Saturday, April 17, 2021

Romans 5 Devotional Bible Study by Steve Wilson

Romans 5

 


Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we[b] boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

 

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

 

Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

 

12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—

 

13 To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. 14 Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

 

15 But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! 16 Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. 17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!

 

18 Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. 19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

 

20 The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Footnotes

  1. Romans 5:1 Many manuscripts let us
  2. Romans 5:2 Or let us
  3. Romans 5:3 Or let us

 

 

Enemy to Vassal

Romans 5:1-2

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

 

These verses paint quite a picture. Because of your sin, you were once an enemy of God’s. Let that sink in. You were God’s enemy. That’s not a position you want to be in. There is no Greater Enemy, no one more dangerous, than the all-powerful creator of the universe.

 

But He allows you to have peace with Him through the simple act of trusting in the sacrifice of Jesus on your behalf. Jesus took the punishment that was meant for you. And now, because you no longer need to be punished for your sin, you can be restored to a peaceful relationship with God. It’s like you never sinned in the first place!

 


Now, instead of standing as God’s enemy, you’re standing before Him in a state of grace. Grace means you are receiving something you don’t deserve. It is only through the actions of Father and Son that you can stand at peace in His Presence. It’s nothing you have done. It’s not your obedience, because none of us can obey Him perfectly. You simply raised your hand and said, “Yes, I accept the sacrifice of Jesus on my behalf. I want to sign that treaty and have peace with God.”

 

And notice that Jesus is called Lord. I was listening to a lecture in the Christian history series recently that talked about the relationship of Medieval serfs to their land-owning lord. Unlike people today who value their freedom almost above all else, serfs in the Middle Ages wanted to serve a lord. If they had a good lord, they could rest assured that the lord would protect them from raiding enemies and provide for their needs.

 

In the same way, we need to understand that there is no better place to be than under the Lordship of Jesus. We can joyfully accept Him as Master because we know He will protect us, care for us, nourish us, and raise us up in maturity.

 

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

 

 

Our Double Boast

Romans 5:2-4

And we boast (kauchomai in Greek) in the hope of the glory (doxa) of God. Not only so, but we also glory (kauchomai) in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

 

Inserting the original Greek words in for “boast” and “glory,” we can see that Christians should boast about, or take pride in, two things: the hope of the glory of God and our sufferings.

 

Well, what is our hope of the glory of God? It’s the hope we have that God’s purposes will ultimately be accomplished and that He will be glorified in the world. Now that we have peace with God, He promises He will let us share in His glory as we live and reign eternally with Him.

 

But it won’t be easy getting ready to share in God’s glory. We have some learning and growing to do. Once we accept the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, we are no longer God’s enemies, but neither are we fit to be His trusted servants and children right away. We need to be trained and mature in our faith.

 

That’s where suffering comes in. When you go through a rough time in life, you have the choice to persevere in your faith or give it up. Will you continue to follow and hope in God, or will you look for your own way out of the suffering? Jesus had the choice to make stones into bread, but He persevered through His suffering of hunger.

 

Persevering through a trial builds our Christian character, and ultimately, our hope in being able to share in the glory of God because we know we have passed through our various tests of faith and proven firm. Once you’ve been a Christian for a while, you can look back and take pride in your sufferings as you see all the trials God brought you through as you kept your faith in Him.

 


 

 

What Guarantee Do We Have?

Romans 5:5

And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

 

We’ve been talking about our hope in sharing in the glory of God. But how do we know our hopes will become a reality? We know God will follow through with His promises because He’s given us His Holy Spirit to live inside us. In other passages, Paul calls the Holy Spirit a deposit or a guarantee on our salvation. God wouldn’t give us Himself to live with us and within us if He didn’t intend to bring us into His glory.

 


As we wait for God’s glory to be fully revealed, the Holy Spirit pours God’s love in our hearts. Not only does this love from God communicate God’s love to us, but it also flows out of us and empowers us to show God’s love to others.

 

If you want to know if you’re saved and your hope is sure, ask yourself these three questions:

 

Have I received the Holy Spirit?

Am I aware of the Holy Spirit’s Presence in my heart now?

