In Christianity, salvation (also called deliverance or redemption) is the saving of human beings from sin and its consequences—which include death and separation from God—by Christ's death and resurrection, and the justification entailed by this salvation.
The idea of Jesus' death as an atonement for human sin was recorded in the Christian Bible and was elaborated in Paul's epistles and in the Gospels. Paul saw the faithful redeemed by participation in Jesus' death and rising. Early Christians regarded themselves as partaking in a new covenant with God, open to both Jews and Gentiles, through the sacrificial death and subsequent exaltation of Jesus Christ. (Wikipedia)
To a layman, a number of questions arise. What is sin? how we were separated from God? How we were to die? Why the death and resurrection of Jesus was necessary for us? Etc. All these need to be explained so that the entire gamut of salvation is understood from the right perspective. Let us start at the beginning. When God created Adam and Eve, He gave them a simple law. Genesis 2:16 “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”
God put the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil to give the first man and woman a free will and to exercise their choice. They were to either obey God or disobey Him. God permitted the first couple to do everything except eat from the Tree of Knowledge. This is because if that could not be the case, they probably would just be robots doing what God has programmed them to do. This shows that God created man to be a free being, to be able to make decisions and choose the way to follow. The Tree played an essential role in allowing a man to have free will. With this solitary Law, life started in the Garden of Eden. Tragically this law was breached. Eve first and thereafter Adam ate the forbidden fruit.
The scriptures teaches us that sin is the transgression of law. I John 3:4 “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” Further the Lord had said that if you eat the fruit, in other words if you are disobedient, then you shall die. By saying this, God also defined the penalty of sin. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Apart from being doomed to die, they were turned out of the Garden of Eden.
A trail of lamentable events ensued after eating the forbidden fruit. The sin was in disobeying God’s command. The eating of the fruit was an act of disobedience. Adam and Eve gained personal knowledge of evil. They knew only what was good, but now they had the contrasting experience of the evil and of disobedience and the guilt and shame that came with it. Further, the robe of righteousness covering them was taken away. For the first time, they felt shame. They were made immortal but after sinning, they became mortal.
Dr Ashwin Drummond
Laddertoheaven.co.in