Therefore being justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom also we have
access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the
glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that
tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love
of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
For when we were yet without strength, in due
time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one
die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God
commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us.
Much more then, being now justified by his
blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 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. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our
Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.
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.
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. 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.
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.) 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. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the
obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
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. Romans 5
Chapter and verses
are useful tools but we must remember they are additions and as additions we
must be careful these separations do not influence interpretation and
perception. The end of chapter four says He was raised for our justification. The
next statement that we are justified by faith is one thought.
This word
translated justified is in other places translated righteousness. As we have
said before; these are not a credit for a future event but recognition of a
tangible change that is being revealed in us. The old man is crucified in
Messiah (not some future event) and as such happens when we stand in the faith.
The new life comes in the resurrection of Messiah (not some future event) but
as we trust the promise is the truth. As Paul has said “it is no longer I that
live, but Messiah lives through me.”
The Father’s
grace is often confused with mercy, long suffering, and forgiveness. Yet grace
is in truth the promise fulfilled; some may ask what promise? The first
promise, the one which every other promise comes from, that we who were made to
live in Adam when YHWH breathed His life into him and died in Adam when he
chose to be a self would be redeemed back to the shared life of YHWH.
We stand in
this gift of life with full expectation of seeing our Fathers glory manifested
in us by His making of us to be one with Him. We find glory even in our
struggles. The echoes of the old man; the strongholds of his death in us show
forth in us the power of the Fathers grace as He renews our mind writing His
law in our heart and mind. Our Father is not simply expecting us to act different
but instead He shows us to expect Him to make us different; a new creation.
If we are
struggling to crucify the old man or striving to live in the new life then we
will only meet with failure and heartache. Adam was given the power to choose
what He desired whether to trust YHWH as his maker or himself. Adam did not by
his own ability make himself a living soul. We who after the flesh where born
of Adam cannot by our own ability make ourselves have life but we do have the
choice to trust God as our maker or ourselves.
Paul now
will give us the most profound exposition of truth that has ever been recorded.
Many commentators have used Romans as a place to tell the difference between
the unredeemed and the redeemed. However that which Paul gives us is the story
of our own redemption not from an outward enemy but from our old man. The
foundation he now lays will guide us in the coming explanation of the battle
between the flesh which came from Adam and the new life of the Spirit from our
Father.
In Adam we
have all died from his sin. We tend to think it was sin that we inherited but
in truth it was death. Sin is a fruit but death is the tree. The tree makes the
fruit the fruit contains the seed of the tree. Every tree produces after its
own kind. So it is that when Adam sinned he became a tree of death and his
fruit (all mankind) was born with that death within them. We see this fruit of
sin coming forth on our own branches but picking off the fruit does not change
the tree.
Paul
concludes that even without breaking a spoken command from YHWH the death ruled
over all men. The death in Adam is passing death into all who were born from
him. Messiah took our death on himself that we as one with Him might pass away.
He was made one with us in death so we also are made one with Him; being born
into His life. Life in Messiah living in all who believe, trust relies, depend,
and expect in Him.
The law was
given that we would see the depth of the death in us; to the end that all trust
in ourselves as our maker would be shown as false. With the loss of trust in us
comes the availability of a trust in Him. We are saved from the grave of what
we bring forth that the power of the gift of the Fathers life in us would bring
righteousness beyond man’s work of doing. We find that His life in us is
manifested as we trust Him to make us as He is. It is in Him that we move and breathe
and have our very being; an unfailing life that is not subject to the failings
of man.
