Passage
Romans 5:12-21 (ESV)
A New Heaven and a New Earth
Revelation 21:1-8
Key Verse: 21:2
The Many Will Be Made Righteous
Date: Apr. 22, 2015
Daily Bread
Key Verse: 5:19
First, Adam was the pattern (12-14). Paul writes, "through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous." But how can this be? How can one act of righteousness result in justification and life for all people? The answer is an amazing truth: like Adam, Christ is our representative. We understand Adam's representation very well! Verse 12 says that sin and death entered the world through one man. When Adam sinned, we all sinned because we were in him. He represented all of us and death has come to all people without exception because we have all inherited Adam's sinful nature. But the good news is that Christ is also our representative!
Second, the gift is not like the trespass (15-21). The gift of grace we have in Christ far exceeds the reach and power of the trespass. The trespass brought death, but God's gift in Christ is one of abundant, overflowing grace. Though just one trespass brought judgment, the gift of God covers all our trespasses. While sin reigned in death, in Christ, we will reign in life! Although Adam's disobedience made us sinners, Christ's obedience has made us righteous.
Prayer: Father, thank you for placing us in Christ, our savior. His righteousness has become our own!
One Word: God's gift of grace is overflowing!
