26-0510sc Transcript

(0:04) Okay, we’re in chapter 5. (0:07) I wonder if I have a grasp on what it’s even saying. (0:12) Chapter 5, Romans. (0:16) Let’s go to our Heavenly Father in prayer.

(0:19) Most gracious Heavenly Father, we’re very grateful for your love, (0:24) and especially for your grace and mercy extended from your love for us. (0:31) We know that grace is a product of love. (0:37) At this time, we’re looking into your Word.

(0:42) We’re asking you to give us understanding and insight to the Scriptures that we are reading. (0:51) Paul is very complicated often, but he’s very exact in the many things that he wants to share with us. (1:02) I pray that we can pick up on the things that he is wanting to make points on.

(1:09) It helps us in our Christian walk. (1:14) We ask your blessings on our study, and be with us as we look into Romans. (1:22) Paul’s letter to the Romans.

(1:24) We pray these things in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen. (1:31) I would like to pick up on the context.

(1:34) Let’s start out with verse 1. (1:36) I know that I left off at verse 12 last week, (1:41) so we’re going to be looking at that, but I want to stay in context, (1:46) because I think that definitely the context is when it says, (1:54) Therefore, just as sin entered the world, he’s looking at what he just wrote about previously. (2:04) Chapter 5, I’m going to read from verse 1 down to where we left off last week. (2:12) Reading from the New International Version.

(2:16) Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (2:26) through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. (2:35) And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. (2:39) Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, (2:44) because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope.

(2:51) And hope does not put us to shame, (2:53) because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, (2:59) who has been given to us. (3:03) You see, I’m in verse 6 now. (3:07) You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, (3:12) Christ died for the ungodly.

(3:14) Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, (3:18) though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. (3:22) But God demonstrates his own love for us in this. (3:26) While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

(3:31) Since we have now been justified by his blood, (3:35) how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him? (3:40) For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through his life, (3:46) not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (3:55) through whom we have now received reconciliation. (4:01) Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, (4:09) and in this way death came to all people because all sinned, (4:14) to be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given. (4:20) But sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law.

(4:28) Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, (4:34) even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, (4:38) as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come. (4:44) But the gift is not like the trespass. (4:48) For if many died by the trespasses of the one man, (4:53) how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, (5:01) Jesus Christ, overflow to the many? (5:05) Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin.

(5:12) The judgment followed one’s sin and brought condemnation, (5:16) but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. (5:23) For if by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, (5:29) how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace (5:34) and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ? (5:43) Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, (5:50) so also one righteous act resulted in justification in life for all people. (5:58) For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, (6:06) so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

(6:12) The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase, (6:19) but where sin increased, grace increased all the more. (6:23) So that just as sin reigned in death, (6:27) so also grace might reign through righteousness (6:30) to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (6:37) Very, very deep.

Very nice. (6:41) As I reflect upon this, and I try to make a sense out of it, (6:46) and try to make a lesson out of it to be able to break it down, (6:54) there were several things that came to my mind. (6:58) Number one, do we really appreciate grace? (7:02) Do we understand grace? (7:05) And a gift.

(7:08) And so as we reflect upon those, (7:11) I’d also like to go back to the fact of obedience. (7:18) He makes reference to God’s wrath, (7:21) so I think that it’s important for us to know where we stand in the sight of God, (7:28) and if we’re disobedient, we’re subject to God’s wrath. (7:34) What is God’s wrath? (7:36) We notice that many, many times in Romans, the first chapter, (7:42) God’s wrath is when we replace Him with some other authority.

(7:49) He wants the supreme authority over us. (7:52) And so when we sin or disobey, we are lining ourselves up with Satan, the devil. (8:02) And he’s going to be talking about that, I believe, in chapter 7, (8:05) where we have our allegiance with Satan once we disobey God.

(8:15) We’re automatically in the throes of Satan, and he has control over us. (8:23) And so God doesn’t want any other God before us, because he’s what? (8:31) A jealous God. (8:34) And he’s jealous, and he doesn’t like the idea that we’re allowing ourselves to sin.

