ROMANS CONTINUED

We left Chapter Five at verse 10:

Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

• We seen that our future salvation from God's wrath is secure
• The Book of Romans opened up with the mention of a sentence of death upon the unrighteous.

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

• This reveals to us that people who know God, but refuse to honour Him will be judged for their unrighteousness.
• But we discovered not only that Gentiles are sinners...

Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

• Everyone, including people who try to please God through the Law of Moses, are unrighteous!

Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

• So judgment stands to fall upon all humanity
• Paul quotes Old Testament references, which the Jews revere, to prove this truth.
• All are unrighteous (Romans 3:10-19).

• Then Paul summarizes the thought ...

Rom 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

• Even the people who try to please God are unrighteous!
• From people who care less about God all the way to people who TRY to please Him through good works, everyone is unrighteous!!
• The only means to become righteous is the means of faith!

Rom 1:16-17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

• So we need not fear wrath if we have believed already:

Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

• Saved from what?

Rom 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

• saved from wrath that is yet to come

II. THROUGH JESUS CHRIST

Rom 5:11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

• We not only rejoice that we are saved from wrath that is yet to come, but we rejoice over the MEANS of our atonement.
• It was accomplished THROUGH CHRIST
• 5:11-19 explains how Christ did that work

Rom 5:12-14 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

• Verse 11 mentions the ATONEMENT
• The Day of Atonement was when Israel's sin was removed from them for a year.
• vv. 12-14 explains why we are unrighteous.

III. WHY DO WE NEED SALVATION?

Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

• Adam, one man, brought sin into the world
• Sin opened the door for death to enter the world.
• All people die because all people were affected by Adam's action in bringing sin into the world.
• The reason all people die is because sin is in all people.
• If we had no sin then why will we die one day?
• You might ask why we will die if we are saved from sin?
• Our BODIES still contain something called sin.

Rom 7:17 ...sin that dwelleth in me.

• Our bodies will be changed one day, so they will never die afterwards.

Phil 3:20-21 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.

BACK TO ROMANS 5:

Rom 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.

• Sin was always in the world after Adam let it in.
• but God had to pin it on someone in order to deal with it.
• so He used LAW to pin it down on mankind.
• Man had to agree that he was sinful.
• God is fair. He will not accuse us of something we do not agree with.
• He will judge man after convincing man that he deserves it.
• And He will convince man!
• Law was given to convince man of sin.
• Before Law came, sin was not "imputed" to man.
• imputed means reckoned or attributed to.
• Man still died due to sin
• only souls who sin will die
• so man was a sinner, but God would not call him such until He proved it
• Law was the proof.
• man will admit need of help when he is proven to be a sinner.
• We read at the end of verse 14 that Adam was a foreshadow of Jesus Christ.

Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

• More about this later.

Rom 5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

• The work required to rid us of sin was not equal to the work which brought sin.
• Read v. 15 in a paraphrase

Romans 5:15 But the free gift is not to be compared to the offence. For if the offence was caused by one man, which caused many people to die spiritually, the grace of God, and the gift by that grace, which came by one man, Jesus Christ, was more powerful. The work of grace abounded and overflowed more than the effects of the damage accomplished by Adam, for the benefit of the people.

It takes greater power to restore man from sin than to put man into sin.

Rom 5:16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.

PARAPHRASE:

Romans 5:16 And the gift is not to be compared to the act committed by the one that sinned. ONE MAN'S OFFENCE brought judgment upon many people which condemned them. The free gift, however, dealt with MANY OFFENCES, and justified MANY PEOPLE.

ADAM: One man's sin brought condemnation to many

JESUS; Many men's sins were forgiven and many people were justified as opposed to being condemned.

Rom 5:17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)

• Death indeed did reign
• But we reign MUCH MORE than death did!
• We reign in LIFE as opposed to death reigning.
• we reign because of Jesus Christ.

Rom 5:18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

• The one offence put MANY PEOPLE into condemnation.
• The free gift put MANY PEOPLE into RIGHTEOUSNESS.
• Notice that we had nothing to do in causing Adam's transgression.
• IT IS JUST AS TRUE THAT WE HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH JESUS' WORK IN MAKING US RIGHTEOUS.
• In other words, we cannot save ourselves without Him.
• Both the FIRST and LAST Adam (1 Cor 15:45) did works we were not responsible for.
• We already KNOW that we were made sinners due to the first Adam's work.
• By the same token, we must know also that we are made righteous by the Last Adam's work!
• Therefore, justification is accomplished, and we do not need to do anything now that we are saved to be justified.
• We do not work for righteousness any more than we worked for unrighteousness.
• We were born unrighteous, and we are BORN AGAIN as righteous.

Paul said: "as by the offence ... even so by the righteousness of one."

• That is, through the SAME PRINCIPLE that we are sinners, we are also righteous by Jesus.

Rom 5:19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

• This wonderful plan of God is so logical!
• disobedience made us sinners
• only one man's disobedience
• WHY THEN CANNOT ONE MAN'S OBEDIENCE MAKE US RIGHTEOUS?
• This is the reasoning behind grace.
• Paul proves the Gospel is indeed valid and effective.
• This helped believers realize they did not work for salvation.

PURPOSE OF THE LAW

Rom 5:2021 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

• Grace abounds more than sin.
• See verses 15-19 again, how that Jesus' act abounded greater than Adam's act.
• "MUCH MORE"
• The law came to make the effects of Adam's transgression more apparent to mankind.
• It made people truly desire to be free of that sin.
• It showed how horrible sin was.
• It is as though you owned a violent pet, but were not aware of its violence:
• you have seen no signs of its violence.
• a friend shows you by stealing the dog's food.
• the dog shocks you with its fierceness
• you now see the true picture.
• this is how the law showed us the evil of sin.
• the law poked at sin by commanding us to do good.
• sin within us hated that! and reviled!

Rom 7:9-10 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.

• Jesus' ministry was to convince men they had sin if the Law failed to do so.
• This is the reason Jesus spoke harshly to hypocrites

John 15:22 If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin.

• like fig leaves covering their sin
• the law was the ministry of condemnation (2 Cor 3:9).
• it was a glorious Law
• it showed man he had sin
• God looked past fig leaves

2 Cor 3:7-9 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away: How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious? For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.

• People were unclean, so they could not look at glory of Law
• like man put a veil on himself
• fig leaves
• this veil stops him from coming to God.
• coming to God means removing the veil.
• Law showed man his uncleanness LAW ENTERED THAT THE OFFENCE MIGHT ABOUND

Gal 3:19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

• Was the Law against the Promises since it was a valid contract with a mediator as all contracts required?
• two parties are required to make a contract valid.
• Law had two parties
• God and man.
• both must do their parts
• Law said man had to work for righteousness, and God would then extend it.
• but promise says that we do not work for righteousness
• promise says we BELIEVE
• does this make Law contrary to Promise?
• GOD FORBID. The Law just did not work to make us righteous. The Law, therefore, concluded all under sin. SO ALL MUST BELIEVE. The Law TRAINED the Jews that righteousness cannot come by works.
• it was then a school teacher.