Series 1
Lesson 5: Who is the Promised Savior?

Dear Friend,

In our last lesson we saw how Adam and Eve disobeyed God. Because they disobeyed God, they had to leave the beautiful Garden of Eden. But God still loved Adam and Eve and He promised that one day He would send a Savior.

Who is the promised Savior? The promised Savior is the Lord Jesus. The Bible says, "You shall call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins." (Matthew 1:21)

Before Jesus came, God told His people to bring lambs and offer them as sacrifices for their sins.

Each person had to offer a lamb for his own sins. That lamb died for that person's sins.

What was God teaching them? He was teaching them that something must die for sin. The Bible says, "The wages of sin is death ...." (Romans 6:23)

God was also teaching them that one day His Son would come to be our Savior. He would die on the cross for the sins of the whole world.

Jesus is the Promised Savior

For hundreds of years God's people offered lambs for their sins as God had told them to do. They knew that something had to die for their sins. They were glad that God had allowed the lambs to be the sacrifices for their sin. But all the time they were watching and waiting for the Savior which God had promised.

Then one day an angel appeared to a pure, young woman named Mary and told her that she would be the mother of the promised Savior. The angel said, "You shall call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins." (Matthew 1:21)

The name "Jesus" means "Savior." A Savior is one who saves you from something. Jesus is the Savior who saves us from our sins.

The Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem. He had a mother like any other baby. But the Lord Jesus did not have a human father such as you and I have. Who was His father? His father was God! Jesus is truly the Son of God.

As a child Jesus was obedient to His parents. The Bible says, "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man." (Luke 2:52)

When Jesus became a man, He began to preach and to teach. One day John the Baptist saw Jesus. John said, "Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world."
(John 1:29)

John called Jesus "the Lamb of God" because Jesus was going to die for the sins of the world. Jesus is the only One who could die for our sins because He was pure and holy and He never sinned.

Jesus did many mighty works. The Bible says that He was "anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power," and that He "went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil...." (Acts 10:38)

One time Jesus was with His disciples in a boat. Jesus fell asleep in the boat. As He slept, a great storm arose. The waves were so high that the disciples thought the boat would sink. They woke Jesus, saying, "Lord, save us: we perish."

Jesus spoke to the wind and the waves saying, "Peace, be still." The wind and the waves became calm. The disciples were amazed and said, "What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!"

Jesus had power over Satan and his evil spirits. He made evil spirits come out of people. He healed the sick. He made the blind to see, the deaf to hear, and the lame to walk.

The Lord Jesus even raised people from the dead. One day a funeral procession passed by Jesus. All the people were crying. The only son of a widow had died and they were going to bury him. This poor mother had no husband and now her only son had died.

Jesus spoke to the woman and said, "Do not weep." Then He said to her son who was dead, "Young man, I say to you, arise." The young man sat up and began talking. The people praised God saying, "God has visited His people."

Why Jesus Came

The Lord Jesus did not come into this world just to heal the sick and to do other mighty miracles. He came to be our Savior. He came to die on the cross for our sins.

Now we come to the saddest but most wonderful event that ever took place in this world—the time when Jesus suffered and died for our sins.

Satan stirred up wicked men who plotted against Jesus to put Him to death. They bound Jesus with strong cords and took Him to Pilate, the Roman governor. They told lies about Jesus and accused Him of many wrong things.

Pilate told his soldiers to take Jesus out and beat Him. His shirt was taken off. He was beaten with a leather whip. Wicked men took turns hitting Him in the face. Some even spit in His face as they made fun of Him.

Then they made a crown for Jesus — not a crown of gold but a crown of thorns. They took Jesus to a place called Calvary and they crucified Him.

His hands and His feet were nailed to the cross. Two thieves were crucified at the same time, one on each side of Jesus. These two men were being put to death because they had done many bad things. But Jesus had never done anything wrong. He was dying for our sins.

As Jesus hung on the cross, He could see the people who had beaten Him. He could see those who had spit in His face. He could see those who had nailed Him to the cross. He loved them in spite of all they had done and He prayed for them. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." Jesus prayed for His enemies. He wanted them to be saved.

One of the thieves who was crucified with Jesus believed on Him. He trusted the Lord Jesus as His Savior. When this man died, he went to be with the Lord Jesus in Heaven. The other man did not believe in Jesus. He did not go to Heaven. He was lost forever.

Now we come to a very important question: Why did Jesus die on the cross? He died for our sins.

The Bible says that God took all our sins and laid them on His Son, the Lord Jesus. All our lies, our disobedience, our bad talk, our temper, our selfishness — all our sins were laid on Jesus. This is why He died. The Bible says,

"...the LORD has laid on Him (Jesus) the iniquity (sin) of us all." Isaiah 53:6

What is the most important thing we have learned in this lesson? It is this: Jesus, the Son of God, died for our sins. He died for my sins, and He died for your sins.

Do you know why the Lord Jesus gave His life on the cross for you? He gave His life for you because He loved you. The Apostle Paul said,

"...the Son of God... loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20

You can say this too. Say it to yourself right now — "The Son of God loved me and gave Himself for me."

The Lord Jesus not only died for our sins, but He rose from the dead on the third day. He is our living Savior!

When you believe on the Lord Jesus and trust Him as your Savior, God forgives you of all your sins and makes you His child. You are saved forever. The Bible says,

"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved...." Acts 16:31