(8:43) We’re subjecting our faculties to Satan and allowing him to have control over us, and that’s sin. (8:55) So when we reflect upon grace, I think Paul alludes to this, (9:05) but John definitely does in his Gospel 315-316. (9:11) For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, (9:15) that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

(9:20) I know I didn’t quite prove that 100%. (9:24) But we also know that John, also in his epistles, 1 John especially, (9:29) he talks about God’s love, and how we know what love is because God first loved us. (9:38) And so when we look at the concept of love, we know that the word that is translated, (9:46) love out of Greek, is…​ (9:58) Help me out if you know what the Greek word for love is.

(10:05) Agape, yeah, thank you. (10:08) That’s the word I was looking for, agape. (10:11) And that word means that simply he’s asking us to have agape love, (10:16) and that’s looking out for other people, looking out for the well-being of the other people, (10:21) and having compassion, and looking down, looking after people, and looking after their needs.

(10:30) And so God is love, and he’s looking after our needs, (10:35) and so what he’s doing is he’s reaching out to us and wanting to be reconciled to us, (10:42) and that falls under grace. (10:47) It’s his grace that he’s reaching out. (10:52) Grace is the product of his love for you and me.

(10:56) And so he’s wanting us to understand what grace is. (11:00) And so what do we understand about grace? (11:06) Paul refers to it as a gift. (11:11) He refers to it as a gift.

(11:15) So what do you know about a gift? (11:20) It’s freely given. (11:23) There’s no strings attached to it. (11:25) Here, I give you $10.

(11:28) I can’t give you any more than that. (11:31) Here, I’ll give you my car. (11:34) I’ve gifted two cars in my life.

(11:37) They were junkers, but I gift them. (11:40) I gifted them. (11:42) I gifted one to my grandson, and I gifted one to a member of the church there at Amherst.

(11:48) So it was given what? (11:54) Out of my heart. (11:55) Freely. (11:57) It was because I wanted to give it to them.

(12:00) I wanted them to experience they were without a car, they were having problems, (12:07) and so I gifted it to them. (12:10) So God, and that’s grace. (12:14) Grace is being concerned, and it’s coming out of love, so God is gracing us.

(12:21) So I think one of the problems that the world has is because they’re worldly. (12:32) What do we know about worldly? (12:34) Paul oftentimes, and the Bible oftentimes refers to that as fleshly. (12:39) It’s in the flesh.

(12:41) Whenever you’re looking at flesh as opposed to the spirit. (12:45) So he refers to worldliness as being fleshly. (12:50) I can’t deal with you because you’re still in the flesh.

(12:54) You’re not quite able to understand what I am going to share with you (12:58) because you’re thinking in terms of the flesh, and I think that’s where grace is. (13:05) And I think that the world does not really quite appreciate (13:11) or understand a person who gives something away and gifts it. (13:20) So especially if you’ve been harmed.

(13:26) So trying to get out of my disjointedness, where do we stand in the sight of God? (13:35) We’re disobeying. (13:37) He’s basically kicked us out of the Garden of Eden. (13:42) And that’s the reason why we’re dying, is because we don’t have access to the Tree of Life.

(13:47) And so people are dying from Adam to Moses, as he’s pointing out. (13:52) Not because they disobeyed a law, because there was no law. (13:57) What were they doing? (13:58) They were walking out of step with God, and they were disobeying him.

(14:02) They were giving themselves over to sexual immorality. (14:10) They were giving themselves over to lust, greed, cheating, lying. (14:15) They were giving themselves over to all of these things because that’s the result of sin.

(14:21) And not being in God and in step with God. (14:24) Because if you were in step with God, you would know you don’t do those things. (14:30) If you were in step with God, God would say, (14:33) Have you looked at Job? He eschews evil.

