The Gift of Salvation (Justification of Life)

Thank you, for your gift of salvation, Jesus’ gift brought me life!

December 9, 2019

"Therefore as by the offense 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."

Romans 5:18

Our verse for today compares two individuals and what they did to/for mankind.  Adam, who is the Federal Head of the human race, and Jesus Christ, who is the Redeemer.

“Therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation;”
After God made man, and before He turned him loose in the garden, He clearly explained to Adam what He expected of him.

God gave Adam a purpose for living.

“And the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it” (Genesis 2:15).

God gave Adam one rule for his protection and wellbeing.

“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 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” (Genesis 2:15-16).

But Adam, our great, great grandfather, and our representative, willfully failed God’s clear test and brought sin crashing down on the heads of all mankind.  Adam’s sin was “imputed” to our accounts (Romans 5:12).  And we have also “inherited” our sin nature from him (Psalm 51:5; Ephesians 2:3).

Because of the actions of this one man, Adam, we are all sinners.

“Even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.”
Jesus Christ, “the second Adam,” came to earth as the sinless Son of God, and He took our place on the cross of God’s Judgement for sin.  He died in my place to provide eternal life for me.

“For if by one man’s offense 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.)” (Romans 5:17).

And because of the work of Jesus Christ, we can have salvation from our sin!

Dear Lord, thank you for saving me and ending the power of sin over me, to God be the glory!