Book of Romans
3-7-2012 Vol. 6 Part 17
Psalms 62:1-12 A Psalm of David. Truly my soul silently waits for God; From Him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved. How long will you attack a man? You shall be slain, all of you, Like a leaning wall and a tottering fence. They only consult to cast him down from his high position; They delight in lies; They bless with their mouth, But they curse inwardly. My soul, wait silently for God alone, For my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, And my refuge, is in God. Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Surely men of low degree are a vapor, Men of high degree are a lie; If they are weighed on the scales, They are altogether lighter than vapor. Do not trust in oppression, Nor vainly hope in robbery; If riches increase, Do not set your heart on them. God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God. Also to You, O Lord, belongs mercy; For You render to each one according to his work. Father we praise you, we give you all the glory. We thank you for all that you do for us. We ask that your love and grace super abound within us and shine forth. We seek your face and ask for your love and guidance in all we do. In Jesus name we pray! Amen!
Romans 5:12-21 NKJV
This lesson explains the foundations of salvation itself, based on our identification with Adam in his death, and with Christ in His life. In these verses Paul presents all of mankind under the federal headship of two men, Adam and Jesus Christ. We will learn that man’s connection with Adam involved him with death and man’s connection with Jesus involves him with life.
12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—
Sin entered the world through one man, meaning Adam. When this happened, sin was transferred to all mankind. Did you know that the name Adam means, “mankind”! Did Adam invent sin? No, Satan was the original violator of God, but through Adam sin entered the world. Adam was the doorway for Satan to introduce sin to the world. Think of it this way. When sin entered the world through Adam it was like sin became part of Adams DNA, which has been handed down from generation to generation. Adam and Eve didn’t know what sin was, but along comes Satan and he persuades them to eat the forbidden fruit which God commanded them not to eat. Satan knew what would happen and therefore persuaded them to eat it.
Have you ever thought about how much God hates sin? Ponder this thought for a while. This one little sin of eating the fruit that God told them not to eat resulted in all of mankind being condemned with the sin nature. This sin wasn’t murder, adultery, or stealing like most people compare their actions to when asked if they are good. They never say no I’m a bad person because I lie, gossip, or use God’s name without meaning. Man compares his actions with the actions of other mankind to measure his goodness instead of using God’s standards. Just stop and think about this little sin as man views it, and then think about how God viewed it, and what the results were. Then think about what you say and do.
With this inheritance came death, two types of death, physical and spiritual, which Paul talks about in the following verses. Physical death meaning we will not live in this form forever, but we could have if sin wouldn’t have entered through Adam. Spiritual death meaning sin has separated us from God. So death is 100% guaranteed with no exceptions. The question being is, “Do you want to die once or twice”? The saying goes like this; born once (physical) and die twice (physical & spiritual; result Hell), or born twice (physical & spiritual) and die once (physical; result Heaven). A person does not become a sinner because he commits sins; he commits sins because he is a sinner! Through Adam we die, but through Jesus we live. 1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 1 Corinthians 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 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.
These two verses are very difficult to understand. I have read numerous commentaries and here is what Paul is saying. Through Adam sin came into existence and through Adams sin death came into existence. Even though there were no laws to convict people of wrong doing from Adam to Moses they were sinning and death happened, both physical and spiritual. They had no idea they were sinning because they had no direct command from God telling them they were doing wrong, unlike the command God gave Adam. Verses 13 could leave one to believe that sinner that died between Adam and Moses era went to Heaven, but that’s not the case here. There were no laws, but there was the law of nature. In Romans chapter one it was discussed. This is what condemned the individuals to a spiritual death. Romans 1:18-20 NLT But God shows His anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. 19 They know the truth about God because He has made it obvious to them. 20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. So was anyone saved spiritually? Yes that was also discussed recently because God declared Abraham as righteous. Abraham and others lived by faith, and knew right from wrong because of natures laws.
15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man's offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. 17 For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) 18 Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous.
Verses 15-19 are comparing what Adam did compared to what Jesus did. We are linked to both as human beings in that we inherited the sin nature from Adam without choice, but we can obtain the free gift of grace through Jesus with choice. Through one many have died and through one salvation is possible. These verses are pointing out that the disobedience of one man caused death for many, judgment and condemnation, with the end result of eternal pain and suffering. But God’s gift of grace abounds much more over sin that results in justification and everlasting life, due to one man’s obedience. God’s love and grace can wipe away any sin. No sin is greater than God’s grace. God’s grace is a free gift if we come to Him and place our faith in Him. Jesus defeated sin and death for us. This is something to shout about, praise God almighty. 2 Timothy 1:10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
So every man is a sinner against God, stands condemned by the law, and needs pardon. The moral law showed that many thoughts, tempers, words, and actions were sinful, and left uncheck, sin abounds. Discovering our sinfulness we all of a sudden realize how wretched we are. It is like cleaning a room after dark and thinking it is clean, but only to discover in the morning with the rays of sunshine, we see all the particle of dust and dirt. Or as a sinner, separated from God, you find yourself standing in a deeep dark valley filled with underbrush, fallen trees, thorns, etc. You are constantly tripping and falling as you try to navigate and live your life. You can’t see well enough on your own to find a way out. At some point you come to realize just how bad you are in God’s eyes and when you realize that and ask Jesus into your life, the ravine is filled with the light that emits from God’s holiness. Now you can see to get out of that valley of darkness with God’s gift of grace, and once Jesus lifts you into God's presence, you are free to obey out of love, not necessity, and through God's power, not your own. You know that if you stumble as you climb out, you will not fall back to the bottom. Instead, you will be caught and held in Jesus Christ's loving arms.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."
Bill
Last Week’s Trivia: We have made a comparison between Abraham and Isaac representing God and Jesus. What about Jacob and Joseph?
Answer: The answer lies starting in Genesis Chapter 37 & 42. It is very evident that Jacob loved Joseph a great deal more than his other sons. The love mentioned resembles God’s love of Jesus his son. Jacob thought Joseph was dead, but only to discover years later he was alive. Joseph provided life to his father and brothers; Jesus provides us eternal life.
This week’s Trivia: There are many messages from the follow verse, but one in particular comes to mind reflecting a message of a previous lesson. Can you figure it out? Genesis 39:5 So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the LORD was on all that he had in the house and in the field.
| Verse List: |
| · Psalm 51:5 |
| · Psalm 58:3 |
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