(14:38) He was proud of Job, wasn’t he? (14:41) And he boasted about Job. (14:43) And Satan comes along and says, (14:45) Hey, God says to him, where have you been? (14:49) Oh, I’ve been traveling through and through the world. (14:52) Oh, have you seen Job? Have you noticed Job? (14:55) Yeah, but he only obeys you because you blessed him in everything you do.

(15:01) And so we know the concept. (15:04) God was proud of Job, wasn’t he? (15:07) And so he wants to be proud of his children. (15:10) But they’re not walking in step.

(15:13) They’re lying. They’re cheating. (15:14) They’re being sexually immoral and so on.

(15:19) And so they’re out of step. They’re disobeying. (15:22) He’s hurt.

(15:23) He’s been replaced by Satan. (15:28) Because we’re stepping in Satan’s world and after his way, not after God. (15:36) So, in the world, especially, if your children disobeyed you, (15:43) or if you had an employee who stole from you, (15:47) if you had an employee who was disobedient to you, (15:52) what would you do as a person of the world, (15:57) especially if you were the boss, if you were the mother? (16:04) You wouldn’t give them gifts, would you? (16:06) And they wouldn’t come anywhere close to being loved.

(16:11) And so you wouldn’t reach out to them and try to give them grace. (16:15) Would you try to understand? (16:17) Would you try to be this way? (16:20) So they can’t quite grasp God. (16:25) They can’t quite grasp God.

(16:30) He’s willing to reconcile this to him. (16:34) But mothers can grasp God, can’t they? (16:39) What mother doesn’t depend her son? (16:44) I’ve been married to two women right now, (16:47) and I understand their love for their children. (16:50) There’s no question about it.

(16:53) They could do almost anything, (16:55) and they would still be welcome in the household because mom’s love. (17:00) And this is Mother’s Day. Happy Mother’s Day! (17:03) The grass may understand mother’s love.

(17:08) And so they can understand the mother being willing to give them gifts, (17:13) feed them, bring them in, allow them to live in the same house, clothe them. (17:19) That’s what God is trying to do, is grace. (17:25) And that’s grace, reaching out.

(17:29) That’s grace. (17:30) God is reaching out, and it’s the product of his love for us. (17:39) And so the world has a hard time grasping that, don’t they? (17:45) Do we? (17:46) That’s what Paul wants us to understand.

(17:50) We really do have a relationship with God if we come to him through Christ. (18:00) So Jesus is providing us with the avenue to be reconciled to God, (18:07) and he is willing to do whatever is necessary to make up for the rift that we have with God. (18:18) And we know that God said that if you eat of the tree of knowledge, good and evil, you will die.

(18:27) So what’s that called? (18:29) The law of sin and death. (18:34) And so we’ve sinned, not according to the way Adam perhaps did, (18:40) but we’re sinning because of our disobedience to God and being out of step to his will. (18:48) But it requires the law of sin and death to be met, doesn’t it? (18:52) Because we’re sinning.

(18:55) And so we have to respect the law. (18:59) And that’s what Paul ends up at one chapter saying, (19:04) are we nullifying the law? (19:11) God forbid. (19:14) We’re upholding the law.

(19:15) Chapter 3 of Romans. (19:24) We’re responding to the gift. (19:27) It’s not requiring us to pay anything.

(19:31) It’s not requiring us to do anything. (19:36) It’s not requiring us to receive this gift (19:42) except to be baptized for the remission of our sins and become a disciple of Jesus (19:46) and become a member of Jesus' church. (19:48) That’s all he’s requiring us because Jesus says, (19:52) and then us dedicating our lives back to God.

(19:56) And that’s what Paul’s going to be talking about in chapter 7 (19:58) when he refers to the fact that we have been dedicated to Satan. (20:05) But can you change over to be a Christian without dying? (20:11) That’s the reason why he’s going to refer to the law of Moses about being married. (20:17) A woman being married is obligated to her husband until he dies or she dies.

(20:25) If he dies, then she’s free to remarry. (20:30) But if they divorce and she remarries, she’s committing adultery. (20:35) Keep that in mind.

