Romans 5:9-18

Since Christ’s blood has now given us God’s approval, we are even more certain that Christ will save us from God’s anger. If the death of his Son restored our relationship with God while we were still his enemies, we are even more certain that, because of this restored relationship, the life of his Son will save us. In addition, our Lord Jesus Christ lets us continue to brag about God. After all, it is through Christ that we now have this restored relationship with God. Sin came into the world through one person, and death came through sin. So death spread to everyone, because everyone sinned. Sin was in the world before there were any laws. But no record of sin can be kept when there are no laws. Yet, death ruled from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin in the same way Adam did when he disobeyed. Adam is an image of the one who would come. There is no comparison between ⌞God’s⌟ gift and ⌞Adam’s⌟ failure. If humanity died as the result of one person’s failure, it is certainly true that God’s kindness  and the gift given through the kindness of one person, Jesus Christ, have been showered on humanity. There is also no comparison between ⌞God’s⌟ gift and the one who sinned. The verdict which followed one person’s failure condemned everyone. But, even after many failures, the gift brought God’s approval. It is certain that death ruled because of one person’s failure. It’s even more certain that those who receive God’s overflowing kindness and the gift of his approval will rule in life because of one person, Jesus Christ. Therefore, everyone was condemned through one failure, and everyone received God’s life-giving approval through one verdict.