Lessons From Romans – Lesson 8
About 20 years ago there was a guy named Gary at work who was an atheist. He of course found out that I was a Christian and periodically he would pop into my office with some attack on Christianity.
I would give an answer and he would walk out of my office shaking his head with an insult about eating Swiss cheese holes that I never really understood. He saw that I liked Swiss cheese and I would often eat Swiss cheese on my sandwich for lunch.
I would just laugh it off and say that the holes make the Swiss cheese better. Somehow that seemed to upset him. God gave me the grace so that Gary never upset me.
One of his attacks on Christianity is what Paul covers in the first part of Romans chapter 5.
Gary would sarcastically say so I am a sinner. I would say yes everyone is born with a sin nature. Gary would say it is not my fault, I did not ask to be a sinner. I did not choose to be a sinner.
I would say well an alligator did not ask or choose to be an alligator but he is still an alligator. And everything reproduces after its kind. When my cousin delivers cows she never has to worry about a rabbit or anything else coming out. It is always going to be a baby cow.
When Adam sinned he received a sin nature and when Adam had children he produced after his kind and his kids were all born with a sin nature.
Gary would say I had nothing to do with Adams sin and it is not fair for me to be punished for Adams sin. And then something about Swiss cheese holes and out he would go.
I never did get thru to Gary.
Let’s look at this issue starting in Romans 5:12
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:
God gave the command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil to Adam before Eve was created.
Gen 2:15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
Gen 2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
Gen 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
Gen 2:18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Adam was the one responsible. And Adam was over his wife. It is true that Eve ate first. She was deceived and sinned. But Adam was responsible to teach her what God said and the command was given directly to Adam. And Adam was not deceived.
God wanted to make it clear that Adam was responsible so God gave the command to Adam before Eve was created.
Adam sinned with the full knowledge of being given God’s command. Adam sinned with his eyes wide open. Adam failed to protect his wife from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
So God held Adam responsible. Yes Eve got a sin nature as soon as she ate. And yes she would have started to die right then. But since Adam was responsible and since Adam sinned with eyes wide open. The responsibility for sin entering the world is placed on Adam by God and God decreed that the sin nature would therefore pass thru the seed of the man and not thru the woman.
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:
The sin nature and death passes upon all mankind thru the seed of the man. This is why Jesus had to be virgin born. This is how Jesus could be born of a woman and have no sin nature. All people have a sin nature because everyone except Jesus has a human father.
Death means separation. Death does not mean annihilation. When you die you do not cease to exist. Your soul separates from your body to exist eternally in either Heaven or Hell.
When Adam and Eve sinned they started to die physically. They also died spiritually right then. And now all men are born dead in trespasses and sins. And anyone who does not get saved will die eternally in Hell.
The wages of sin is death. And this is all before the law was given. All Adam had was one rule. But breaking one is all it takes. And the sin nature is sin even if there is no law.
Rom 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
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.
So death reigned from Adam until the law was given to Moses. Everyone between Adam and Moses had creation which shows there is a God. They all had a God given conscience that knows between right and wrong.
And as we have seen before, because they lived so long, the truth of how to be saved only had to pass between a handful of men all the way until the calling of Abraham. The truth of how to bring a sacrifice in faith like Abel did that pictured the death of the coming savior was available.
So even without the law they were all sinners and were all held accountable. Even though they were not responsible for Adam sin. They were all sinners and responsible for their own sin.
Gary would argue that is not fair. But here is the wonderful part that he refused to ever see.
It is true that you are not responsible for bringing about the original sin of Adam, but it is also true that you are not responsible for bringing about the solution. You had nothing to do with Adam sinning, but you also have nothing to do with Jesus paying for your sin.
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.
So by one sin entered the world, and by one came the grace of God, the gift of eternal life by grace thru one man Jesus Christ.
And as one man was the source for all sin, Jesus is the solution for all sin. Jesus is not the solution for only some sin. Just as Adam is the source of all sin Jesus paid for all sin on the cross.
Not for only the elect. Not for a select few. And not for only those who He foreknew would accept Him. Jesus paid for it all. The sins of the whole world.
1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
Everyone in hell had their sin paid for, but it does them nothing unless it is accepted. Look at verse 16.
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.
Salvation is a free gift. It is not of works of any kind. And it is not part gift and part doing something. It is a free gift that is offered to all because Jesus paid for the sin of the whole world.
The gift has been paid completely for everyone. But like all gifts for it to do any good the gift must be received. I can buy you a gift and have it completely paid for and I can hand it out to you, but if you refuse it, then it did you no good. It was paid for but did nothing in your life.
Salvation is like that. The free gift of salvation is fully paid for and Jesus is offering it to everyone. Some will receive it and have eternal life and some will reject it and have eternal death.