(20:37) And he says, in that particular respect, (20:41) here you are, you’re basically dedicated to Satan. (20:47) You’ve got to die. (20:48) And if you die, then you can be resurrected and be free to marry or come back to Jesus.

(21:01) I’m getting ahead of myself there. (21:04) The thing is, you see, if a person is walking after Satan and doesn’t die, (21:12) chapter 6, which we’re going to be looking at in a minute, hopefully in a minute, (21:18) if we die with Jesus, when we are baptized, he says, (21:24) do you not know that when you are baptized, you die with Jesus (21:28) and you’re raised to walk in the newness of life? (21:30) That newness of life is being rededicated to God (21:34) and wanting to know what God’s will is and being in step with God (21:39) and not allowing yourself to be used by Satan by lying, cheating, (21:45) or any other thing that God is opposed to. (21:50) So if you’re not willing to do that and you want to just come out of the world (21:54) and start worshiping with the saints, you know what you’re doing? (22:02) You’re subjecting Jesus to the possibility of being an adulterer (22:07) because you’re still married to Satan and you haven’t died to Satan.

(22:13) The only way that you can come to God is to be buried with him and die with him, (22:22) as Scott pointed out last week. (22:26) And so we have to rise and then we have the freedom to marry Jesus (22:34) and to sort of become a disciple of Jesus and not make him an adulterer. (22:40) So as we reflect upon this, let’s take a look at what Paul is saying.

(22:46) Any questions or comments? Yes. (22:49) So grace being a gift. (22:55) That’s a two-way street.

(22:58) A gift can be awesome, but it also has to be received. (23:02) God is offering a gift to everyone, (23:07) but it’s up to that person to take the gift, he leaves it there. (23:12) That’s very true.

That’s very true. (23:15) And the same thing is true with the law. (23:20) Here, you know, we work by it.

(23:23) I can’t think of the terminology right at the moment. (23:32) If the president of a center, a person who’s in jail, (23:44) if he’s received a pardon and he rejects it, (23:48) he can either accept it and come out under the terms of the pardon, (23:52) or he can reject it. (23:55) And if he rejects it, he’s still in prison.

(23:59) And there are people who have rejected the pardons, believe it or not. (24:05) And that’s true. (24:08) So, any other comments? (24:11) It’s true.

You have to accept it. (24:14) Let’s take a look at Chapter 5 one more time, (24:19) and then see if we have an understanding of what Paul’s talking about. (24:30) Pick up with verse 1 again, and let’s read on down through the end of the chapter, (24:34) the International Version.

(24:38) Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, (24:42) and this is what is important, because you have to believe in God. (24:47) First of all, you’ve got to know what pleases God. (24:52) Hebrews 11, Chapter 5 or 6, something like that.

(24:57) Believe that He is, and that He’s a rewarder to those who diligently seek Him. (25:02) You’ve got to believe that He is. (25:03) The second thing is, you’ve got to believe that He’s offering this to you.

(25:08) And then the third thing is, you’ve got to believe that Jesus is able to fulfill that which He says He can do. (25:17) So we’ve got to have faith. We’ve got to believe in that.

(25:20) And so, therefore, since we have been justified through faith, (25:24) we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (25:29) through whom we have gained access, by faith, into this grace in which we now stand. (25:39) And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. (25:43) And that’s the other thing, too.

(25:45) Since once we’ve accepted that grace, as Jim pointed out, (25:50) once we’ve accepted that grace and done what is necessary to receive that grace, (25:54) we have been restored to the inheritance that God offers to His children. (26:00) And that inheritance is Heaven. (26:05) You don’t have to worry about it.

(26:08) Heaven. (26:09) So, the hope of the glory of God. (26:14) Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, (26:18) because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope.

(26:26) And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love, (26:31) and there’s the concept of love, and grace is the product of love. (26:38) God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, (26:43) who has been given to us, whom we receive when we do obey. (26:49) And that’s Peter telling us in Acts 2. (26:53) You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, (26:58) Christ died for the ungodly.