Is my heart full of God’s love and flowing out to those around me?

 

 

Go Ahead and Brag!

Romans 5:6-11

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

 

Who would you die for?

 

Someone you love? An innocent victim you’re trying to protect?

 

How about someone who hates you? Or someone who would never acknowledge what you did for them? Someone who would scorn you for even implying they needed your help?

 

Jesus died for them all, the grateful and the ungrateful alike, those who would bow to Him as Lord and those would revile His name until their dying breath. He took the punishment meant for us because He knew we couldn’t save ourselves. As the repentant thief on the cross said, “We are getting what our sins deserve, but this man has done nothing wrong.”

 

If a sinful human died, they would be dying for their own sins. If someone who had committed no sin of their own died, they could take the place of another. And because Jesus was also the infinite God, He could die for an infinite number of sins for as many people as ever lived or would live.

 

What is our response to this? “We boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ”! We take pride in God and His Christ, not ourselves. And if we boast in God, that means we’re telling other people about how great He is. We’re bragging on God. 

 


Take a moment to think about how you can brag on God to others more often. How can you make boasting about God and what He’s done for you part of your everyday speech?

 

 

How to Sin by Not Breaking a Command


Romans 5:12-14

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—13 To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. 14 Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

 

These verses can be confusing. The question is: If sin wasn’t counted against anyone before the law, how were the people between the time of Adam and the time of Moses sinful? Was God unjust in punishing them? What about all the people who died in the Flood? Weren’t they so sinful that God was sorry He had created humanity?

 

This is where we need to get into the original Greek words and definitions. “Sin” in these (and most) verses is the word “hamartia.” When you look at how the word is used throughout the New Testament, you see that it means any type of wrongdoing. It could be breaking a command of God, such as in the Garden of Eden, where God commanded Adam not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but Adam did wrong and ate the fruit anyway, or when the Israelites disobeyed God’s commands given through Moses in the Law.

 

So, in this sense, Paul is saying you can’t be charged with breaking a command of God if God hasn’t given a command. However, breaking a command of God is not the only way a person can do something wrong (hamartia); it’s just the worst way someone can do something wrong.

 

Remember that in Romans 2:12-15, Paul taught we can sin whether we know God’s commands or not by sinning (hamartia) against our conscience. We know certain things are wrong, even if we don’t have a specific command against it.

 

But why is sinning by breaking a known command of God worse than all other wrongdoing? Because when you know God has told you not to do something, and you do it anyway, not only are you performing that wrong action, but you’re disrespecting God by willingly disobeying Him.

 

Take a moment in prayer to ask the Holy Spirit to show you any ways in which you are doing wrong, either by going against your conscience or disobeying God’s commands, and ask Him to give you the strength to respect God and do what is right.

 

 

Grace Wins


Romans 5:15-21

But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! 16 Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. 17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ! 

 

18 Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. 19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

 

20 The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21 so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Can I just say you can’t out-sin God’s grace? You can never sin so much or so grievously that God can’t forgive you through Jesus.

 

Let’s track the story: Adam sinned and became broken inside. His soul was no longer pure but was bent toward doing wrong. We call that “bentness” the sinful nature. And because he was our ancestor, he passed that sinful nature down to us. It’s what makes us all want to do what we shouldn’t. It’s part of us. It affects all of us; some are just better at hiding it. But whether we act on our sinful nature outwardly or only inwardly, we all sin and deserve the punishment of death.

 

But as heavy as the consequences for Adam’s sin were, God is able to lift them through Jesus. We can be set free from our sinful natures! We can have the bentness in our souls straightened! We can “reign in life”!

 

So, whatever you’ve done, remember “grace reigns through righteousness.” Grace wins.

 

Maybe you’re struggling to forgive someone. Grace wins.

 

Maybe you’re worried about a loved one who has turned their back on God. Grace wins.

 

We cannot do anything God can’t forgive. There is no curse God can’t lift. There is no wrong He can’t right. God is on the throne, and He has a plan: Grace Wins!

 

Amen?

 

 

Do you have another insight into Romans 5? Please share below!

 

 

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