sent Jesus into the world because He loved the world, not because of anything in it. The gospel calls all to forsake their sinful ways and flee from darkness. For it is only the gospel that gives people truth concerning themselves, the world, and God. God commands all to flee from themselves and come to the light of Jesus Christ.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. People by nature are in a state of darkness.
  2. Darkness refers to a way of life characterized by malice, guile, hypocrisy, envy, and evil speaking.
  3. Darkness leads to hopelessness and despair. People sit in darkness without hope.
  4. The cause of darkness is ignorance, primarily ignorance of God and of one's self.
  5. Some see humans as merely animals, leading to irresponsibility. Others see humans as purely intellectual, ignoring human desires and instincts. The truth is humans are created in God's image with a body, soul, and spirit.
  6. The world's problems stem from ignorance of God, self, history, and spiritual forces. The devil manipulates humans against God.
  7. God has abandoned the world to its sinful devices, allowing the consequences of sin to multiply. The world is under God's wrath.
  8. God sent Jesus, the light of the world, to bring us out of darkness. In Jesus we see God's glory, love, mercy, and compassion.
  9. Jesus endured living in a sinful world and died to bear our punishment so we can live righteously. He makes us God's people.
  10. We must look to Jesus, the light of life, to escape darkness.

Other Sermons

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.