(27:00) Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, (27:04) though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. (27:09) But God demonstrates His own love for us in this. (27:15) While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

(27:19) That’s the product of love. (27:22) And Christ fulfilled the grace that God wanted to have for us. (27:34) Christ died for us.

(27:36) Since we have now been justified by Jesus' blood, (27:40) how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through Him? (27:47) For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, (27:56) how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life? (28:02) Not only is this so, but we also boast in God, (28:06) through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (28:13) And I like that word, boast, too, because we’re not boasting about our abilities (28:20) or what we’ve achieved or what we’ve acquired. (28:23) We’re not boasting about that.

(28:25) We’re boasting about we’re recipients from God’s love. (28:30) So we’re boasting about that. (28:33) We have to boast about that.

(28:35) Thank you, God. (28:36) And that’s where we rejoice. (28:41) So are we boasting because of law? (28:44) God forbid.

(28:46) If it was because of law, then faith would be nullified. (28:52) So we’re not boasting of what we’ve achieved by observing the law. (28:57) We’re boasting because God reached out apart from the law.

(29:01) And I like that concept because here’s the law. (29:05) He’s put it into motion. (29:09) Before Moses was the law of sin and death.

(29:13) And then Moses is given an additional law, which he’s going to be referring to (29:20) as increasing it and grace it, even encourage more. (29:27) So it’s apart from the law. (29:31) We’re not observing the law.

(29:33) We’re going to be given grace. (29:35) We’re going to be given righteousness. (29:37) We’re going to be forgiven by something else apart from the law.

(29:44) What is apart from the law? (29:47) God’s grace apart from the law. (29:53) So we’re looking at something that is different. (29:56) We’re not going to appeal to the law for our righteousness.

(29:59) We’re going to appeal to the grace that God is giving to us. (30:04) It’s something apart from the law, separate from the law. (30:07) It has nothing to do with the law.

(30:10) It’s grace. (30:12) Where there is no law, there is no sin. (30:18) Just think about that.

(30:20) And that’s the reason why he’s referring to the fact that from Abraham to Moses, (30:26) the law of Moses didn’t exist. (30:28) The law of sin and death. (30:31) And so God is destroying the world in Noah’s day.

(30:38) It’s Noah before the law of Moses or after the law of Moses. (30:45) Noah’s day, it was before. (30:48) So the law of Moses was not even in the picture at this time.

(30:53) So what justified God to destroy the world and mankind at that time (30:58) and save Noah and the eight people? (31:02) Disobedience. (31:04) Living a lie. (31:06) What does Scripture say about it? (31:10) They were inventing ways to sin.

(31:14) They were way out of step. (31:17) They were inventing ways to sin. (31:20) And so he says sin was in the world before the law.

(31:25) Before the law of Moses. (31:27) So what was the sin? (31:28) Walking out of step, disobeying God, and not recognizing God as being God. (31:37) And creating idols and other things to worship.

(31:42) So, we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (31:46) through whom we have now received reconciliation. (31:52) So, God is reconciling us through Jesus. (31:57) So we have to come to God through Jesus.

(32:02) And even our prayers, we know we have to offer as we approach God, (32:08) we have to come to God through Jesus. (32:11) And we know that Jesus, we’re part of Jesus' church. (32:16) And as we are part of Jesus' church, Jesus is the priest.

(32:21) Call him a high priest if you will. (32:23) I like to refer to him as a high priest. (32:25) But he’s the priest, and he’s doing priestly functions.

(32:30) What is his priestly function? (32:32) To offer a sacrifice, which is his sacrifice, which is once and for all. (32:37) But his sacrifice is offered to precede our prayers to God. (32:47) To precede our prayers to God.

(32:51) So, I’ve been thinking about this very much. (32:56) And I think that oftentimes we need to start thinking in terms of, (33:00) Jesus, we’re here in your church. (33:03) We’ve come to ask you to intercede for us.

