Romans 3:10-12: as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” (ref Ps. 14, 53)
Anyone that is “righteous” and “good” in scripture, it was gifted to them, accredited to them by God. They, themselves didn’t make themselves ‘good’
Noah? Gen. 6:8 Noah “Found” favor in the eyes of God. He didn't earn it. God chose him and accredited to him favor (unmerited favor = grace)
Abraham? Gen 15:6 “he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
Paul, biblical author? 1 Tim. 1:15 “worst sinner” (present tense)
WE, humans, are not the authority of Goodness
By claiming to be a good person and do good works outside of Christ, is placing yourself higher than Noah, Abraham, and the Apostle Paul who wrote 30% of the Bible; and placing yourself as equal to God, who is the authority of all that is good. Are you God? No.
Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Every imperfect corrupted breath we take, as a sinner committing sins, we earn the wage of sin which is complete death. Not just a coming physical death, but we are already spiritually dead as well.
God has judged the wage for sin and he has declared the judgment of death for the sinner.
Eph 2:1: And you were dead in the trespasses and sins.
Because of our natural sinful state, we are/were spiritually dead in our sins
Because we are dead, we can not even “see” the kingdom of God without spiritual life: John 3:7
So, how do you know you have/had a debt of sin judgment against you? But, how do you even know what sin is?
Who/what causes you to sin?
Satan, demons?
Gen 3:6: So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the [her] eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make [her] one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
Eve can only blame herself.
Satan is called “the tempter” (1 Thes. 3:5)
God?
James 1:13: 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.
Can’t blame God for being tempted and falling into sin.
Is temptation sin?
Matt. 4:1: Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
Mark 1:13: And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.
If Jesus can be attacked by temptation and not sin, we know that temptation itself is not sin. We can resist temptation and not fall into sin.
Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Every imperfect corrupted breath we take, as a sinner committing sins, we earn the wage of sin which is complete death. Not just a physical death, but we are spiritually dead too.
God has judged the wage for sin and he has declared the judgment of death for the sinner.
The next thing that comes after judgment, is sentencing. Everyone, all of us, have already been found guilty of sin. Christ is coming to judge the world and impose the sentence for that judgment.
Before coming to know Christ and receiving the gift of faith; WE ALL would have crucified Jesus too.
Acts 2:22-23,36: “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men… Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
They didn’t physically kill Jesus with their own hands. Some of them probably didn’t even see Jesus on the cross. Yet, they are counted with all those who did; all sinners crucified Christ because that’s why Jesus came– to pay off their wage/debt of sin.
Our hearts testify against us that we are sinners. Our imperfect lives, thoughts, and deeds in the past, present, and future testify against us that we are sinners. God himself reveals and exposes that we are sinners through his righteous law by our inability to perfectly keep his law. And the just and perfect consequence for our sin is complete eternal death.