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.)
They which receive the gift. Salvation must be received. And that happens when a sinner admits His sin and calls upon Jesus to save him with a repentant heart.
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.
By one sin entered into the world. And by one the free gift of justification of life came upon all men. Again it is offered to all men. It is right there, all they have to do is receive it.
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.
Not all shall be made righteous. Many shall be made righteous in the eyes of God. Many will receive the free gift. And when they do the righteousness of Jesus is imputed to them by a judicial act of God.
And this is done without the law being involved. The law had another purpose.
Rom 5:20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:
The purpose of the law was so that the offence might abound. The law shows how sinful sin is.
Rom 5:21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Sin reigns in the sinner’s life all the way unto death. Both death in this life and also eternal death in a lake of fire. Unless they get saved sin has dominion over them. They have no power to do anything about it.
But once saved grace now reigns. Grace has dominion unto eternal life. Grace never ends. And it is only because of what Jesus Christ our Lord did on the cross.
Now comes a therefore. Because grace has replaced the dominion of sin over us. Since sin no more reigns and because grace now reigns.
We should choose to be Dead to Sin and alive to God
Rom 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
Rom 6:2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Since sin no longer reigns a Christian is now considered dead to sin. Paul asks shall we continue in sin? And his answer is God forbid. Once we receive the free gift of salvation and deliverance from the penalty of sin, we should now choose to be dead to sin.
Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
There are 2 baptisms. The baptism of the Holy Spirit happens the instant you get saved and the Holy Spirit comes and indwells the believer.
And then comes water baptism which is just an outward picture of what has happened inside.
Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
Biblical baptism is done by going down under the water. That is a picture of the death and burial of Jesus. And then you come back up out of the water. That is a picture of the resurrection of Jesus.
It is a picture of us identifying with the death and burial and resurrection of Jesus. It is showing that we have identified with the cross and that our sin died there with Jesus. In that the penalty of sin for us has died.
And like as Christ was raised up from the Dead to be alive again. We also should now walk in newness of life.
Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
Rom 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Our old man is talking about our flesh. Our sin nature. We are to now consider the old man as being crucified with Jesus. Our sin was literally there that day. Jesus bore our sin in His own body on the cross.
We should no longer serve sin. The old sin nature no longer reigns. Before we got saved we had no choice but to sin. Sin reigned. Now grace reigns. After we get saved we can still sin. But now it is a choice.
Now when we sin it is because we chose to sin. Instead of choosing to serve sin we are to choose to live with Jesus. We are to walk with our Lord.
Rom 6:8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:
Rom 6:9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
Rom 6:10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
Jesus died unto sin once. Only once. Praise God Jesus will never suffer paying for our awful sin ever again. And when Jesus arose He lives perfect and Holy and sinless.
Rom 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Reckon ye. It is a choice. You had a free will before salvation to get saved or not. And after salvation you still have a free will. The choice now is how close do you want to walk with Jesus.
The choice now is do you reckon old man to be dead indeed to sin. And do you know reckon yourself alive unto God.
The choice now is do I obey the lusts of the old man. Do I yield to that or do I obey the Lord and yield myself to doing His will.
Rom 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Rom 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Now we should choose to be servants unto righteousness
Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
Rom 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Rom 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Rom 6:18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
Rom 6:19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.
Some people will say I refuse either choice. I will not yield to the flesh and I will not yield to serve righteousness.
That is not an option. There is only 2 choices and it is either one or the other. God made you and set things up so that you will serve something. You either serve iniquity and uncleanness or you serve what is right and our Lord.
Rom 6:20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.
Rom 6:21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
Before salvation we were servants of sin and had zero righteousness. And what does that get anyone. What is the fruit of being servants of sin? Trouble and hurt in this life and an eternity in a lake of fire.
What a complete difference now. There is good fruit for being servants to God.
Rom 6:22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
There is fruit in this life for serving holiness. Blessings upon blessings. None of the natural consequences in this life that comes with the wallowing in sin.
And in the end everlasting life.
Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Verse 23 does have application for getting saved. It is a part of what is called the Romans Road.
But the context shows the main application is not how to get saved. The main application being made in this section of scripture is after salvation. Verse 23 starts with the word for which attaches it to the verses right before.
Since the wages of sin is death. And since the gift of God is eternal life.
Then after you are saved, why would you chose to serve sin. Why still serve and yield to something that only brings death suffering and hurt.
Instead after salvation we should become servants to God. Pursue the fruit that is connected to eternal life. Yield to holiness and the will of God.
Not to get saved. We are already saved.
After receiving the free gift of salvation the good, decent, natural, and right thing to do is to yield to and serve our Lord. That is where the good fruit in this life is.