(33:06) We want to praise God. (33:09) We want to praise your Father. (33:10) And he is saying, I’m at the right-hand side of God.

(33:14) At the mercy seat of God. (33:16) I will offer you. (33:18) What does Jesus say before he is crucified? (33:24) Before he’s talking to his disciples? (33:27) John, the sixth chapter, I believe it is.

(33:31) No, not sixth chapter. (33:32) Sixteenth chapter. (33:37) I’m going to send you to help me.

(33:44) And whatever you ask in my name, I will give you. (33:48) I will see to it that you get it. (33:51) So, Jesus is suggesting that from that point on, he is the go-between.

(33:57) He is the one through whom we’re going to offer our prayers to God. (34:04) Just think about that. (34:06) I’ve been thinking about it myself quite a bit.

(34:09) I almost started out my prayer this morning this way. (34:14) So, I’ve come to you, John, or Jesus. (34:19) I’m in your church.

(34:20) We’re here as a body, brothers and sisters. (34:23) And we’re looking to you as being our priest. (34:26) You’ve offered yourself to be our priest.

(34:29) God made him a priest after the order of Melchizedek, didn’t he? (34:33) So, Jesus is our priest. (34:36) And he’s doing, according to the Hebrew letter, he’s functioning as a priest. (34:42) And so, he’s offering and pleading our case for us, our interceder.

(34:49) Any thoughts on that? (34:52) Okay. (34:53) Remain silent for a moment. (34:59) Ruminate on it.

(35:02) Ruminate. (35:06) So, we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (35:10) through whom we have now received reconciliation. (35:14) Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, (35:19) and death through sin, (35:22) and in this way death came to all people because all sinned.

(35:28) We have disobeyed God in one way or another, (35:33) and disavowed his authority over us, (35:37) and put ourselves in step with Satan. (35:42) To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, (35:46) the law of sin and death, or the law of Moses. (35:50) I think he’s talking about the law of Moses.

(35:53) But sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is now no law. (35:59) Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, (36:05) even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, (36:11) as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come. (36:17) But, verse 15, (36:20) the gift is not like the trespass, (36:23) for if the many died by the trespass of the one man, (36:29) how much more did God’s grace and gift (36:33) that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, (36:38) overflow to the many.

(36:40) So Jesus is introducing grace, (36:44) and once he is resurrected from the grave, (36:47) he is given complete authority over everything, (36:53) and he is now the one we look to for our grace. (36:59) So, be sure, number 13, (37:06) to be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, (37:10) but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. (37:15) Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, (37:20) even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, (37:23) as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

(37:28) Verse 15, (37:28) but the gift is not like the trespass, (37:31) for if the many died by the trespass of the one man, (37:35) how much more did God’s grace and the gift (37:38) that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, (37:43) overflow to the many. (37:46) So Jesus is the instrument through whom we receive grace. (37:51) Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin.

(37:57) The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, (38:02) but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification, (38:10) for if by the trespass of the one man death reigned through the one man, (38:16) how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace (38:22) and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. (38:29) In other words, whosoever will. (38:32) It’s our option.

(38:35) Do we want to receive it or not? (38:37) And Jim made a good point. (38:40) We can either accept it or reject it. (38:45) In this context, (38:49) two things are being discussed here.

(38:51) Grace is one of them. (38:54) But grace in this context isn’t the gift that’s being talked about. (38:59) It’s talking about THE gift.

(39:01) So there’s a specific gift that’s being talked about here. (39:07) And this is where we find out what it is, 16 and 17. (39:11) But it started even in Romans 3, (39:16) verse 24 where it’s talking about, (39:19) you will be justified by the grace of God.

(39:23) So if we look at grace as being an unmerited favor, (39:29) the question is, what favor, (39:34) don’t we merit that God give us? (39:36) And his grace, that giving unmerited favor, (39:42) is something he likes to do. (39:45) That’s what grace is. (39:46) Grace is the process that God gives things to us.

