Man sinned and remained at enmity with God. That was his great mistake, because instead of repenting and seeking the Lord to confess his sins and ask for forgiveness, Adam chose to cover himself with leaves and hide among the trees. He did not come forward until God called him out of his hiding place and asked him if he had eaten the forbidden fruit. Adam confessed (Genesis 3)!

After hearing his confession, God began to prepare humanity for the coming of the Savior (Genesis 3:15). Meanwhile, He provided a way to save a generation of godly people, for death reigned in this world that lies in the power of the evil one: Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. (Romans 5.14).

The road to redemption would be long, full of ups and downs. The devil would do everything possible to prevent the coming of the Messiah, for he wanted to keep people bound to sin and lead them to eternal suffering. However, Satan knows that God is not to be trifled with. Our heavenly Father sent us His Son so that we might believe in His sacrifice on the cross. This work revoked the eternal death sentence, our separation from the Creator. Watch and pray!

The Law of Moses was not God's best for man, but since there was still a long time before Christ would be born, it would help those who strove to obey its requirements. Thus, until the coming of Jesus, the Mosaic Law was in force, in addition to the doctrine of the Prophets and the Psalms. It was a preparation for the Gospel—the Good News—that the Messiah Himself would bring. The best was yet to come!

Jesus brought Truth and grace, so that those who abide in Him would never be condemned, but forgiven (John 1:17). Under the Law, there was still no mention of atonement for sins, because the blood of bulls and sheep did not remove sin or purify anyone from guilt (Hebrews 10:1-10). Those who died under the old Covenant, believing that the Messiah would come, were taken to Abraham's bosom, but those who resisted the divine plan were taken to Hades, the grave, and were not saved (Luke 16:19-31).

When Jesus died, He crossed the “wall” of separation, going to the place of the dead who were waiting for His coming, in order to announce that He had defeated Satan, stripped the hosts of Hell of the authority stolen from Adam, with which they oppressed us. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. (Colossians 2.15). Since then, grace and Truth have prevailed in the world, for the Lord Himself brought them!

This is the message to be preached to all people. Without this information about spiritual reality, they become merely religious, and because they do not believe in what Jesus did for them, they will go to eternal perdition. It is urgent that we proclaim the Truth!

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares