Introduction
You should put a big, bold line between
5:11 and 5:12, because this marks a major transition in Romans--from justification
to sanctification. These terms describe two different aspects of the salvation
God gives us through Christ. Before we get into our text, let's be sure we all
know the difference between these two terms.
Justification is
God's permanent verdict of acquittal. Sanctification is a dynamic process of spiritual
growth into Christlikeness.
Justification is God's deliverance from the
legal penalty of our sins against God. Sanctification is God's deliverance from
the practical power of sin over our lives.
Christians soon discover
that although they have been forgiven, and experience some cool changes, they
still have something deep within them that is still highly allergic to God, desiring
to rebel against him, exalt self, etc. This is what Paul calls "indwelling
sin" or our "sin-nature" (read 7:18-23 selections).
When
you discover this reality, you can respond in one of three ways:
You
can practice Pharisaic denial--hide behind a superficial Christian verneer (don't
cuss; be nice in public) and tell yourself that you are therefore morally superior
to others (Matt. 23:25,26).
You can give way to fatalistic despair--admit
that your sin-nature is beyond your ability to defeat and give in to it ("What's
the use?)
Or you can learn more about God's way of sanctification. This
takes some time and effort, because the third contrast is . . .
Biblical
teaching concerning justification is "milk"--relatively easy to understand.
Biblical teaching concerning sanctification is "meat"--more difficult
to understand, as we will see over the next few weeks.
Yet
it is God's will for every Christian to be able to understand and apply this teaching,
because Paul writes this section to all the Christians in Rome, just as he did
concerning the previous section on justification.
I will do my best to explain
this material as simply and clearly as I can--but it will still require careful
attention and prayerful reflection on your part. Are you ready? Here we go . . .
The
first order of business is to understand how we got this problem of our sin-nature.
This is why Paul starts with a description of two humanities . . .
The
root problem: descent from Adam
Read 5:12. The first part of the verse
should be familiar to most of us. The "one man" through whom sin and
death entered the world is Adam (Gen. 2,3). When he disobeyed God's command concerning
the fruit of the tree (Gen. 2:17), that was sin. And the result was death
(Gen. 3:19).
But what about the second part (re-read)?
Did death spread to all of us because we sinned like Adam did--or because
we sinned with Adam? This is where the "meat" starts. As strange
as it may seem, Paul is saying that death spread to all of us because we sinned
with Adam. We know this for several reasons:
Read 5:13,14. Paul
is saying that people between Adam and Moses died even though they didn't sin
like Adam did in the sense of violating a direct command warning of death for
disobedience. Why? Because it spread to them from Adam.
Read 5:15. Why do
Adam's descendants die physically? Because of the transgression of Adam.
Paul
states this same truth very clearly in 1 Cor. 15:21,22 (read).
We
inherit death as a consequence of Adam's choice to revolt against God. Why? Because
we were "in Adam" when he did this. We weren't conscious, of course--but
because we descend from him biologically, his choices affected us in certain profound
ways. Theologians call this "federal headship," which means that the
choices of the ancestor affect all of his descendants in certain profound ways.
Although this concept seems strange (even offensive) to our hyper-individualistic
culture, it is a fact of human existence that is inviolably operative.
My
last name is DeLashmutt. This is an Americanized form of a French name, de la
Chaumette. My research indicates that the de la Chaumette's were Huguenots (French
Protestants), who were severely persecuted in France during the 1600's and 1700's.
Many immigrated to America to escape this persecution. I theorize that my ancestor
survived the persecution by successfully immigrating to America, and I have two
excellent lines of evidence to support my theory: I exist, and I live in America.
In fact, because I was "in" my ancestor, there is a certain sense in
which I can say that I escaped persecution and that I came to America.
This
is what Paul is arguing in Rom. 5. Because the whole human race was "in Adam"
when he rebelled against God, we all participated in that rebellion with him,
and we all inherit the consequences for his rebellion.
Why
is this important for understanding sanctification? Because it explains where
we got our profound spiritual problems--and because it points the way to God's
radical solution to those problems. But first let's understand the consequences
we inherit from Adam . . .
The consequences we inherit
from Adam
Paul mentions three such problems in 5:15-19. We'll look at these
verses more closely in a few minutes--but for now, let's just identify them.
We've
already identified the first one--death (read 15:a,17a). This death refers
not only to physical death, but also to spiritual death (separation from God).
God warned Adam that in the day that he ate of the fruit, "dying, you shall
die." In other words, there was an immediate death (separation from God)
followed by an eventual death (physical).
This explains why
we all die physically, and why we aren't born knowing God. Instead, from our earliest
years we sense that we are alienated from God in varying ways and degrees (until
we meet God through Christ).
We also inherit condemnation
(read 5:16a,18a). This does not mean that God holds us guilty for what Adam did;
the rest of scripture denies this (see Rom. 1,2). Rather, it means because we
are born into the world separated from God and with a tendency to rebel against
him which we all act on (NEXT), we are born headed inevitably toward sin and judgment.
Lastly,
and most importantly for our study of sanctification, we inherit a sin-nature
from Adam (5:19a)--an in-born inclination to rebel against God, make ourselves
our own gods, use others for our own ends, etc. We do not get this primarily from
our environment, but from Adam--it is his nature bequeathed to us and in our hearts
from birth (read Mk. 7:20-23 selections). This is a dark picture, but it
is also realistic.
If you are a student of history, you know
that this is the major theme that consistently overshadows the minor theme of
human goodness and nobility. Contemplating whether or not humanity has a future,
the atheist Bertrand Russell's conclusion is the same as Jesus': "It is in
our hearts that the evil lies, and it is from our hearts that it must be plucked
out."
If
you are a parent, you know that your young children do not have to be taught to
lie, manipulate, covet, or delight in hurting others. They do these things naturally
and from a very early age. They have to be taught not to do this.
Something is deeply wrong and spoiled from the beginning.
Since
our spiritual problems are constitutional and inherited, no amount of positive
self-talk or behavioral conditioning or religious discipline will ever uproot
them. Since we inherit them from our federal head and his wrong decisions, the
only real solution would be to somehow get a new federal head who did things right
so we could inherit the blessings from this. God is not interested in merely reforming
the old human race; his remedy is much more radical than that. His remedy is to
create a whole new human race from a new federal head. And this is exactly what
God has done through Jesus Christ.
Jesus: a new federal head
Re-read
5:14b. Adam was a "type"--a picture of him who was to come (Jesus Christ).
In other words, Jesus was a new federal head, the inaugurator of a new humanity.
This is why Paul elsewhere calls Jesus the "last Adam" (read 1 Cor. 15:45).
And
because Jesus is the last Adam, his descendants inherit a blessing that is exactly
the opposite of the curses inherited by Adam's descendants.
Read 5:17. All
who descend from Adam are subject to death, as we saw. But all who descend from
Jesus will reign in life--both personal union with God in this life and eternal
life in the next.
Read 5:18. All who descend from Adam are subject to condemnation,
as we saw. But all who descend from Jesus receive God's gift of justification.
Read
5:19. All who descend from Adam receive a sin-nature, as we saw. But all who descend
from Jesus receive new resources to be made righteous. Ultimately, when Jesus
returns, his descendants will have their sin-natures eradicated. In this life,
we still retain our sin-natures--but we receive a new nature that motivates us
to follow God, and a new relationship with our sin-natures that removes its authority
over us. We will learn more about this (and how to apply it) NEXT WEEK as we study
Rom. 6.
How can you become a descendant of Jesus?
The obvious
question is: How do you become a descendant of Jesus? He had no biological children,
and physical re-birth is impossible anyway. Here is wonderful difference between
descent from Adam and descent from Jesus.
You become a descendant of Adam
by physical birth, which is completely apart from your choice. But you become
a descendant of Jesus by spiritual birth, which is completely by your choice.
This is exactly what Jesus taught. You may remember the conversation he
had with Nicodemus in Jn. 3. When Nick asked how to gain entrance into God's
kingdom, Jesus told him he had to be born again spiritually (read Jn. 3:3-6).
And the same gospel tells us how to do this (read Jn. 1:12). Inclusion into
God's new family is not something you get from your parents or from religious
effort. It is a gift that God gives to everyone who receives Christ.
Paul
emphasizes this same point in 5:17 ("those who receive"). Have you made
this choice? You can do this today by simply calling out to God and saying: "Please
adopt me into your family so I can have your life, your acceptance, and so you
can make me righteous."
Footnotes
Copyright 1999 Gary DeLashmutt