(39:51) What does he give us? (39:54) What does he bestow on us by his grace? (39:57) It’s by his grace that he gives us things, a gift. (40:05) Grace is a gift in that God likes to do that. (40:07) That’s wonderful.

(40:09) And we wouldn’t be able to coax him to do that (40:12) if he didn’t want to do that. (40:14) So that, in that sense, is a gift, grace. (40:18) But what he gives, for example, when we are baptized, (40:24) we receive the Holy Spirit.

(40:27) That’s a gift. (40:27) The gift is the Holy Spirit through God’s grace. (40:33) Through his gift-givingness, he gave us the Holy Spirit.

(40:37) But to help understand this passage, (40:42) we need to know what Paul’s talking about (40:44) when he says THE gift. (40:47) And he’s kind of told us already, (40:50) it involves justification and it involves righteousness. (40:55) And because this chapter started by saying (41:01) since we have been justified by faith, (41:04) the context is that justification and righteousness.

(41:10) And he’s contrasting that with Adam, who gave us death. (41:18) And the righteousness and justification (41:22) are going to give us life. (41:24) That’s the discussion that’s going on.

(41:27) So in these two verses, (41:30) you read these two verses trying to understand (41:32) what it is that he gives us unmerited (41:36) that we don’t merit through his grace (41:41) and clarifies this passage. (41:43) Okay, okay, okay. (41:46) Right, and I follow you.

(41:48) I follow you very well. (41:50) And justification and righteousness is the gift. (41:55) There’s no question about it.

(41:58) There’s no question about it. (41:59) Justification and righteousness is the reconciliation, (42:05) the process of reconciliation. (42:07) So he says, like the person who’s on trial, (42:11) the judge is looking at him and he says, (42:14) they’re justified.

(42:15) And what does that mean? (42:17) I’m not holding it against you. (42:19) You’re not going to be tried for it. (42:21) You’re going to be forgiven.

(42:23) And you’re justified. (42:28) You’ve been justified. (42:30) And so when you justify a person, (42:32) you’re declaring him to be righteous.

(42:34) And when you’re declaring him to be righteous, (42:36) you are reconciled to God. (42:39) And that’s the whole thing. (42:42) In the beginning of the chapter, (42:45) we’re justified by grace.

(42:47) It tells us how, with death. (42:52) We’re dying, and the reconciliation is resurrection. (42:56) And that’s the reason why Paul in the third chapter says, (43:00) are we nullifying the law? (43:02) No.

(43:03) We’re upholding the law. (43:05) And we’re upholding the law because how? (43:07) Christ paid the debt. (43:10) Christ paid it.

(43:12) And Christ’s righteousness is being given to us. (43:17) It’s credited to us. (43:22) That’s the gift.

(43:23) But the whole process is reconciliation. (43:27) And that’s what we’re after, is reconciliation. (43:31) And so the whole process is to understand that God is declaring us to be justified, (43:37) and Jesus is not leaving the debt unpaid.

(43:42) It’s got to be honored. (43:44) It has to be reconciled. (43:45) He has to justify why he’s going to condemn the rest of the world, (43:50) is because they didn’t take him up on the offer to be justified.

(43:56) And so justification, righteousness, and reconciliation all come together in one package. (44:06) And so that’s the gift that God is giving to us, (44:09) and that’s the product of grace, which is the product of love. (44:15) And my time is up.

(44:18) Way up. (44:20) Thank you so much. (44:22) And so let’s take a real quick look to the rest of the chapter, (44:28) and then we’ll go into chapter 6. (44:33) Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, (44:38) so also one righteous act resulted in justification and like for all people.

(44:44) For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, (44:50) so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. (44:57) So the value of being righteous cannot be overstated. (45:03) It can be reaching out to millions and millions of people.

(45:08) The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. (45:13) He’s talking about the law of Moses, I believe. (45:15) But where sin increased, grace increased all the more.

(45:19) So that just as sin reigned in death, (45:23) so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (45:33) And so I have to say amen. (45:36) Thank you.

(45:37) We’ll go into chapter 6 next week.